After an enjoyable weekend “moochdocking” (or “driveway surfing,” camping on a friend’s driveway) with friends in Phoenix (thanks Sue and Rory!), we continued our journey north toward Moab. Our next destination was not set. Looking at the map of the area between Phoenix and Moab, there are an abundance of places to explore, like Sedona, Montezuma Castle National Monument, Monument Valley, Valley of the Gods, Natural Bridges National Monument, and Canyonlands National Park, to name a few. But, for two geologists meandering through Arizona and Utah, there was only one choice for our next stop – the Grand Canyon. Checking the weather forecast, it looked like we had a few days of cold, but not frigid (below 20 degrees), weather upcoming, so off we drove toward one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

In a normal year, over six million people visit Grand Canyon. Visitors have included many famous people, including former President Obama, Oprah, and Chevy Chase (in the film National Lampoon’s Vacation). But perhaps the most famous visitors were The Brady Bunch, the popular 1970’s sitcom family who embarked on a family vacation to the national park in three episodes on Friday nights in September 1971. (Bonus points for readers who recall the ABC Friday night lineup in the early 1970’s, answer below). Both Betsy and I remember watching The Brady Bunch on black and white televisions when we were about the age of Cindy and Bobby, the two youngest Brady children.

With The Brady Bunch theme song playing on a loop in my mind, our brief visit to the south rim of the Grand Canyon had some similarities (and many differences) with the Bradys. Let’s compare (with some literary freedoms since I have not watched the episodes for 50 years, but read a synopsis on the internet…):

Mike Brady brings a pop-up trailer home and announces that the family is headed off on a vacation to the Grand Canyon. The kids rejoice, while Carol (his wife) and Alice (their housekeeper) give Mike the stink eye.

Rob proposes an epic campervan vacation, Betsy rolls her eyes and wonders what Rob has been drinking. (Okay, this episode happened many years ago. Look where we are now.)

The Bradys, all nine of them, pile into their car and drive off singing songs and playing “I Spy” to pass the time.

Rob and Betsy meander down the road, the van swaying in the gusting winds, listening to the Obama and Springsteen podcast on Spotify. Betsy will listen to any podcast or radio show in order to keep Rob from singing along out-of-key and vice versa.

On the night prior to arriving at the Grand Canyon, the family detours to a ghost town to camp overnight for free. (Today, this practice is called “boondocking.”) In the ghost town, they meet a demented prospector who locks them in jail thinking they plan to steal his mining claim.

Similar to the Bradys, the night before arriving at the Grand Canyon, we boondock for free in a dispersed camping location off Interstate 17 in the Agua Fria National Monument. Our camping experience is not nearly as eventful as the Bradys, we do not end up in jail. We also do not have cell service, so no streaming YouTube tonight; we both read a few chapters of our books and fall asleep comfortably in our bed.

After being freed from jail by the prospector (who had filed his gold claim and was no longer suspicious of the Bradys), the family loads up in their car and trailer and finally reach their destination, the south rim of the Grand Canyon.

In our campervan, we drive north through Sedona (wow, we need to come back here and stay for a while) and Flagstaff and are then buffeted by 20+ mph winds as we near the park’s entrance. The first thing we do upon arriving at the park is find cell service so we can figure out where to camp for the evening. Instead of going to dispersed camping just outside the park, we decide to reserve a campsite for two nights at Mather Campground in the park.

The Bradys arrive at the Grand Canyon and spend the first day and night atop the canyon admiring the views and colors. (Remember, we watched these episodes on black and white TVs.)

We spend two days and nights atop the canyon, ultimately hiking about 17 miles along the rim. While our vision may not be as good as it was in the 70’s, at least now we can see the many colors and textures of the canyon walls.

The Bradys wear the finest polyester clothes suitable for the summertime temperatures during their visit.

Our early March visit is characterized by below freezing temperatures in the morning and brisk windy afternoons. Both of us wear our down coats, and Betsy wears her Wool& dress over warm Woolx leggings.

At their campsite, Alice prepares hearty family meals for the family.

Continuing her mastery of the Instapot, Betsy prepares a delicious spaghetti and Italian sausage dinner.

The Bradys ride mules to the base of the canyon for an overnight stay.

No. Neither of us will ever consider riding a mule down the trail to the canyon base. In fact, I don’t think we’d ride a mule in a flat, enclosed pen. We do plan to return to the Grand Canyon to take a hike down into the canyon, we simply do not have enough time on this visit.

While on the Canyon floor, Bobby and Cindy meet a native American boy, who is running away from his family. After Mike Brady attempts to give advice to the native American boy, the entire Brady clan meet the native American family and learn about their traditions.

Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, the native American reservations, as well as a few national monuments highlighting their histories, are closed to visitors in March 2021. We plan to return to the southwest in 2022 to visit Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Hovenweep National Monument, and other sites of native American history.

Overall, I think our first experience on the south rim of the Grand Canyon mirrored that of others – awestruck at the scale of the canyon, a little nervous stepping near the canyon rim and peering down, and dreaming about a return visit where we would take an extended hike down (or maybe a rafting trip?!?). Though perhaps because we are geologists, we also spent time learning the names of the many rock formations and shared observations of their characteristics. Betsy prefers the many limestone formations (the Kaibab, Redwall, and Muav limestones) because of their plentiful fossils, while I like the Coconino Sandstone with its abundant cross bedding (and because I like to say Coconino!). We considered watching the sun rise or set from Mather Point or some other location along the Rim Trail, but it was simply too cold and windy for us to stay out. The warmth within the campervan called.

As we left the park and continued the journey toward Moab, the Brady Bunch theme song was no longer stuck in my mind. Luckily for Betsy, I was too busy enjoying the passing scenery, to break into an out-of-tune song.

Answer : The ABC Friday night lineup in 1971 was The Brady Bunch at 8 PM, The Partridge Family at 8:30 PM, Room 222 at 9 PM, The Odd Couple at 9:30 PM, and Love, American Style at 10 PM.