Day 9 Saturday Grand Canyon to Baker

  Baker, California
Saturday, May 23, 2009

Got up at 0700, had usual breakfast of bagels with cream cheese and Cinnamon Crunchies, yum. Called into the store to get tablets for the RV crap tank as we will be dumping it today. Funnily enough a dump is the only thing we have not done in it so far as we had the facilities of the campground!
 
Got the blue shuttle round to the Hermits Rest shuttle pick up point (red shuttle route). The bus here is not as frequent as the rest of the park. It will only take 40 odd seated passengers (no standing) at the start and end of its journey due to some strange regulations, so if you arrive at busy times you may be queuing for some time. However, if it picks up passengers AFTER it leaves the initial pick up point, you can stand in the isles.
 
So, if you go for this bus and there is a big queue, I suggest you walk along the rim trail to Trailhead Point - about 10-15 minutes walk with good views down to Bright Angel Trail - and pick up the bus at that point.
 
We went out as far as Maricopa Point as we have to leave the campground by 11am. We walked from there back towards Bright Angel Lodge, getting some photos of the Bright Angel Trail that we hiked down yesterday. We have decided that if only 5% of visitors hike the Canyon we must be in the 2.5% bracket as we have hiked it twice!
 
PHOTO_ID_L=13_bright-angel-trail.jpg]We went back to the RV, had a final shower and tidied everything away and left our slot at 11am. Now was time for another RV initiation - our first dump! Mather Campground has an Dump station where you may empty your tanks. After 4 days in the RV our Blackwater tank (toilet) still read as empty, our Greywater (shower and sink) was 2/3 full, our Freshwater empty and LPG 2/3 full.
 
We parked up by the Dump station and first filled up with fresh water. You can either use the supplied hose or the hose that comes with the RV that you screw onto the tap and fill till it overflows. Next was the poo! You always make sure your valves are closed before connecting up the waste hose (I found a video on YouTube on how to dump your RV before I came here). The hose goes into the allocated hole in the ground. You then pull the lever to dump the Black, and then dump the Grey to flush it through. There was then a hose to flush your hose afterwards. Great fun.
 
After a stop to buy our GC hoodie, at 1200 we were on our way. There were miles of traffic heading for GC with it being Memorial Weekend. The road to Williams was streams and streams of cars and RVs. We got to Williams then I40 East to Kingman. The weather improved all the time as we headed West, soon we were back in blue skies and sunshine and the need to switch on the AC. At Kingman we stopped at the Safeways we went to on the way out. We stocked up with groceries etc. there.
 
And here's another MoneySavingExpert tip for anyone coming here on holiday. If you shop at Safeways, - get a Safeways Card. Even us Brits can get one, you get it there and then, no forms to fill etc. Our grocery bill was $110, when the Card discount was applied it dropped to $83! Just like that. Plus we got 3c off a gallon when we filled up with petrol/gas at the Safeways pump outside. With we got one last time we shopped here.
 
3.45pm we were off from Kingman heading for Death Valley. We went I93 - I68 - I95-164 - I15, some of the roads, especially the 164 and I95 were just one big long straight road, very strange to see, even stranger to drive on.  Now, the plan had been to go to Shoshone just outside of the Valley to an RV camp there, but it was getting late.
 
We got as far as Baker where we should then turn north to Shoshone but it was already 7pm. We filled up with petrol/gas (over $3 a gallon now) and spotted a big empty lot with a couple of RVs and trucks already parked up. We asked at the nearby restaurant and they said people park up there all the time, so we went over and settled under a tree - another first for us. First Dumping, now Boondocking!
 
We had a tea of chips and dips plus finished off the chicken we had bought in Safeways as a late lunch. I flashed up the Generator to charge up the laptop and get the AC to cool us down, The wind had picked up and there was a bit of a breeze blowing. I could pick up a couple of Wifi sites but none unsecured. There is a truck stop nearby that probably has it. The world largest thermometer stood proudly just ahead of us saying it was a nice 72F outside.
 
We settled here for the night and watched some TV programmes on the Laptop. The temperature started going up after I switched off the generator, it was hot when we went to be at 1045 pm. Took a while to get to sleep due to the heat and wondering if some gun wielding local may kill us in our beds (or steal our tyres!)