To The Canyon We Went

Packing for our big adventure to the Grand Canyon was a challenge. In retrospect, both Michael and I took too much. For myself, I wanted things that would take me from the Grand Canyon’s cooler North Rim to the warmer South Rim. On Southwest Airlines, we have one checked bag each which meant that I had more room than usual when I travel with a carry-on.

The Plan

I tried to have a  versatile capsule wardrobe, one that would take me from cold to warm days. I based my selections on two important items that I found for our trip; a Barbour (eBay) microfiber brown plaid jacket and a leather Peralina (Poshmark) backpack bag (also brown). Brown can be boring so I needed things to jazz it up. Three silk scarfs and a few things in burgundy did the trick.

Below is what I wore for the plane trip to and from Las Vegas. We didn’t stop in Vegas but immediately rented a car and headed toward the North Rim. Air-wear was my hand knitted vest, brown jeggings, cranberry turtleneck, Vans, and a vintage silk Eileen Gold square scarf.

I’ve had this faux fur collar denim vest forever and it came in handy on cooler days. Here I paired it with my burgundy Pendleton merino turtleneck, navy jeans, Vans, and a Bill Blass vintage silk scarf.

Below is the same outfit but once we got to the North Rim, I exchanged the denim vest for the Barbour jacket. This jacket is a dream. It has zippers, flaps, hidden pockets and event a hood nestled under the collar. I had hunted for a Barbour “anything” on the second hand market for a year and this one is just my cup of tea. Michael is very jealous and now I am hunting for similar Barbour for him.

A brief fashion break for a Big Horn sheep! This guy walked up right behind me while I was setting on a rock. We’d been to Colorado twice and I was always on the look out for one of these gentleman but with no luck. Throughout this trip, views of the Grand Canyon were spectacular and the magnificence hard to describe. But on this day, seeing that Big Horn made my day.

The hardest working piece I took was my  CC Beanie, in Oatmeal Confetti, which I found at Lillians KC. This hat was on my head more often than not. These hats are light and handy.  If you don’t have a boutique near you that carries them, Amazon has an amazing selection.

This was my one color change because I just couldn’t do brown every day. I took my Eileen Gold silk scarf and turned it into a necklace.

Now you can see why I needed to bring the black layering shell with me: the back feature is the reason I snapped this top up at Goodwill.

Another wildlife break! Elk are everywhere and aren’t afraid of humans. Just keep a healthy distance and everything will be fine.

This is another capsule combination and I really went head to toe brown on this day and added the third silk scarf that I took along, a vintage Vera Neuman. On my feet are my beloved Timberland boots. However, one of the soles started coming unhinged. Michael fixed it the minute we got home and they are ready to hit the road again.

We did walk down the Bright Angel Trail for a bit. Without proper hiking shoes, we didn’t venture too far. I started running about a month before our trip so I would be able to walk longer distances with ease. My desire to be at the bottom of that canyon is pretty strong… that is all I am going to say about that for now.

American Bison open range near the North Rim: we stopped the car to take a few snaps.

Michael was a lot more fearless than me. “You be careful!” was uttered a lot.

Oh, the Ravens! These gutsy birds were everywhere. I’m sure it has to do with the easy pickins’ and there were plenty of signs saying, “Let the Ravens feed themselves.”

Hello from the South Rim.

In the end, my final thoughts about what I took on the trip:

PANTS:

2 pairs of navy jeans,

1 pair of black jeans

1 pair of brown jeggings

This was perfect. I used them all.

TOPS:

3 merino turtlenecks (oat meal, burgundy and brown

1 Thick cotton turtleneck

2 lighter tops, 1 cranberry rayon turtleneck and 1 black tweed top

2 layering shells, black and taupe.

This was a total of six tops. I could have left the lighter cranberry turtleneck, oatmeal turtleneck and taupe-layering top home.

OUTERWEAR:

1 Barbour mid-weight jacket

1 heavy denim vest

1 hand wool hand knitted vest

1 viscose beige cardigan

1 light poncho/ruana

The poncho could have stayed home. I would trade it out for a hoodie with a zippered front which would have been much more practical.

SHOES

1 pair of gel insoles

1 pair of Vans

1 pair of black walking Puma’s

1 pair of very old brown Timberland boots (1995) which broke down the first day I   wore  them.

All could have all stayed home. Next time I will research and take one pair of good hiking shoes. After talking to a 62-year-old lady who had just finished her first rim-to-rim hike of the Grand Canyon, I am going to look into Vasque hiking shoes. Anyone out there who has a brand that they believe in, let me know.

EXTRAS:

3 Silk scarfs-a big yes! That is how I got my color.

1 small wool scarf

1 CC Beanie

1 cranberry beret

1 pair of gloves

1 watch

1 belt (reversible brown/black)

The small wool scarf should have been left out. I wished I had taken one of my ball caps. Yes, to keeping my head warm but I needed something extra to keep the sun off although I did wear 30 SPF on my face and hands every day. I didn’t take one piece of jewelry and didn’t miss wearing it.

Souvenirs

Can you tell anything about a person by their souvenirs they bring back? I’m not sure, but here’s what I decided to bring back (along with Michael’s over 2,000 photos). As noted above, I didn’t bring any jewelry with me but discovered two sets of Zuni crafted earrings that were just beautiful to me and Michael. The silver pair are handmade Navajo pearls and second inlaid coral. I picked these up at Jacob Lake Inn’s  gift shop. The inn, where we stayed while at the North Rim, is a family owned and run establishment. I was lucky enough to visit with the daughter who buys for the shop and seemed quite knowledgeable about the artists she selects. As a side note, I would like to eventually stay at the Grand Canyon Lodge-North Rim. Unfortunately, it was already closed for the season. That dining room is something else!

I also bought a small handy sketch book with the elusive Cougar (didn’t see one of those) and a small handwoven mug mat by Lucilla Ortiz Baca. Then there are the Ravens. I had to have something to remind me of those incredible birds and I now have a new cap. Here in Missouri, we have crows. You can’t live among corn fields and not often hear Crows. But I had never seen a Raven and was, like other canyon visitors, quite fascinated by these artful and crafty birds. The cap is from Hermit’s Rest, the farthest western point we reached on the South Rim.

This was such a memorable trip. I am only sorry that it took us so late in our lives to get there. My gut feeling is that we are not done with the Grand Canyon. I am closing with advice purportedly from Raven:

1. Be curious
2. Use your wits
3. Don’t be a picky eater
4. Make your voice heard
5. Don’t let life ruffle your feathers.

That wraps it up for this week. Thanks for stopping by. I’ll have another blog bit next week which will be a bit early because it will be time for the December  2nd Loved 1st Friday. You are certainly welcome to leave a comment or two or three. I love to hear from you.

I link up with some great blogs every week. To see who they are go HERE.

Both Husband Michael and I took photos used in the post today. Michael does a bit of editing from time to time.

Again, thanks for stopping by. Take care……..

Now it’s time for my 2nd Loved 1st Friday blurb!

The November 2nd Loved 1st Friday Linkup will stay open until November 30th.

Any post on a blog, Instagram, Facebook or the like can linkup to this style celebration. If you can copy and paste the URL in the Linky box, you are good to go!

One item is quite OK—a hat, skirt, pants, shoes, purse, or a piece of jewelry.  That item (or items) can be from a thrift shop, eBay, consignment shop, vintage boutique, one of the online consignment shops such as RealReal–or even something a friend gave you because they didn’t want it anymore.

When you do post, I would appreciate a description about your 2nd Loved item (or items), what type of shop you found it and what drew you to it. Tell as much or as little as you want. To be featured in my collage, which I will put on Instagram along with your links, you have to say what item is second loved. That is a “have to”.

If you have never participated in a linkup before, no fear. Go to Linkup 101 guide that is found on my 2^nd Loved 1^st Friday linkup page (also found at the top in the tab section).

Just click the frog below to link up and join the fun!

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