Travels in a Tin Can

nowhere fast was due to the monotony of the scenery. The last hour or so of
the journey was spent in darkness and on very deserted roads, both in terms
of other travellers and indeed any evidence of civilization. But then, just as we
were beginning to think we would have to change plans and sleep in the van
by the roadside, we reached Tusayan, the nearest town to the Grand Canyon
National Park.
The town is not big, just a few hotels and stores stretched out on either
side of the road, and when we drove up at about eight o’clock in the evening it
seemed dead. With snow on the ground and less than a week until Christmas
this did not surprise us much, but at least our campsite was listed as open all
year. We drove straight to the site and instantly realized that the office was
shut for the night. Never mind, we had done night check-in before, however
the whole site seemed to have an air of 'closed' about it. I jumped out into the
snow and went to investigate the office; quickly confirming it was closed. For
the season.
But hold on, Woodall's (our camping bible) said it was open, and for
this to be a lie would be sacrilege. I returned to the van and got the campsite's
telephone number. My hope was that there would be an answer phone
message saying the camp was still open, albeit with reduced services, as
indicated by the camping directory. I trudged back through the snow to use
the payphone, but the message was clear (because I could hear it through the
office wall without needing the telephone receiver in my hand) – ‘come back in
spring’. Woodall's was fallible, our faith was broken and there was a great
deal of blaspheming going on.
Next stop the national park itself, as the state camp was definitely