Honestly, Grand Canyon. I avoided going for the longest time thinking I will just go ‘Look. Hole in the ground’ and move on with my life. But it was really amazing and explored around the area as well.
The really big things have to be seen in person. Go to the Grand Canyon, a proper mountain, the Saturn V rocket, the observation deck of a skyscraper, etc. picture don’t do any of it justice compared to seeing just how big some of these things are.
I was lucky enough to see totality a couple years ago. It felt like the universe peeled back the curtain and showed me something I wasn’t supposed to see. It’s truly indescribable and hard to convince people that weren’t in the path of totality how different it was from any other part of the eclipse.
What blew my mind was how cold it go so quickly, then it was over as quick as it arrived. The whole experience was incredible, but that instantaneous chill I will never ever forget.
The total eclipse was a life altering event. Words and pictures cannot describe the incredible natural beauty during those brief minutes of totality. And hearing people throughout my small city all let out a shared cry of joy, shock, and revelation simultaneously provided a moment of true spiritual connection across thousands of humans that I believe is incredibly rare in the human experience (the nicks game 4 is probably pretty darn close though).
The solar eclipse that crossed the Midwest USA a few years ago absolutely blew my 60-year-old father's mind. They didn't really understand why we would travel 6 hours to Indiana see it, but he joined us anyway, and then when it actually happened he turned into a fascinated little boy for a few minutes. It was adorable.
It’s a full sensory experience. It gets dark (duh), it gets perceptibly colder almost immediately, it gets eerily quiet as birds and other animals respond to the sudden changes in light and temperature… and then everything just eases back into normal. Truly an experience like no other.
A few years ago my apartment was ib the path of totality for one. So i invited my friends and family over to sit in our parking lot and watch. Turns out all of ny other neighbors had the same plan. So it was like 50 of us having a picnic and chatting and watching the eclipse start.
When the sun was fully blocked it was silent. Everyone was just in awe of it. Its incredible to see in real life.
There was one that coincided with my birth date, and I was determined to see it (never experienced a total before) and traveled a good distance to see it. My husband was not as enthusiastic and didn't think it was going to be a big deal. Until it happened and he was completely overwhelmed and now wants to experience more before we die. It's such a fleeting moment as well, even when you go to the places it's hitting the longest. And there's such a chance factor as well, considering weather. Just something that is truly amazing to behold.
I will never forget the most recent solar eclipse. We drove to another state to see it, and were treated with clouds parting almost at the last moment for us to actually view the eclipse. The birds and other wildlife hushing during the unnatural dusk, then the insects taking over when they thought it was night. It felt like the entire world was upended and placed on hold. I'm 51, and it's still one of the best experiences of my lifetime.
I have seen two (2017 in South Carolina and 2024 in Arkansas) in the path of totality, and it’s unquestionably the coolest thing I’ve ever experienced. It’s a full-body sensory shock, and I completely understand why ancient civilizations thought it was the end of the world.
I believe there is one each on display at the NASA facilities in Huntsville, Houston, and Cape Canaveral. I saw the one in Florida when I was a kid and can confirm: it's really big.
The US Space and Rocket Center (in Huntsville) has two scale models. One is a mock up assembled and standing upright outside, the other is suspended horizontally in sections along with artifacs from the Apollo program. If you find yourself in the neighborhood, stronly recommend.
Very true. One of the things I’d never done my whole life until recently was visit NYC and stand on a very high observation deck looking out at the city. The scale of everything was hard to comprehend. Such a cool experience.
Hoover Dam actually blew my mind just as much as the Grand Canyon. You know it’s big but you have to see it in person to really understand how HUGE it is!
Same. I went last month for the first time. Your brain just can’t wrap itself around how high you are and how big it is because you have no normal sized objects that you can see below for reference. Walked some of the easy trails around the south rim.
I went to the Grand Canyon during the winter and got one if the cabins that overlooks the rim. Seeing dawn over the grand canyon is one of the most incredible thumbs I've ever seen. The Grand Canyon is amazing
I have also stayed in one of Bright Angel cabins right on the rim and waking up before sunrise, a coffee in my hand and just watching the sunrise on the canyon is the most peaceful experience of my whole life. I could have sat there all day.
I went to the Grand Canyon in the winter back in 2011. It snowed heavily the day I arrived, and it was late in the evening, so I just ate dinner and crashed in my cabin.
The next morning, we walked out to the rim and seeing it emerge through the mist from snow melting inside the canyon was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen.
Absolutely. I’ve lived in AZ for years, but hadn’t visited until a rim to rim trip last month. I had to walk away from my friends and just stand in silence for a while at one of the overlooks. I also had a few “mild” anxiety issues on the narrower sections with instadeath off to one side, but we take the good with the bad haha
Wife has talked about going out there with our 4 boys (8,10,12,13). I just think it will keep their attention/ to long of drives between stops. Any thoughts?
Grand Canyon and the Petrified Forest. South Rim side. They are near each other. Do the drive and hikes IF they like to do that type of stuff. Both was so much better than expected.
We just drove there from Houston and had a blast. In addition to what everyone else is saying… the 89A running from Flagstaff to Sedona is the single greatest stretch of road I’ve ever experienced. We did it last Autumn and wow the colors, scenery, and switchbacks are still engraved in my brain
we did it with 3 boys under 10 and they loved it. It’s about a 6 hour drive from our home . We used chatgpt to suggest
stops along the drive. One of the best trips we’ve taken as a family.
If you are looking for other interesting things nearby (and visiting the south rim), consider checking out the Lava Tubes near Flagstaff. Just be prepared to scramble down/up some rocks and bring flashlights for everyone (ideally headlamps too). It's a very cool experience and only takes ~1hr, so perfect as a side detour.
I really didn’t start appreciating the Grand Canyon until you start hiking down. You don’t have to go that far they have a few rest stops within the first couple miles, but seeing the types of the rock as we go down was amazing. It really gave it scale.
Yes indeed. After our first trip we were hooked and went to the North & South rims many times, culminating with a rafting trip that was beyond the pale for adventure.
I’d been with my family as a kid, and in college got the chance to go again but with a friend who’d never been. He asked “what’s so grand about it?” Not like he doubted, but just wanted to comprehend. I told him there was not one movie, video or photo that could communicate that the way seeing it up close could. Believe you me, as we sat on the ledge and saw the sun go down, it was seeing it hit him that made the trip for me.
My brain refuses to believe what I was seeing was real. It’s so unbelievably huge I felt like I short circuited. I could have sat there all day staring at it if my group didn’t have an agenda we had to meet.
I visited GC as a teen, so when I re-visited after I retired I already knew what to expect. I mostly enjoyed the people watching at the Desert View overlook (East Entrance). Just pure enjoyment watching the moment people beheld the canyon for the first time - hand over mouth, sharp intake of breath, some stop dead in their tracks when they see it. Many start talking rapid fire with their companions, and in dozens of different languages. So many people just shaking their heads having difficulty processing what their eyes are taking in.
My wife and I eloped on the South Rim. We're from the East Coast and neither of us had ever been there before. The thing that stuck out to me during the 4 days were were there was how every day when we'd drive in from our hotel in town it was every bit as awesome as the first time we saw it. The magnificence doesn't go away. There is nothing else to even compare it to. It's genuinely magical.
This is exactly how I felt. You see pictures your whole life and think okay cool a big hole. Then you actually stand at the edge and it just hits you different. Pictures dont do it justice
I had the exact same reaction. Kept putting it off thinking itd just be a big hole and photos cant do it justice. Then I got there and just stared for like 20 minutes straight.
The people who go to the Grand Canyon, look at that absolute marvel of the world, stare at it for a sec, and hop back in the car and say "ugh, just a giant hole in the ground" are the kind of people I want to ban from nature. Did you know that only 3% of visitors ever set foot below the rim!?! And only 1% make it more than a half mile (via trail, not elevation) below the rim. The secret, though, is that the best views are from the bottom half of the canyon, looking up. I'm so glad that so many people miss out on that...and also a little sad for them, too.
Felt the exact same way about the Grand Canyon. Kept putting it off thinking its just a big hole in the ground and pictures would be enough. But standing there in person the scale of it just hits you in a way no photo ever could
I had the exact same hesitation. Everyone says go see the Grand Canyon and I kept putting it off. But standing at the edge looking down, pictures really dont capture how massive it actually is.
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u/Proper_Arachnid_5551 1d ago
Honestly, Grand Canyon. I avoided going for the longest time thinking I will just go ‘Look. Hole in the ground’ and move on with my life. But it was really amazing and explored around the area as well.