the grand canyon
september twenty-first
of all of the national landmarks i have visited, the grand canyon is easily the most impressive. i never expected it to be so amazing; c'mon, it's a big hole. there are a few things that make it an amazing big hole, though: it's a gorgeous big hole, a breathtakingly huge big hole, and a lot of fun to hike big hole.
i read this interesting book about death in the grand canyon a few weeks after i went there. you wouldn't believe how many stupid things people have done to get themselves killed here.
regardless, i took about four rolls of film in the canyon. i've sorted my film down to a few good ones.
noteably, i had my worst photographic experience in the canyon. i hiked back up to the rim in time to get some gorgeous sunset pictures. unfortunately for me, i didn't rewind my film completely, so there was apparently a little tab of film sticking out of the canister. when i processed my film i noticed they weren't there, but i assumed i lost them rolling in some colorado sand dunes. i got over it. i missed the pictures, of course, but i didn't think about it anymore.
that is, until my vermont vacation. on the drive to vermont we stopped at niagara falls. i took some great pictures, including some from the maid of the mist boat that motors up close to the horseshoe falls. when i got home, i processed my film, went, picked it up, sat in the parking lot, and felt like puking. here, that grand canyon roll had sat in my photo bag under the guise of an empty roll of film. innocently, i had loaded it into my camera and exposed niagara falls over the grand canyon. not only had i lost my grand canyon photos now, but also niagara falls! too much to bear. i keep the photos as a reminder to completely rewind each roll after i expose it.
you can see them in my aptly named disasters gallery.
