Here, There, and Just About Anywhere: If it's Tuesday, it must be . . .

. . . Zion National Park.

Or was it the Navajo Nation's Monument Valley or Glen Canyon National Recreational Area?

Whatever it was, tomorrow will be Bryce Canyon National Park. But that's a post for another day.

Does this remind you of John Wayne movies?

In reality, this valley is very
sacred to the Navajo people.

We spent a couple of days at the Navajo Nation's Monument Valley that's located right at the Arizona and Utah states' line. This makes it interesting because Arizona does not recognize daylight savings time while Utah does. The park was in Arizona while the campground was in Utah. Thought we were going to need two watches to keep our lives straight but the Navajos recognize daylight savings time so the park was in the same time zone as Utah.

The size and vastness of Monument Valley is awe inspiring.

Another amazing place! Remember the John Wayne movies (along with a whole batch other movies) that showed tall buttes and spires in the background? “The Searchers” and “Stage Wagon” were two movies that come to mind. They were filmed in Monument Valley. Also part of “Forrest Gump” and the third “Back to the Future” were also filmed there. Now I'm going to have to watch those movies again to watch the background.

We drove the 17 mile loop – thank goodness for the Jeep. It was a fairly rough ride. Better than being in the tour guide open air trucks! They were bumping along with kids jumping on a trampoline. But the scenery was awe inspiring. Huge rock structures in all shapes and sizes.

Bill & Lexi trudging up the sandy trail

The second day there, we decided to take the dogs on a hike along the 4 mile trail that went around a butte. Very soft red sandy trail went down, down, down before we leveled off. Noticed a herd of free range goats that were being led by goats with bells around their necks and protected by a good looking Australian shepherd dog. We walked along and walked along, Belle smelling everything in sight while Lexi kept her head in the air, and walked some more. That stupid butte never got any closer to us the longer we walked. When we passed the 2 kilometer marker, we decided the dogs had gone far enough so we turned around to head back. Bill looked over at a sand dune (a real sand dune this time, not some mummified sand dunes that we had become accustomed to seeing) and thought he saw a skinny rock right on the side of the slope. I zoomed in on it with my camera – it ended up being another dog, sitting there as still as a rock. He never moved a muscle the whole time we walked by.

Remember the soft red sandy trail I mentioned above? We had to trudge back up through all that damn sand! Up, up, and up some more, and I never seemed to get anywhere. Even the dogs were having a hard time! Well, obviously, we made it (or I'd be sending this post via mental telepathy from the bottom of the hill). I decided no more hikes that start down first!!

Glen Canyon dam

From Monument Valley, we drove only 170 miles to Page, AR (no daylight savings time there) and spent a couple of days around the Glen Canyon Rec Area. Page did not exist until 1956 when the government decided to build a dam at the narrow canyon that the Colorado created. The builders had a huge problem – this was one of the most remote places in the United States at that time and getting across the canyon meant a 200 mile one way trip. So, before the dam could be started, a bridge had to be built across the canyon. And before the bridge could be built, a narrow swinging walkway had to built. And a town had to be established.

Horseshoe Bend of the Colorado
River, just down river from the
dam. And another soft sandy
hike to get to. And it IS a LONG
way down to the water.

A lot to do in a short amount of time. Took a few years, but everything was done. The dam is just 16 feet lower than the Hoover Dam and holds back water miles and miles up the Colorado River.

Me and the rock cairn I built
by the Horseshoe Bend. I am
leaving these little rock monuments
everywhere we hike.

The main reason we stopped in Page is because we wanted to go through the Antelope Canyon. It's on Navajo land and the only way to get there is to go with a tour company. And wouldn't you know it, it rained the day we signed up to go. At first, we weren't sure we were going to be able to go. The canyon is so narrow, it's subject to flash floods. Thankfully, it only sprinkled and we made it out there without incident – or floods.

So narrow I could reach my hands out
and touch both sides at the same time.

The canyon looks like something a modern artist would have made up. So narrow you can stretch your arms out wide and touch both sides. Then it's sculpted in fantastic shapes that swirl and twirl over your head. Smoothed walls that came from eons of water rushing through with sand and debris acting as sandpaper finely sanding the walls. The canyon is ½ mile long and about 100 feet high – when the floods wash through, the water will reach the top of the canyon.

Looking up towards the top of
the canyon.

We weren't the only ones who enjoyed the walk through the canyon. Again, we heard any number of different languages spoken. On our little tour truck, we had an oriental couple and we think a German couple. I think we were the only Americans on that tour!

Finally - all the people moved out of
the way. I had seconds to take this
picture before another mob of people
got in the way.

And the same thing in Zion National Park – almost more foreign language speakers than English. I lost track of how many languages we think we heard!

Okay, how do I describe Zion? A huge series of rock formation mountains? A beautiful river that flows through it? Hidden pools of water? A narrow canyon the only to hike is to walk through the river? A very high area called Angel's Perch that's reached by hiking a series of 27 sharp switchbacks? Vast views of orange colored canyons? Very narrow roadways through fascinating rocky formations? A very long and very dark tunnel?

That's a good start! I think I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

Until next time . . .