the first rental agency wouldn't rent me a car because my card is an atm card as well as a credit card, and they need to have a straight up credit only credit card.

good thing, because the other agency - budget - which did accept a check card gave me this:  




it was the cheapest thing they had, so i couldn't argue.



i proceeded to try and find two different swimming holes using my handy dandy new swimming hole guide book, but struck out both times.  the road was blocked off at the first place, and the second place i just couldn't find despite hiking pretty far upstream along the bottom of the canyon where it was supposed to be.  hiking in the canyon among huge boulders was still pretty awesome.  when i finally found my way back to the mustang, i decided to head to red mtn.  



once i was at red mtn, i noticed that i was half way to the grand canyon.  'what the hell?' i thought.  i probably am coming back here for school and should have more chances to visit the big ditch, but you never know, i could go down in a plane crash on the way home.  and then what a shame, not to have seen one of the seven wonders of the world before death, esp having been so close to the thing.  so i drove to the outskirts of the park and slept in my mustang.

the next morning i caught the sunrise:



and went for a little hike on the bright angel trail, sipping coffee