Day 5, Mile 2,695

Big hole.
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Today was a short day, distance-wise, but still fully packed.  Western Arizona is a place with lots of really big holes.

The first hole is called Meteor Crater.  It was actually formed by a 150ft wide meteorite impacting the earth 50,000 years ago.  Because it is the first discovered impact crater on earth, and it has been studied extensively, the Apollo astronauts all trained here prior to their lunar landings.  Meteor Crater is 4,000ft wide and 570ft deep; it is a big hole.

Bigger hole.
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Off of CA-64 north there are a number of "scenic spots" where you can pull off and look into the Little Colorado Gorge.  This is separate from the Grand Canyon, formed by a different river.  It was a welcome stop after a long morning drive, and it is very impressive.  A few miles long and 800ft deep, it is a much bigger hole.

Then we come to the Grand Canyon.  It is 277 miles long, 1-15 miles wide, and over 4,000ft deep.  In short, it is the mother of all holes.  I tried to imagine what Spanish explorer and conquistador Fransisco Coronado must have thought when he first saw the Canyon.  It was probably something like: "Hm.  Can't cross that.  We'll have to walk around it."

The mother of all holes.
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As I came off the highway into Kingman, AZ this afternoon, I noticed that the town features a Del Taco and an In-N-Out Burger.  These were a welcome sight because they mean that my destination is now within a day's drive.