This morning we got an early start and  knowing it would be a long day, Cody came with us, much to her dismay.  She has become a homebody dog and not as much of a travelling dog as she used to be.  We started towards the Grand Canyon and took a 36 mile side trip to see the Sunset Crater Volcano and the Painted Desert in the distance.  The volcano erupted about 900 years ago and the devastation is still visible today with the lava flows and cinders the main scape of this area.  The ground cover is black with a few trees dotted through out the mountain side and surrounding area.  We got out of the truck and wandered through a small area to see up close how it must  have looked years ago.  Our side trip continued and took us past more ruins and at last the painted desert was visible miles away.  The near landscape is in greens of the trees, reds and yellows of the fore ground and in the distance the painted desert looked pink.  Once again we were on the highway driving towards the Grand Canyon.  We have never been there before and don’t know what to expect.  Cody has been dejected, sitting in the back seat, and even with walks her demeanor hasn’t brightened.  Poor girl.  Finally we arrived at the Grand Canyon and stopped at the Watch Tower viewpoint on the south rim in the National Park, the first of many we stopped at along the way.  Cody came with us to experience our first sight of the Grand Canyon.  Words fail us.  It is breathtaking.  Each stop along the way was more breathtaking.  It everything that we have read and heard about.  The trip back home was anti-climatic.   The day was long, but rewarding.