The helicopter engine
increased in speed and I felt my heart racing trying to catch up until the
throbbing engine and my racing heart were almost in unison. I was about to
realise a dream I had held for over 35 years. I never really imagined I would
ever be enclosed inside this vehicle which would take me to see my dream. It
was almost magical. The sense of occasion was extraordinary. To be here. To be
so close, yet I still couldn't see the object of my imagination. Trees. Acres
and acres of trees sweeping below appearing as a worn carpet would look with a
dusty track ripped across the landscape to allow access for those going by
land-based transport. Looking out of the side window at the rear of the
helicopter gave a view that promised great things, but I still couldn't see
what I had come here for. Trees and still more trees. This threadbare green
blanket was everywhere. It just added to the mystery I had harboured for so
many years. Was it real? Had I only imagined this place existed? I had seen
photographs. I had read written texts describing what to expect. But where is
it? Starting out only a few days before, I had travelled many thousands of
miles, yet it had really taken so many years to get to this place. The
realisation of a dream that refused to happen. Was my imagination cheating me?
Did this place exist after all? Was it all just an elaborate conspiracy to
separate me from my money?
The
throbbing of the engine continued unchanged. The view below continued
unchanged. The green floor extended into the distance to the horizon to meet a
clear blue sky. The combination of a cloudless sky above with just trees below
and the relentless sound of the helicopter engine was almost hypnotic and I was
beginning to feel drowsy. Was this to be the realisation of my dream? To be no
more than a dream? Suddenly, I noticed a bright glow on the distant horizon. A
crucible of light in the centre of the horizon. It slowly brightened. Getting
bigger. Getting closer. The white heat of my dream reaching out to me, sucking
me into it. Welcoming me. I found it disturbing. To me this was the unknown,
but soon to become the known. To transport me in an instant from dreams to
reality. To give me something I had desired for so many years. More than half
my lifetime on planet Earth to see something that had existed since time began.
The helicopter reached the edge of the North Rim. My heart nearly leapt out of
my mouth, but I caught my breath and rescued my heart. The plunge below was
unimaginable. The trees had suddenly disappeared to be replaced by a spectacle
almost not of this Earth. Almost.
The
Grand Canyon is real. Several miles across and more than a mile to the bottom
below. Over 5000 feet below the great Colorado River snaked its way into the
distance, looking like nothing more than a single strand of cotton, the fierce
rapids seemingly quite tame from this distance. An illusion. Simply an
illusion.
It was
all so overwhelming it was almost a disappointment. This was too much to take
in at first sight. The size and splendour. The majesty. Awesome isn't a word
that does the scene justice. It's so much more than that. The peace and
serenity. The calm. The trees and greenery were left behind as the flight went
out into the void. Over this vastness and into a tapestry of reds and oranges.
So many shades of these two colours in the mid-day sun. I could only imagine
the colours at dusk mixing in hundreds of shades of blues, violets and indigos.
I silently promised to make a return visit. A second chance to take in the scene.
Maybe even a third or fourth. I felt that a thousand visits would never be
enough. My dream has only been partially satisfied as the Grand Canyon is just
so vast. I must return to see it again. To see just a little bit more of this
fabulous sight. It's truly one sight that has to be experienced to be
understood. It cannot be described. It must be felt.
I will
feel the Grand Canyon again.
Louis Brothnias 2004