It's summer 2021, which means it's time for an adventure!

I turned twenty one in April, and I had a birthday trip planned to out west for years! One of my must-do things was to always visit the Grand Canyon. I had only seen one wonder of the world before the trip, which was Niagara Falls.

After a whirlwind weekend in Las Vegas, my family, my two friends, and I drove to the Grand Canyon. It was about a five-hour drive. We took a longer scenic drive through Route 66, which was a great experience and must-do bucket list item if you are out that way!

We got to our hotel at around 3:30 in the afternoon. When we got out of the rental car, it was freezing! Just coming from sunny Las Vegas, all of us only packed shorts and t-shirts. We didn't't realize that it would be so chilly!

Before we went to the Canyon that evening for the sunset, we bought some long sleeve t-shirts to shield us from the wind picking up. At an elevation of around 7,000 feet, it gets windy. It's best to be prepared.

When we finally got into the park and chose a spot to see the sunset, the view was magnificent.

It was beyond what I imagined. While we only stayed for thirty minutes that evening because it was so cold, it was great to see the Canyon during the sunset! On the way back, we spotted some large elk which were amazing to see as well.

The next morning, we got back up in warmer weather to get another glimpse of the Canyon. While in many places there was minimum protection from the drop off, many spots had some rock ledges built up so people could sit, take in the scenery, and get the perfect photo. We did just that. After soaking up the view for the last time for probably about an hour, we headed out on our next part of our journey to Scottsdale. It really was a grand canyon after all!