This tour was our last one before we headed to Bearizona.  In my opinion, it is the best way to experience the Grand Canyon from top to bottom AND stay on solid ground.  No helicopter rides for us!!!

On the Inner Canyon Tour, you will experience some of Arizona’s living history from the rim to the river – and places in between.   This full day adventure began at 9 AM at the Grand Canyon Railway Hotel in Williams where we boarded a very comfortable coach.  We traveled just over an hour on one of the last remaining stretches of the original Historic Route 66 en route to Peach Springs, AZ in the Hualapai Nation.  Yup - we were on an Indian Reservation!  Cool!   We stopped for a short time to use the facilities while our driver and tour guide - Bret - got the necessary permit for us to travel on Indian land to the bottom of the canyon.  Bret told us that this route is the ONLY inside route to the bottom!  If you are game for a burro ride, you can take that trip on the narrow trails on the outside cliffs to the bottom.  I am not up for such a trip.

After Bret got the permit, we drove through a part of the town to the dirt road that descended to the bottom of the Grand Canyon! As we descended down Diamond Creek into the depths of the chasm, we watched the massive canyon walls begin to tower over us while we marveled at views of the spectacular landscape and unusual desert plants. It took just under 2 hours to make the descent to the bottom.  We stopped a couple of times to take pictures of various types of cactus plants and just to stretch.

Once on the bottom, Bret provided us with Subway box lunches (turkey sandwiches) and a variety of drinks to chose from.  Pam and I sat on a couple of large rocks near the river's edge. There were also several rest rooms (porta-potties) that were clean.   We have just over an hour to explore, photograph, and take in the incredible scenery before returning to Peach Springs and back to Williams, Arizona via Route 66 and Interstate 40.  We got back to our hotel at about 5:30 PM.  It was a full-day adventure - and certainly one of the highlights of our trip!

Fortunately, it was overcast while we were at the river - otherwise, it would have been pretty warm.  The temperature - so I was told - can be as much as 25 degrees warmer at the bottom than the top. 

Enjoy the pictures we took while on this cool tour!!