Grand Canyon NP, AZ, 2024

Outtake from “Go West Old Man” tour

This is gone now.

In last fall’s “Go West Old Man” tour with my two pals, there were only two places in the 17 day drive that I had never visited–Bryce Canyon, and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We left our budget hotel the morning after seeing Bryce, heading for the nearby North Rim. “Breakfast,” was a lobby counter with some stacked, packaged food that was their “included” breakfast buffet.

That minimal effort didn’t bother me. When you are traveling for photography, a lot of meals come down to accepting what you can get when and where you are. I love a 7 course Chef’s Tasting with wine pairing as much as anyone, but I can also live for days on Honey Buns, power bars, coffee and beer if the location is good shooting.

When Paul opened his pastry and looked at the heavy mold covering the bottom he tossed it in the trash. I had already finished eating mine and tried not to think about what might have been growing on it, so as soon as we got into the park we looked for more food and coffee, at the Lodge.

Our drive was always pushing on, spending little time most places. I had a date certain from Barbara that I was to be back home, so we grabbed something to eat, looked around for a bit, and headed on. I wish now I had taken a little more time to explore the place, and photographed the Lodge. The original was built in 1928 and, after a fire in 1932, was rebuilt in 1937, so you expect it to always be there. Things change.

For more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index