Over the past month I've posted about our Girls Road Trip 2018 - Camping and hiking across Arizona and then hiking in Arkansas. There are many times I wanted to photo a certain photo I had in mind but at the time, looking through allllll the photos, I couldn't find it, didn't see it, didn't have time to keep looking, or got side tracked and uploaded other photos.... etc.
This morning I have no theme for a post as I'm done featuring the trip - so I just just randomly went back and chose photos to post. I know when I was looking online for ideas and information about the area in my planning, I loved seeing blogs with random photos. I got a feeling for the area and what to expect.
That's what this is I guess. I'm sipping hot, strong coffee and just choosing some random photos of the Grand Canyon area of our trip that I don't think got featured in other posts yet.
Remember that solitary little rustic cabin in the woods we were staying at during the last couple days? Right before our turn off to get to the cabin, we saw this warning sign on the road... well that was unexpected!
From the Grand Canyon's Website: https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/nature/mammals.htm
Mountain lions are the largest predators found in the Grand Canyon. There are 18 native South American, 25 native North American, and 40 English names for this species, and the most common are puma, cougar, panther, and catamount. Humans in Grand Canyon have no reason to fear mountain lions because they do not see humans as prey. For mountain lions, being hit by cars is a common cause of death. Please use caution when driving, especially on East Rim Drive.
This is a 'Where's Waldo' of sorts - but easy if you look.
Love this view from the Desert View Tower because you can see the river so well! The colors are just amazing as well; so beautiful.
In many areas the tourists just stuck to the main 'focus' in that area - and at most of the outlooks they would arrive, look, take a few photos and leave. We went off the beaten path at most of them and did a little bit of hiking - so even though the area is quite busy with tons of people around; many of our pictures just show us as we always liked to do some walking in the areas - not just arrive, snap and leave.
This is the early part of the Blue Angel Trail in the populated area of the park...
One of the gift shops outside of the main park; I believe this one might have been near Desert View. It featured a lot of local artists and was a smaller scale than the commercial items available inside the main park.
My daughter is all about rocks and flowers so we were constantly on the look out for the different flora and fauna in the area....
I mentioned the shuttle buses in the park previously; they like to use the buses to cut down on traffic and vehicles in the park as the park was never made to accommodate the number of visitors it receives today. The buses run on colored lines; just pay attention and use your maps and they are easy to follow.
Pack mules get the right of way of course! Move close to the rock walls on the trails to let them by....
Hance Rapids - we would have loved to have done a few more excursions while were there but our schedule didn't allow it. But at one of the lookouts you get a great shot of the rapids (although from this distance of 3.8 miles away, the water looks calm doesn't it?).
There is a sign at the lookout explaining the power of the rapids.
It's one of the Grand Canyon's most hazardous rapids, as the Colorado River falls the height of a three-story building.
My coffee is gone - it's time to fill up my cup! Thanks for stopping by Coffee Talking!
If you enjoy visiting Just the Coffee Talking, please consider using this affiliate link if you are planning to shop for anything (seriously, anything!) at Amazon. -Coffee at
Amazon by Coffee Talking
You'll
see these in many photos of us on this trip. 
This pack was an afterthought - and wow! LOVED IT. My daughter loved
it so much you will see it on her back in all the photos of us hiking or
touring 'out and about'. Folds up into it's own little pouch when not
in use. Not one bad thing to say about it; no matter how much we put in
it, it was comfortable.
These boots! I blogged about a different pair (same brand) I bought 2
years ago and HATED but I decided to give these a go. I love them so
much. My daughter ended up getting same ones as I did.
When I bought these, I didn't
think I'd care about the rounded head part - but it ends up - when you
are sleeping in an area with tons of spiders, putting your hair in a
braid or pony and then tightening this around your head a bit, really
does help you sleep more secure knowing spiders won't be crawling into
your long hair and getting tangled during the night. 
I like to order the best seller kits; but whoa - watch prices! The same
exact kit can sell from $30 to $60 depending on supply and demand and
Amazon's tracking cookies on your computer. We made sure to order TWO
cases of the biscuits and gravy because love them that much and also a
whole case of chicken breast and mashed potatoes. 
These trekking poles were something I bought not knowing if I'd use
them or not. I did end up using them quite a bit hiking in Arkansas. They collapse to a good pack size but are
sturdy when pulled out to size.
This collapsible sink was awesome! Only about 1 1/2" thick when collapsed, it made washing dishes so easy, yet took up almost no space.
We used these in our collapsible portable toilet - because the double doodie bags that are sold to use with it are so expensive. These waste bags are for pets but worked great in our portable toilet! Large enough, and thick enough we could use them for 2-3 'visits' before removing it - and no leaks or rips.
This is the kind I originally bought about 3 years ago as an 'add on' item at Amazon for $2.12. I loved them and went to order more later and they were about $6. Supply and demand I guess. But I still bought more. 
This solar shower isn't in any of the photos. Long story, but in the end, we didn't use it.
This! Something I never would have purchased in years prior but did this year and what an awesome, awesome thing to have! Having our own private little bathroom was something we came to appreciate more than I ever thought I would.
This is a combination solar shower OR wet/dry bag. LOVE THIS but we only used it as a bag on this trip; not as a solar shower. For kayaking, boating, etc. this bag rocks for keeping things dry or carrying water.
We used these a couple times with the portable toilet but we mostly used the biodegradable pet bags I linked to above. These are great but they are expensive. 
This camp stove has been SUCH a great investment. Another item I refused to buy for years - because camping is about cooking over a fire, right? I was an idiot. I love this and it makes brewing coffee fast and easy as well as cooking meals of course. Best yet? Works with propane OR butane! 
This is the Stanley cup set I have mentioned on Twitter a few times! It's NOT fun to use for cooking thick meals in because it's a pain to clean out as it's so deep. But it's GREAT for liquids, soups and coffee. And the 2 cups it comes with inside are my go-to coffee cups for every camping/hiking trip. If I didn't have room for my other mess kit (above) and could only bring one kit - THIS would be it for everything. Foods and drinks.
These are not available from the seller I bought them from but you can see what I bought and they are available from a LOT of other sellers. They work great and are still going strong after many trips... the batteries haven't even needed to be changed yet.
Love this mat. Although supposedly 'self inflating' you'll be happier if you help it out a little and blow. Once it's inflated it's super comfortable and wider than many on the market so you don't slide off.
This is the toilet I've mentioned probably too-many times but we were so thankful for this thing! We camped in the national forest and desert quite a bit on this trip and it was so great to have this with our portable little pop up tent, disposable bags and the 'poo powder' you'll see below.
Although it's called 'poo powder' it doesn't do too much for poo right away but it might if it was left long enough. What it DOES do is cut down on the smells and it instantly gels up liquids! We would get our portable toilet ready with a new disposable bag and a scoop of this powder in the bottom. When you go to the bathroom it would gel up the liquids and counteract any smells. This made tying off the bag for carrying and disposing so easy. For "number two" it does help with smells but we never left a bag in place more than 1 day so I don't know what 'break down' effect on poo it would have or not have. For urine though (and liquid vomit I imagine) this is GREAT. A good investment!