Wash

After a rundown on proper mule-handling, I mounted my ride rather easily.

Our tour guide, a man with a scraggily beard and greasy cowboy hat of his own, patted the animal. “This is Earl. He’s a good one, but he likes to sway a little too close to the edge.”

I swallowed hard. “Can I have a different mule then?”

“Hmm. I s’pose I could put you on Harvey, but he’s a real risk-taker. I think it’d be better if your boyfriend rides him.”

I blew a long strand of black hair from my eyes, frustrated that yet another stranger had presumed we were a couple. “Jake is not my boyfriend.”

The man grinned. “Really? Coulda fooled me, girl, ‘cause he sure was checkin’ your ass out as you climbed aboard Earl.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle, flattered that I still had it. I glanced over my shoulder at Jake, and he winked at me. My cheeks burned with emotions I couldn’t quite determine, perhaps a little bit of anger and embarrassment all rolled into one.

All of the sudden, a gust of wind blew the guide’s hat off his head, spooking my mule into a bucking fit.

“Calm down, Earl,” the guide softly coaxed.

“Is he gonna act like that on the walk down?” I asked nervously.

“Nah, he’ll be okay. He just gets a little jumpy sometimes, that’s all. But I assure you Earl’s completely dependable and safe. H

e’s made a ton of trips down, and he ain’t never lost a soul.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. Mules have been haulin’ people in and out of the canyon for as long as I can remember. Heck, these asses have been haulin’ asses since the 1800s, and no one has ever died.”

I let out a sigh of relief. “That’s good to know.”

“Just watch out for wasps.”

“What?” I glanced at Jake, and he smirked.

“Yesterday, a wasp stung a mule on the trail. He snorted and jumped something fierce.”

“Um…okay. I’ll try to stay clear, but it might be hard on a narrow trail.”

The guy gave Earl an encouraging pat. “You’ll do just fine, pretty lady. I can tell already that Earl’s got a crush on you.”

I looked down at the smelly animal, nodded, and smiled halfheartedly. “That’s good…I guess,” I said.

We started out through the ponderosa pine and juniper forest. It was so peaceful, and we were serenaded by chattering squirrels and chirping birds. We even saw a few elk and a mule deer grazing away, as if they didn’t care that we were there.

After a while, the path narrowed until it was just wide enough for the mules to go single-file. Minutes later, the trail sloped a bit. As we trudged along, the terrain grew rougher, and the landscape seemed to get steeper with every edge-teetering step. I leaned back in the saddle, hoping Earl would live up to his sure-footed reputation. My feet pushed against the stirrups for stability. The first few minutes were the scariest. Right side, red rock wall. Left side, I thought, gulping, a big, huge drop! My mule snorted as I stared down at the jagged, prickly slope that seemed to be getting more menacing by the second. I hoped he knew what he was doing. I was also thankful for the cowboy hat, and I made a mental note to thank Jake later.

As we rode down the narrow path to the bottom, I bounced up and down, hanging on for dear life over the steep terrain as my mule teetered precariously near the edge on the hairpin turns. I sucked in a deep breath, hoping Earl didn’t have a death wish. If he made one misstep with any of his four hooves, I knew we’d both tumble thousands of feet.

Finally, when I realized that Earl knew what he was doing, I just enjoyed the gorgeous scenery. I couldn’t stop marveling at the beauty of the canyon’s colorful pinnacles, buttes, and mesas.

Jake was riding in front of me, his broad shoulders hunched forward as he held the reins. I chuckled as his body jerked up and down atop Harvey. I loved the way Jake’s thick, wavy hair whipped around in the wind, and the morning sun made his black locks shine beneath his hat. A rush of heat spread across my face as I remembered the first time we’d ever made out, how I’d buried my fingers in that hair as we’d engaged in hot, passionate kisses.

“Okay, folks, the next stretch will be along a 3,000-foot drop-off. If you get scared, just focus on the mule in front of you,” the tour guide said, interrupting my reverie.

I was nervous for a few seconds, but it was something I’d been hoping to do for my entire life, and I couldn’t give up. I gazed all around me, completely awed and inspired by the dramatic view. Earl was a daredevil, walking ever closer to the edge, but he never lost his footing and just clomped along as if he didn’t have a care in the world, gravity least of all. It was a thrill ride even more exciting than any rollercoaster I’d ever ridden. Earl couldn’t go as fast as an amusement park ride, but he sure got my heart pumping harder than any loop-de-loop ever had.

I watched an adorable rock squirrel scurry away from us. As I glanced around, I was really shocked by all the trees and how green everything was; from the surface, the Grand Canyon had always looked like a big, dusty, barren, deep, red hole, but it was teeming with animal and plant life. I brushed my hair behind my ears, but the wind blew it around again and again beneath my hat. The breeze carried the scent of desert herbs, sand, and sweet, dusty earth. I glanced up at the dazzling blue sky and felt sunshine on my face. My heart raced as I peered down at the rock-strewn desert landscape below. It was as if we’d landed on Mars, the red planet itself. Crimson-colored sandstone gorges, from sugar white to deep orange, shimmered in the glaring brightness. Little whirlwinds of dust, sand, and gritty dirt danced below. Fantastic rock formations, swirled with bands of colors, seemed to stretch out into an endless horizon. What lay before my eyes seemed to defy mere words, and I was sure even high-definition photos wouldn’t do them justice. I marveled at the Colorado River, snaking its way along the canyon floor for 300 miles, through all those time-hewn gorges. I smiled as an endangered California condor flew majestically over us, its wingspan was wider than any bird I’d ever seen, like some kind of pterodactyl from a science fiction movie.

Jake glanced over his shoulder and grinned. He looked so happy, and I knew it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for both of us. “This place is incredible,” he said.