And then for something completely different, we flew south to Arizona, drove 4 hours to the Grand Canyon and prepared ourselves for the 5,000 foot descent from the Rim to the Ranch. Most people do this on foot, but my husband decided that we should do it by mule. 7 hours down the first day and 5 hours up the second day with an overnight on the edge of the Colorado River at Phantom Ranch on mule-back.
I wrote a few posts ago that my mule would be named Molly, well, little did I know that female mules are called Mollies. Specifically, I road Maude and we became well acquainted.
The ride itself was the real thing. The mules make their way along the cliff-edge of the Bright Angel Trail on the way down and the Kaibab Trail on the way up. Mine gravitated toward the very edge and there was little I could do to persuade her toward the wall. I figured she knew what she was doing, so I settled into the saddle and enjoyed the ride. Unaccustomed to that kind of pressure on my sit-me-down, I struggled to sit comfortably for the next 2 weeks. But I wouldn’t trade minute – well maybe the moment we rounded the “Jesus corner” where the guide informed us, “People meet God”.
