Sunrise at Grand Canyon, Yaki Point

Steve brings me to the visitor center shuttle bus depot where I catch the 6:30 AM orange line to Yaki Point. The bus is surprisingly full for the early hour. At 70, I am probably the oldest person present. Most get off at the Kaibab Trailhead. About half a dozen of us continue on, including a gray-haired couple.

When we leave the bus, there is a hushed silence. No one speaks above a whisper. I settle myself on a rock just above this gap in the rim to eat my granola bar, drink my tea, and pray as I wait.

To my left a young woman wears such an expectant expression that I ask her permission to take this.

Someone wanders to a point further east. Others soon follow.

And then the sun begins to touch the peaks.

The light grows. The color spreads. And a new day at Grand Canyon begins.