» Tourists Say The Craziest Things Part II

Tourists Say The Craziest Things Part II

Posted By Wayne on January 29, 2010

Last May I wrote a whole blog on some of the craziest things tourists have said to me during their visit. This blog has become the most visited of all my 200 plus blogs over the last year with the exception of my daily home page which had over 3,000 visits. Over 1300 visits to my “Tourists Say The Craziest Things!” blog over the past year. My question is why? What makes this blog the most popular? Why is this blog head and shoulders higher in visitation than the second most popular - a blog about whitewater rafting the Grand Canyon?

My thoughts are that people want a good laugh, people want to see if some of the questions were their questions, they want to see if they may have asked the same thing, they want to see if they are smarter than the other visitors, or some other reason. If you have any suggestions as to why this blog has become so popular, please comment below I would appreciate your input.

I decided to add a few more of the latest fun questions I have been asked since I wrote the May post. Here’s a few of the many that I have accumulated.

“Will my cell phone work in the desert? Is their internet service on the Indian Reservation? Will I see a Rattlesnake on my desert hike? (This is funny since snakes hibernate in the winter and the question is always asked in the winter). “When do the lights go on in the Grand Canyon?” “How long did it take to dig the Grand Canyon”. Will I have cell service in the Canyon? When the clouds fill the Canyon so it is not visible, “how do I know there is a Canyon out there?” John Hance, the father of great Grand Canyon stories spins the yarn about how when the Canyon fills in with clouds, he and his trusty horse ride the clouds from the South Rim to the North Rim and back. Or the one about how he dug the Grand Canyon and when asked where he put all of the dirt - he pointed to the South at the San Francisco Peaks saying there’s where he put the dirt. He had many more wonderful stories he used to share with Canyon visitors and I would imagine many great and funny questions from his visitors were answered with equal craziness.

Another of my favorites is a visitor to Monument Valley asked me one day, who built the spires in the Monument Valley? And of course the Anasazi Cliff Dwellings scattered all over the southwest are rife for many fun questions too-such as “how did they get up into the caves? Another one from a visitor from the Midwest “why didn’t they live in the towns we came through?

My all time favorite is the one from the visitor from the east coast - when does the Grand Canyon fill with water?

I will keep my notebook handy and keep adding to this list for your reading pleasure. Thank you for reading and commenting, I appreciate you!

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Categories: Americana, Arizona, Environment, Grand Canyon, River Rafting, Tourism, Travel
Tags: Funny, Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Questions, Tall Tales, Tourists

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Wayne

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About Travel to the West.com

Travel to the West is the place for great travel tips about the Western U.S.

Travel to the West blog is my way of sharing 45 years of travel expertise and enthusiasm about the breathtaking places to visit in the Western U.S. if you want great advice on where to go and what to do, be sure to check back often!

About The Author

My love of travel goes back many years. I was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota and graduated from the University of Minnesota's School of Business. I was active in music and was a member of the University of Minnesota marching band as well as a jazz band that played locally and in Chicago and New Orleans. During my youth, my parents traveled extensively between Minneapolis and Los Angeles on road trips, stopping along the way at scenic attractions to learn about the areas they traveled.

After college I had jobs that kept me on the road as well. On all of my trips I would blend business with exploring each destination. One job ended up transferring me from Minneapolis to Phoenix, Arizona. It was from, here that I began traveling throughout the beautiful and intriguing West. This began a long love affair with the West that continues today. As an avocation, I began running -- 10Ks which then developed into half-marathons, full marathons and ultra marathons. Running became a second love to travel and I combined the two by putting together running trips for my friends and acquaintances.

On a marathon run from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon to the South Rim, I met my future wife at Ribbon Falls at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Certainly, there was no better career for the two of us than travel! Over twenty years ago, we founded a tour company providing adventure and sightseeing tours of the Southwest. As the business grew, so did my knowledge of the West. Our groups kept coming back, some year after year, requesting new and exciting areas for them to visit. Now, I've decided to share my knowledge of the West with you via my blog. Be sure to check back regularly for great travel ideas!!