In Search of the Super Flower Blue Blood Moon on the North Rim

[Stepmurr]

Super (close to earth) Flower (name of this moon) Blue (2nd moon of the month) Blood (total eclipse turns moon red) Moon (moon )

I took the week before Memorial Day off to explore the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and photograph the lunar eclipse.

Along the way I took @Pitch up on his offer of a trip up the Great Western Trail Trail Run 5/22-23 GWT-Cherry to Williams - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/trail-run-5-22-23-gwt-cherry-to-williams.1252616/ as it was somewhat along the way.

After I parted ways with @Pitch and @Saddletramp on Sunday morning I hit up the South Rim for a few hours. I went to the Backcountry Office and asked for a permit to camp at the Tuweep campground at the Toroweap Overlook based on @Abigail 's suggestion in the North Rim Camping? - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/north-rim-camping.1224291/ thread.

The guy at the Backcountry Office said the Tuweep campground is rarely full and I got a permit for four nights.

I slept all afternoon on Tuesday so I could stay up for the full lunar eclipse. Unfortunately, the sky was cloudless on Monday night, cloudless on Wednesday night, but almost completely covered over on Tuesday night and the eclipse was a bust. Tuweep was great tho

Monday's cloudless moonrise - what I was expecting for Tuesday night

Tuesday's Super Flower Blue (preblood) Full Moon rise fuzzy due to heavy cloud cover

Made for a great sunset at Tuweep campground

By this time the moon was but a glow in the clouds

 

[Stepmurr]

Mo pix

Tuesday night at 7:59

Wednesday morning 1:17

2:59 you can tell its eclipsing but not much detail

 

[Stepmurr]

Mo pix

3:47

3:58 clouds are clearing slightly

4:05

4:07 disappearing behind a cloud again

4:08 never saw the moon again

 

[Garrissey]

Bad ass.

 

[Stepmurr]

After leaving Williams I headed to the South Rim to see if I could get a permit to camp at Tuweep campground from the Backcountry Office. Took a few pix while I was there of course.

GCHQ

South Rim Backcountry Office. I got a walkup backpacking permit here a few years ago to camp for two nights in the canyon. They have a first-come first-serve system to grant permits in case of cancellations. If you have a few days you can wait and show up every morning you might get lucky. Only took me two days of showing up to get the permit.

I hoped the same procedure was in place for Tuweep campground - but I didn't have to worry as the Ranger told me they rarely fill all the campsites and I got a permit for four nights.

Twinz!

The touristy shots from the South Rim

 

[Stepmurr]

Camped out side of the East entrance and headed north in the morning.

First stop Vermillion Cliffs & the Navajo Bridge over the Colorado. Might as well be the start of the Grand Canyon . . .

 

[Stepmurr]

Off to the North Rim

 

[Stepmurr]

Off to Toroweap and Tuweep

61 miles of dusty washboards to get to Toroweap. 58 of those miles you can drive in a passenger car (at least when its dry).

Ranger said this audiometer actually works

Backcountry humor

Shadow selfie

Looking over the edge at Toroweap overlook

 

[Stepmurr]

More views along the edge at Tuweep

Night pix taken at 2:30 in the morning

Sunrise

Campin' in the Solar Taco

 

[Stepmurr]

Random shotz

At least three of us had solar panels sitting out

Local resident

My new toy - 100 watt solar panel kept the batteries topped off so I was able to park and keep my fridge at 30 degrees for 3 1/2 days and still had a full charge

Clouds started moving in and eventually messed up the night's lunar eclipse

I have no idea what caused the dot pattern on my hub cover - only one of the four had this pattern

 

[Stepmurr]

The mighty Colorado River

Leaving the Tuweep area

 

[Stepmurr]

Critters on the way back to Fredonia

The elusive two-headed Pronghorn Antelope

 

[DSRTRDR]

After leaving Williams I headed to the South Rim to see if I could get a permit to camp at Tuweep campground from the Backcountry Office. Took a few pix while I was there of course.

GCHQ
View attachment 2692973

South Rim Backcountry Office. I got a walkup backpacking permit here a few years ago to camp for two nights in the canyon. They have a first-come first-serve system to grant permits in case of cancellations. If you have a few days you can wait and show up every morning you might get lucky. Only took me two days of showing up to get the permit.

I hoped the same procedure was in place for Tuweep campground - but I didn't have to worry as the Ranger told me they rarely fill all the campsites and I got a permit for four nights.
View attachment 2692974

Twinz!
View attachment 2692975

The touristy shots from the South Rim
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great pics

 

[re_guderian]

Awesome pics! I love it out there at Toroweap. Haven't been there in 15 years, took my girls when they were little. They dug just laying on the edge and looking over. The dog was having none of it, though. They're slightly more adventurous now...

 

[Stepmurr]

Awesome pics! I love it out there at Toroweap. Haven't been there in 15 years, took my girls when they were little. They dug just laying on the edge and looking over. The dog was having none of it, though. They're slightly more adventurous now...View attachment 2695662View attachment 2695663

Kewl Pics!

 

[Stepmurr]

Mo Pix

A few shots from inside the park along the North Rim

Not too crowded

Angels Window

Right outside the park in the Kaibab - heading to the East Rim or the night

The crack in the desert that becomes the Canyon

Arizona trail snakes through the area

 

[Stepmurr]

Mo pix

After one night on the East Rim I headed to the North Rim accessible forest roads in the Kaibab. This was the first camp along the North Rim.

Moonrise

Daybreak

The last night along the North Rim was the best - parked twenty feet from the edge.

1477.8 miles round trip. One of the longest in-state trips I've taken.

 

[splitshot]

Camped out side of the East entrance and headed north in the morning.

First stop Vermillion Cliffs & the Navajo Bridge over the Colorado. Might as well be the start of the Grand Canyon . . .
View attachment 2693978View attachment 2693979View attachment 2693980View attachment 2693981View attachment 2693982View attachment 2693983View attachment 2693984View attachment 2693985

Surely you had one of those "Lock out, Tag out keys".

 

[Stepmurr]

Thought I was looking at that Paris bridge with the lover’s locks

 

[splitshot]

Glad you made it back before the 60, 70, 177, and 77 were closed.