Room+13B

LinaGray's and Ashley Wall's

// Grand Canyon //// Trip // // The Hike: 1st Day //

When we first arrived to the grand canyon we got off of our bus that we have been in for the past 7 � hours! Then we got on a trolley to go up to the Grand Canyon. We got off of the trolley and i saw it, how beatiful it was, as you peered over the edge staing in "ahhhh". You could see the layers of rock forming the canyon, it was so amazingly beatiful. Then we headed for the trail that zig zaged into the canyon that was breath taking. As we went down there was Layers of limestone first, which is a sediment rock from the ocean, meaning the Grand Canyon was actually once in the ocean! Image that, an ocean over Arizona! The Limestone and Sandstone actually alternate so, there will be some Sandstone then Limestone. In these rocks you can find fossils of ocean life such as, sea shells, coral and sea lilies. Our tour guide taught us an acronym and it was called D.U.D.E. This meant Deposition, Uplift, down cutting, and Erosion, which is how the Grand Canyon was formed. 2 native plants to the Grand Canyon are the Agave plant and the Pinyin Tree, that the first natives used a lot of and all of it. When we where done with the hike we got to see a few mules that carry things down to the bottom to of the canyon. The mules were so funny, and the hike was so amazingly breath taking.I loved it and it was my first time to the Grand Canyon, now I know why it is called the 'Grand Canyon' // The River Trip: 2nd Day //

The river trip was inside Glen Canyon, and the river that flows through the Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon and several states is the Colorado River. We went soft water rafting down Glen Canyon. As we started down this ramp going onto the deck there was a brige above us and the rocks layerd on top of one another almost like blakets layers on top of eatchother, it almost looked fake! Glen Canyon was actually named by John Wesley Powell who was the first person to go all the way down the river in boats. The boat ride that we took was around 3- 3 � hours! The canyon walls were made out of Navajo sandstone that is 180 million years old, and is very soft. Along the way we stopped at a petroglyph site. The drawings that people so long ago did were amazing. Then we continued on the boat and we got some lemonade that was hung over the side of the boat in the water to keep it cool because the water was 47 degrees. The average depth of the river we were rafti ng in was 25 feet deep. It use to be much deeper but the water has lowered more than hundreds of feet. Many states water supplies actually come from the Grand Canyon. As we were rafting down the river there was 7 camp spots you can stop at.This to me was the most fun part of the trip, i loved it! We ended our trip at Lee�s Ferry, or as some people call it ground zero, and loaded back on the bus and went to dinner then our hotel.

// Wupatki //// National Monument //// : 2nd Day // Wupatki is a United States National Monument in upper Arizona. This is a site where the Wupatki Pueblo lived about 800 years ago. The Wupatki Pueblos were very good builders. Archeologists believe one of the remaining buildings was the biggest building they built. It was approximately 4 floors and had 100 rooms. Wupatki Pueblos used all of there rooms as Multi- Purpose rooms. Unlike us, we have a living room where we gather, a kitchen where we cook, and a bedroom where we sleep. Although the Wupatki Pueblos lived here for a very long time there were little resources for necessities, such as food. Eventually the Pueblo moved and settled elsewhere and no one is sure why. The Pueblo had a gathering place and at this place the room had great acoustics which we assume was used for announcements so everyone could hear. After looking at the site we went and saw a blow hole. When the air above is warm and light it blows out. When the air above is heavy and moist is sucks in. When we went it was blowing out. I really thought this was amazing to have water shouting out of the ground!

// Sunset Crater Volcano: 2nd Day //

Sunset Crater is a volcano in northern Arizona and the reason it is called sunset crater is because at the top of the volcano it has a hole called a crater. Sunset crater use to be able to be hiked on like many other volcanoes around flagstaff but it was eroding away so they closed it down. the volcano was amazing, and so tall with botterscotch smelling trees all around. Sunset crater is a cinder cone volcano like many volcanoes in Flagstaff. When a volcano is about to explode there are a few sings, some are that it will begin to smell like rotten eggs, and an earthquake might happen. Around the volcano it was all volcanic rock made from magma that is very light because it cools quickly.An interesting fact about how Sunset crater became a national monument is because a movie company wanted to blow it up to make a movie but the citizens wanted to save it so they contacted the president and he saved it and made it a national park. The movie company then went somewhere else and 1 person was killed in the making. The last time Sunset crater really erupted though is 1,000 years ago. Then we went and saw something called an ice cave that is really cold inside and we got to go and feel it! Sunset Crater was beautiful to see and stad next to, it is also weird in this invirment to have these trees. When we were done here we loaded on the bus and headed home.