Monday 20 August
Well the truckers left but, of course, it was all fine and we spent a quiet night in the carpark. Left and carried on until we crossed the state line into Arizona.
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| 'Yes please, I want to see one', Arizona |
We're still in solitary splendour on the road but strangely there are many huge billboards advertising 'Truck Wash', exit 294, 300 miles away or 'Fresh Jerky' (chewable dried beef which is revolting), 293 miles away - can you understand that? To a European I think it's not understandable but here distances are so vast, I guess it is. Quite poor-looking countryside, nothing grows, endless flat shrubland but with amazing red rock canyons and boulders dotted over the landscape. Weather turned bad, amazing coloured skies but huge thunderstorms as well which we don't like. Dave really wanted to go to Meteor City Trading Post, famous from its heyday on Route 66 but it had closed down, apparently went out of business a few months ago, like a lot of other businesses that relied on famous Route 66 for a living. He was very disappointed and said he felt 'robbed'.
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| Meteor City Trading Post, Arizona |
Pulled into Meteor Crater RV Park a few miles down the road. Amazing views of flat high desert as far as the eye can see, interspersed with the inevitable truck. Unfortunately lots of rain and it all looked a bit depressing. I hate bad weather when I'm away, it makes me feel quite unsettled. Huge storm at night and marvellous skies. Quiet night.
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| Meteor Crater RV Park, Arizona |
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| Arizona |
Tuesday 21 August
Woke up this morning fed up with everything and it stayed with me all day. The weather is warm but still rubbish and we eventually left mid-morning not realising we had another time change so we arrived at Meteor Crater before 10.00 a.m., very surprised at how many people were there at that time though.
50,000 years ago a meteor ended its 500 million year long race through space in a spectacular collision with Earth, the resulting violent explosion created Meteor Crater, the first proven, best preserved impact site on the planet. The crater is nearly a mile across and 550 feet deep - in fact, a 60 storey building would not reach the rim. It would accommodate 2 million fans on the crater walls watching 20 football games being played at the same time on the crater floor. In other words, its massive and a real spectacle to see and try to understand. We listened to a talk and watched a film before going out on the crater's rim and walking around several observation trails. Totally fascinating stuff and interested to learn that because the crater's terrain so closely resembles that of the moon and other planets, it was an official training site for NASA Apollo astronauts.
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| Meteor Crater, Arizona |
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| Meteor Crater, Arizona |
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| 'As far as the eye can see', Meteor Crater, Arizona |
Carried on a few miles to Walnut Canyon National Monument which between 1100 and 1250 AD was home to a thriving community. Hundreds of cliff dwellings nestle beneath overhangs in the sides of the canyon and there is an impressive Visitor's Centre.
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| Walnut Canyon National Monument, Arizona |
Thankfully the rain kept off and had a great walk on the 1.5 mile trail to see the ancient houses. Apparently this is monsoon time here, although how you have that in the mountains I'm not sure. I guess that the only bonus is that the wildflowers driving into Flagstaff were in full bloom and the side of the road looked like a carpet of yellow. Pulled into Black Bart's Campground where we had stayed in the snow on our first trip here and went to the bar for a few well-needed beers. It's a weird place, quite a renowned restaurant locally but all the young staff they employ have to be able to sing so that throughout the evening they take part in a sort of musical revue, so someone can be serving you and suddenly they pop off and sing their bit - quite strange but sort of entertaining as well. Had a wander up the road later for a crappy McDonalds and went to bed.
Wednesday 22 August
Felt a bit better this morning but neither of us really fancied waiting the weather out in Flagstaff so decided to move on. We have visited the city before and it is very nice but not really bothered about doing it again. Had a wonderful drive back through the red sandstone landscape to Tuba City, one of the larger towns in the Navajo Nation. The wildflowers coming out of Flagstaff were a sight to behold and certainly brightened up a very dull morning. We passed through the San Francisco Volcanic Field which holds around 500 volcanoes. Some are still active although the most recent eruption was that of Sunset Crater in 1066 just as William the Conqueror was doing his stuff. So much of Arizona is what you imagine America to be and is what you think of when you think 'road trip'. Stopped off at the large Trading Post in the tiny 'town' of Cameron, its quite a commercial enterprise in the middle of the high desert, we're still at an elevation of about 7,000 ft. Lots of beautiful jewellery and Indian craftwork but at ridiculous prices - its a large stop-off on the way to Monument Valley and attracts the coach tours as well so rip-off big time.
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| Arizona |
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| Arizona |
A while after we pulled into the Quality Inn Motel & RV Park in Tuba City (pop. 8,611). Its a much better looking town than Shiprock but still has the look of slight despair and neglect about it. Again almost everyone here is a Native American and there is not a lot of friendliness in their dealings with tourists. I was interested to read though that maybe their 'hostility' is not actually that. Apparently amongst Navajos eye contact is impolite. From childhood they are taught not to talk too much, be loud or be forward to strangers so maybe that explains something. We visited the excellent Exploring Navajo Museum which gave an extraordinary insight into the Navajo people, its society, its accomplishments and its historic contributions, told stories of local peoples' ancestors and helped us understand a little bit better.
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| Quality Inn Motel & RV Park, Tuba City, Arizona |
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| The Navajo Flag, Tuba City, Arizona |
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| Explore Navajo Museum, Tuba City, Arizona |
The Navajo are a very insular tribe and don't welcome outsiders at pow-wows or rodeos unlike a lot of others. They have quite a big drink, drug and gang problem along with most other societies in the western world and no alcohol is legally sold or drunk on the reservation so the pub was out then. However, the Quality Inn did have a reasonable restaurant so we enjoyed some nice food and then listened to the rain pound down on the roof of the van all night.
Thursday 23 August
The one colassal advantage for Arizona is the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River which is an awe-inspiring spectacle in a land of unforgettable geology and we are both looking forward to visiting again with Tom and Mia in a few weeks time. Over one-third of the state still belongs to the Native Americans who have lived here for centuries and who, outside of the major cities, form the majority of the population. In the so-called Indian Country, where we are now, the Navajo Nation holds Monument Valley, many ancient Puebloan ruins including Walnut Canyon and the Navajo National Monument - great spiritual landmarks for them but also huge tourist destinations.
Rained and rained all night and we woke to a horrible, grey day. The weather has been disappointing this week and I think we both feel as if we're drifting a bit. Drove the 80 miles to Kayenta (pop. 5,189), a little Navajo gateway town to Monument Valley but stopped off first at the Navajo National Monument which protects two of Arizona's biggest and most beautifully sited cliff dwellings. Keet Seet is a long 17 mile hike but you are able to follow a trail along a plateau to a viewpoint overlooking Betatakin. Its an exceptionally well-preserved 135 room masonry structure tucked into a huge alcove halfway up a 700 ft. high brilliant red sandstone cliff on the far side of a canyon.
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Ancient houses at Betatakin, Navajo National Monument, Arizona
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| Betatakin, Navajo National Monument, Arizona |
As always the scenery is breathtaking and you are simply awed by it - no need for words. Luckily it stayed dry for us to walk around but a filthy afternoon after that with torrential deluges. Arrived at Kayenta (pop. 5,196), another small Navajo town. I don't know how to describe these towns - they're shabby, dusty and dirty with no proper pavements, there are scrawny dogs all over the place and they feel quite alien. A lot more RVs here as it is only one of two roads to Monument Valley so the motels are full and we hoped that there might be some RVs staying in the carpark in the small mall but it seemed as if people were only shopping or, as it was still quite early, going on out to Monument Valley from there - no campsites here at all. We intended to stop but we were getting hassled by 'panhandlers' as they call them - very drunk locals who were a real nuisance. I rang a local motel and asked if we could sleep in their carpark for the night and they very kindly said yes. We did think about driving the 20 miles to Monument Valley ourselves but the road is breathtaking and we're hoping to see it in blue skies tomorrow. Drove to the motel and had a quiet night watching the puddles turn into lakes in the carpark - happy days.
Friday 24 August
Must stop moaning, a few days bad weather is not enough to knock anyone off their stride - just think what everyone has suffered at home this year - get over it Jane. Up early and set off to drive the 20 miles to Monument Valley which straddles the Arizona/Utah state line.The drive was superb and Monument Valley really starts in Kayenta I think. Pulled into the beautiful adobe style Visitor Centre and was a little upset to find out that the campsite had been closed down for refurbishment. There is a commercial one about 4 miles down the road but it is expensive and not really what we wanted.
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| Monument Valley, Arizona |
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| Monument Valley, Arizona |
We were awed by the view of 'the monuments' from the Visitor Centre and had a walk around just looking at the scenery - some sights just leave you lost for words. The classic southwestern landscape of stark sandstone buttes and pinnacles of rock poking from the red sands is a typical Wild West image and Arizona has it in bundles. Its easy to see how our perception of the West has been shaped by the images we've seen at Monument Valley. Film makers have flocked here since the early days of Hollywood - its where John Ford made a star of John Wayne and the fact that it still remains a stronghold of Navajo culture makes it even more special. Only 4-wheeled drives and SUV's are allowed to drive the 17 mile loop around so we priced up a jeep tour and were shocked to realise it would cost 170 dollars for a 1.5 hour circuit - a total rip-off. We had an amazing drive getting there, the views from where we were were beyond compare, other than 'getting up close and personal', we just couldn't see the point. The weather thankfully was dry although the light was bad and terrible for photographs but, even so, a moment to remember.
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| Monument Valley, Arizona |
Left mid-morning (we were there by 8.30 a.m. as we keep getting our 'hours' mixed up - its different in the Navajo Nation to the rest of Arizona) and decided to drive the 20 miles to Medicine Hat, a sleepy little town over the state line in Utah thinking we might spend a quiet night there with a few drinks in a local bar. Well, of course, it wasn't to be. The drive though more than made up for the disappointment of the little town so we weren't too bothered. Knowing there aren't any campsites within miles (and I really mean lots of miles), we decided to drive the 150 miles to Page where we hoped to spend a few days on Lake Powell at the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. We went back to Kayenta and followed the 'Kayenta Monument Valley Scenic Road' . So many rental/hire vans here and a lot of Europeans as well - most of them will be doing the LA/Vegas/Grand Canyon/Monument Valley loop I imagine. Its strange that it is one of 'the' tourist destinations in the United States and yet it feels totally untouristy. It will probably be a bit different at the Grand Canyon and certainly would be in California and Vegas but the reason there is no hint of tourism here is due to it being Navajo land and who can blame them. They are a very insular people and don't seem to welcome strangers - I must admit we won't really be sorry to go back to 'America' now.
I can't keep on talking superlatives and sometimes there are no words left to describe the sheer spectacle of the geology and landscape of Arizona. It is everywhere - painted rocks of purples, pinks and oranges, wild horses, the wonderful smell of wild sage, cathedral like buttes and canyons cutting through the landscape - too breathtaking for words.
Arrived in Page (pop. 4,300, elevation 1,910 ft.), its hot and sunny and just hoping we can get a space on the lake for a few day. Page stands at the centre of the world renowned Grand Circle, a remarkable collection of parks, monuments, historical sites and prehistoric Indian ruins that include many of the geological icons of the West, a few of which we have had the privilege to see in the last few days. Did a bit of shopping and amazed to see that as we drove along Lake Powell Boulevard, known locally as Church Row, there were 12 churches all next door to each other ranging from tiny one-roomed cottage sized churches to large landscaped ones - very strange and it could only happen here. Headed to Wahweap Campground on Lake Powell. Its a national park so works on a first-come, first-served basis but it was still only early afternoon (as we had gone back an hour) and fortunately they had a space. Wonderful views of the lake as we came in and quite excited about being here.
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| Wahweap Campground, Lake Powell, Glen Canyon Nattional Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Wahweap Campground, Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Lake Powell, Glen National Recreation Area, Arizona |
It looks good and we might spend a few days here - there's a lake, beach, marina and a Lodge with swimming pools, restaurants and bars so all very civilised - bikini on, think we'll have a little 'holiday'. Barbecued in the lovely warm night and looking forward to the next few days.
Saturday 25 August
Woke up early to a sparkling blue day. We're on the Arizona/Utah border here with the town of Page a few miles down the road, Lake Powell was created in 1963 and named after John Wesley Powell who was the first person to run the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon (on a boat). The Glen Canyon Dam holds back the waters of the Colorado River (the reason why parts of Southern Arizona and Mexico have water problems now) forming a vast blue lake surrounded by beautiful sandstone walls.
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| Lake Powell, Glen National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
It took 17 years for the lake to fill the canyon to the high water mark of 3,700 ft. above sea level and with 1,960 miles of shoreline (more than the entire US Pacific coast), it is the 2nd largest man-made lake in the country. The largest is Lake Mead in Nevada. The construction of the Dam outraged environmentalists and archaeologists and it has created a peculiar and unnatural, but beautiful, landscape. I have to stress as well that in a state so lacking in water, to see the huge expanse of lake in front of you is a very welcome sight indeed.
Bikini on and off to the beach early morning - sun cream, lounger, book, iced water - simply perfect. Deep contrast here though to the other coastal places we have visited. Americans arrive on the beach with pull-out gazebos, they drag trollies laden with huge cool boxes filled with ice, fishing rods, the best in beach furniture - home from home really. Here, because so many visitors in the campground and nearby Lodge/Hotel are either Europeans with hire vans or Americans with boats who are going to be on the water, the beach here is very unfurnished with not a gazebo or beach umbrella in sight. Had a lovely day swimming and lazing before walking the half mile to Glen Canyon Lodge. Saw a roadrunner (bird) which was a thrill and lots of hares and jackrabbits as well as little chipmunk-like animals which are actually a type of squirrel. There is a large marina, several restaurants, two pools and even a pool bar - we feel spoilt. Had a couple of beers before walking along the raised pathway around the lake - the views are amazing.
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| Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| 'Making friends', Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
Sauntered back in the lovely warm evening air, had a few more beers, barbecued some food, listened to a few tunes and had a nice night.
Sunday 26 August
Good night's sleep, Dave sleeping on the sofa again as it is so hot which is great as it means I can have the whole bed to myself which is for the best as I move all night. Up early and cooked a nice breakfast. Another lovely day and just spent it sunning and swimming on the lake, reading in the shade and just relaxing. Much quieter on the beach today although a lot of local Indian families are there with picnics and buckets and spades, etc. Left the beach late afternoon when a huge black storm started rolling in, eventually it became the loudest, most explosive thunderstorm I have ever witnessed - thought it was going to shatter the windowpanes - the 'monsoon' season again I guess. Sat up front watching it until it was all over before cooking a nice dinner and having an early night - relaxed.
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| Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
Monday 27 August
Bank Holiday at home - the last one of the summer - it's gone too quickly. Booked another two nights and caught the free shuttle to Walmart to do some shopping. Amazing service here for employees and guests - a shuttle will take you to The Lodge, marina, boat tours, employee housing and another free shuttle takes you to Glen Canyon Dam Visitor Centre, downtown and to Walmart - excellent. Had some breakfast and did some shopping and got back early afternoon. Went to the lake for a few hours and then we were going to walk over to the Lodge and have a few drinks at the Pool Bar but late afternoon the heavens opened again - another explosive thunderstorm. Goes with the territory here at this time of the year and I am now understanding the notices we have seen on the road and on tourist information telling you to 'beware of flash floods'. You also have to be very careful if you're hiking as the last place you want to be is stuck in a canyon - very dangerous indeed. Anyway we were halfway to The Lodge when the storm hit, sheltered in the 'fish cleaning station' but simply drenched - can't believe how much rain can fall, how loud thunder can be and how vivid the lightening is. Decided we were far too wet to go out so turned back, dried off and had a quiet night - maybe tomorrow.
Tuesday 28 August
Another glorious morning so decided to catch the free shuttle to the Carl Hayden Visitor Centre at the Dam. Went to the lake for a swim first and then caught the bus at midday. Walked the amazing bridge over the Dam looking at the Colorado River 600 ft. below us and wandered around the very interesting Visitor's Centre which told the stories of early pioneers of the river as well as the making of the dam.
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| Carl Hayden Visitor Centre, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Glen Canyon Dam, Glen Canyon National Rcreation Area, Arizona |
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| The Colorado River, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Carl Hayden Visitor Centre, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Glen Hayden Visitor Centre, Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
Boiling hot day so got the shuttle back and went straight to the pool for a swim and some ice-cream but so hot that we had to leave and go back to the van where we sat in the shade for a while. Cooked some burgers before going out early evening to the Pool Bar. This is like being 'on holiday' - its still really hot so sat out on the terrace with some beers, listened to some good music and slowly watched a beautiful sunset.
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| 'Off to the Pool Bar', Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Pool Bar, Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
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| Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona |
Just one of those wonderful nights where you don't want to go in. Wandered home and thought we would need a torch as there were no street lights but almost a full moon so we could see quite clearly. Sat out looking at the stars and talking about 'life'.
Wednesday 29 August
Lovely day and up early. Did a couple of lots of laundry while Dave caught the shuttle to Safeway to get some cherry juice which we had forgotten - its supposed to be good for gout. I walked up to the pool and met him for a couple of hours, we swam and relaxed on comfy padded sunloungers before being moved on by the appalling hip-hop music blasting out from the speakers - it didn't ought to be allowed. Went down to the lake late afternoon for a last swim before the storm clouds came rolling in. Its been really hot - high 90's - and the air seems to churn up late afternoon and produce a massive electric storm which soon passes. Dave barbecued some nice pork steaks, had a couple of cold beers by the van and a lovely quiet night. Will be sorry to go tomorrow but Utah beckons.
