I'm a Skywalker!

Yesterday my family and I enjoyed a fun mini vacation to the West Grand Canyon which is located on the Hualapai Indian Reservation. A definite highlight of our trip was the Skywalk. This is a glass bridge which extends in a loop over an edge of the canyon. Now this isn't as scary as it sounds. The bridge isn't completely made of glass. The thick glass panels forming the walkway are supported by a very solid-looking steel frame. (1) In addition to a very strong railing there are panels of glass which form a sort of wall all the way around the bridge. I had to step up on tip toe in order to stick my head over this glass wall. (Though I am a bit short). Also, along the edge of the walkway, you can see the bridge's frame through the glass, so the only clear part of the walkway, (through which you can see the canyon below), is the middle part. So if you get too panicky, you can always retreat to the edges of the bridge. The only thing I found truly unsettling was the fact that the glass panels forming the walkway were not touching each other. There were little cracks between each panel through which you could feel a breeze if you touched them with your hand. Once we got used to being on the bridge, the fun began. We ran on the bridge, we skipped on the bridge, we jumped on the bridge, and had an all around good time on the bridge. Two of my favorite activities were to:
1. Stand on the edge of the walkway and then jump onto the see-through middle, bringing your hands down to touch the glass.
2. Lean on the railing with your head over the glass wall. As you look down into the canyon, have someone push on your back. I, my dad, and each of my three brothers made the same little yelping sound when we did this to each other (weh!). It was great!! :) My mom did not participate in this activity.
I felt quite bold on the bridge, but once I got off it, I felt just a little shaky and flushed. I guess this was just my brain's way of asking me "are you completely nuts?!!"
The west Grand Canyon is a very beautiful place, especially if you don't get caught in a rainstorm which leaves you wet the rest of the day. The views are spectacular. The canyon here is not quite as wide as it is in other places which made for interesting views. I especially love the views where you can see many cliffs sort of zig-zagging across the canyon. (if that made any sense at all :). ) Guano Point had some great views, and an abandoned mining structure from the 1960's. (Believe it or not, they were actually mining bat guano.) The building would have been even cooler if it were older than the '60's, but as it was, it was still fun to look at and go inside. One other thing I loved about the West Grand Canyon was the isolation. You have to ride quite a ways on a dirt road through the Mohave desert complete with joshua trees. I thought it was awesome, though my mom was a little less than impressed. Once you get to the actual park, the roads are nicely paved. All in all, it was a great day!

(1) If you want to learn more about the engineering of the Skywalk bridge, there's a very nice website located at http://www.grandcanyonskywalk.com/engineering.html

Hello, and welcome to my humble blog!

Yes, it is very humble, isn't it. I'm not very computer savvy, so it might take time for me to get the hang of this, but I look forward to meeting new people and I hope you enjoy your stay here! :) For those of you who don't know, Meridy (of MeriNate) is my sister. If you haven't been to her blog I highly recommend it. You'll laugh, you'll cry, it's absolute magic!! But seriously folks, it's a great blog. I always enjoy myself immensly when I visit there. Nate and Meridy are much more funny and clever than I am, and you're sure to have a great time. :)
So, perhaps I should introduce myself. My name is Mandy, and I'm a college student. I share an adorable, albeit cranky Siberian cat with my parents and brothers. He was just in here, trying to climb up a chest of drawers, and the drawer he was hanging off of started to open and took him with it. Hahaha! *crickets chirping* Ha, now he's in the drawer, methinks I should shut him inside...No, he just jumped out. Sorry, perhaps I'd be kinder towards him if he hadn't of scrached me today. So anyway, this blog will probably be full of randomness and maybe even zaniness and hopfully we'll all have fun! :)