Open Letter To Myself About Beautiful Vacation Spots

Dear Vacationing Paty:

First, you need to be better about going on vacation. Second, you need to be better about going back to the places you enjoyed more often.

Unfortunately, I now have to add the North Rim of the Grand Canyon to my list of places, such as Chimney Rock and Bat Cave, North Carolina, that I went and promised I was going to go again soon, but didn't get back there before tragedy struck. I know these spots won't be the same, but hopefully they will recover and be better.

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It has almost been a decade since my trip to the Grand Canyon. It happened when one of my childhood besties and I made our way there in May of 2016. If it wasn't for Liz, I still would not have seen Arizona or the Grand Canyon.

The trip came together sort of at the last minute. The main purpose of the trip was to visit my friend's niece for her High School graduation. We figured since we were going to be out there, we should take in some extra time and take in some of the sights. I was determined to see the Grand Canyon.

If you know me, you know I love a good road trip. My friend's family was living in Chandler, Arizona, near Phoenix. We decided we could rent a car and take a trip to the Grand Canyon and Sedona.

Some of you may be thinking that we have lost our minds. We had roughly 3 days to do it in, and I was going to see it all. So we got a Jeep Cherokee and set out from Phoenix. If you love road tripping like me, you would love the drive.

We made it to the North Rim the first night. We got there in time to catch sunset. It was amazing. Even more amazing was the Grand Canyon Lodge, which we were able to walk through and enjoy. We could not stay there due to our last-minute planning. Reservations for the place are always booked a year out.

The Lodge was amazing and reminded me so much of places here in the Hudson Valley built around the same time, such as Mohonk Mountain House. We shopped at the gift shop, where I purchased a ring I wear every day. It replaced my engagement ring, but that is a story for another time.

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After driving out of the park, I was sure we would get back there someday and stay the night at the lodge. I even have it on my husband and I's trip bucket list. When I saw the fires on the news this weekend, I never imagined that the iconic lodge that was my first view of the canyon would be burned to the ground.

I saw that the place we stayed, Jacob Lake Inn, was in trouble, but then later today, they said it seems they have been spared from the fire. It never occurred to me that the big lodge on the canyon rim could be gone.

Jacob Lake Inn turned out to be a great place for us to stay. The rooms were great, the cafe served a great breakfast, and the inn offered the perfect spot to launch the rest of our trip, as we did it all in reverse, but this time stopped at the south rim and Sedona.

We managed to see a lot in two nights and two days, plus we squeezed in a trip to Waylon Jennings' Grave. And yes, there was a lot of driving, but it was worth it. And my only regret is that I didn't get back there sooner.

Much like I do with my memories of Chimney Rock and Asheville from 2023, I will add my North Rim Canyon 2016 moments to the list and look forward to being able to get back there soon.