The Adventures of Sock Monkey Episode 5: Over the River and Through the Woods, to the Bottom of the Grand Canyon We Go Day 3

   On to the third day! Wow. Since this beginning seems to short, I will add this super long sentence to fill up some space! Sorry. It just looked so empty... But I digress.

   We woke up 6:25 AM (again) and got ready for the mule ride back up. after boarding our mules (Yeah. Mule Airlines. Please fasten your seat-belts.), we headed back up. Through tunnels, up cliffs, over rivers, across empty plains, up more cliffs, taking breaks in the middle of nowhere (see below), up more cliffs, letting the mules take breaks, up even more cliffs, watching a bajillion ravens fly above you on a thermal, up more cliffs, getting pictures taken of you by everyone you meet going down and up, up more cliffs, riding casually through a herd of elk lounging on the side of the path and walking down the road, up even more cliffs, and so on. You get the idea. Hopefully the "up cliffs" idea. But don't take me wrong! It was fun. But personally, I preferred going down to going up, but I think I'm alone on that preference. :( Oh well. That's okay! Now see below for our visual guide to our journey ($0.50 each!).

Up...

...and up...

...and up...

...and up.

Sock Monkey on a not-so-hoodoo. Or, in mathematical terms, a hoodoo-soid.

All the mules!

Welcome to the Middle of Nowhere. Souvenirs? 

The pack mules that take stuff down and up. Or up and down. Your choice.

Can you spot the raven?

After dismounting, we took the van that the park crew brought to drive us back to our lodge and everyone was officially named "Order of the Master Mule Skinners". Especially Sock Monkey. The rest of the day was just driving back home and stopping by fast food restaurants for dinner (I know. Not exactly healthy. Oops.). And that concludes Episode 5 of "The Adventures of Sock Monkey"! Stay tuned for more posts and adventures to come! Questions, comments, spell-check or grammar corrections, comment board! Please leave a comment! Other than that, I guess I'm done so thanks for reading!

Update: Since I feel (or at least my mom does) that this post is not educational, I'll make it educational. Yay.

Word Bank
Bat
California Condor
Ring-tailed Cat
Scorpion
Rattlesnake

1. Who am I? 
I am nocturnal and spend the daytime hiding under rocks and logs.
I am an arthropod (related to spiders).
I use my pincers and stinger to catch my dinner, like grasshoppers and moths.
I have six eyes. 
I am a ______.

2. Who am I?
I am a nocturnal mammal.
I have big ears and big eyes with rings around them.
My tail is long, bushy, and black and white striped.
I am an agile tree climber. 
I am small and weigh only two pounds.
I am a ______.

3. Who am I? 
I can consume 500 insects in one hour of eating.
When winter arrives, I will migrate or hibernate.
I use echolocation to find insects to eat and keen sense of smell to find my babies.
I'm not blind, but I can't see color.
I am the only mammal that can truly fly.
I am a ______. 

4. Who am I? 
I like the warmth of the inner canyon.
Some of my relatives have a pink color. 
I am  reptile. 
My rattle warns you that my bite is venomous.
I am a ______.

5. Who am I?
Scavenging is what I do. 
I am big and black with a red head. 
I am a bird. 
I am endangered and need the canyon's safe habitat to live in.
I am a ______.

And please send answers via comment board! No cheating, peoples!

Grand Canyon Ecology 
The South Rim elevation is 7000 feet (2100 m), the North Rim is 8000 feet (2400 m), and Phantom Ranch is 2500 feet (760 m) above sea level. You (or in this case, I) traveled down a vertical mile to get here! Conifer forests are on the rim. Desert plants like cactus are at the bottom. At the bottom the temperature can be 20ºF (11ºC) hotter than on the rim. The bottom averages 9 inches (22 cm) of precipitation and the rim 12-20 inches (30-50 cm). These differences make the canyon home to a wide diversity of plants and animals.

(Borrowed/Adapted from the Phantom Ranch Junior Ranger Packet)