Just a Little Breezy

After a less than ideal night's sleep, we got up very early so we could see the sunrise. Given that by the time we arrived we couldn't see the canyon at all, this would also be the first time we saw the Grand Canyon. It was also a lot nicer around there when it was actually light out and we even saw three mule deer right by our cabin. We've been lucky with the weather so far and despite it being dry, it turned chilly and very windy the day we got there.  At that time in the morning, it had to be in the 30's with the wind chill. Luckily, the sunrise was fantastic and it was great seeing the canyon for the first time. We did a little hiking before packing up the car and heading out for some scenic drives.

We originally wanted to do some longer hiking but given the weather and our fatigue, that probably wasn't going to be a pleasant journey so we decided to do some smaller hikes along the drive. Those ended up being great too and the views from Cape Royal and Point Imperial didn't disappoint. We did have 50-60 mph gusts as we were up higher and each us nearly lost our hats into the canyon at least once.

The day ended with the long drive to the South Rim (20 miles from the North Rim but a 4+ hour drive) and this time we were smart enough to arrive in daylight. Our hotel in the South Rim is right on the edge of the canyon and we can see part of it from our window. There's also not much parking but Matt luckily found a spot right near our hotel so things were already looking up. A nice dinner later, we were in bed early and getting ready for our big hike on Friday.

As they say in the North Rim, "Don't let the bed bugs bite!" Note: It's quite possible they say that to many guests.

Hovenweep and Hardly Weeping

We've been going pretty non-stop with early starts and completely full days so it was nice to not have to get up too terribly early to get our day started. The first stop was at Hovenweep National Monument. This is another ruins site but was different in that it was basically a village located around a small canyon and many parts of the buildings are still standing. It was a 2 mile loop that started with a trail that crossed the canyon. It wasn't too bad (the canyon isn't terribly big) so it was a nice precursor to the Grand Canyon. The area was very nice and it was an unexpected gem in the middle of nowhere. It also gave us an opportunity for some good photos...

The next place was visited was in Monument Valley in Arizona. The drive in was through Utah and featured some stunning views of the various rock formations that have been made famous in various TV shows and movies (such as the place where Forrest Gump stopped running in the movie "Forrest Gump"). Unfortunately, to go to the Visitor Center where there were more spectacular views and even more spectacular restrooms, we had to pay $20 but our bladders thanked us.

We ended the day in the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Unfortunately, it took us longer to get there than planned which means we arrived in the dark (though the parts in the light getting to the Grand Canyon were pretty nice themselves). We try not to drive in the dark in general but especially going into parks since it's pretty dark and it's hard to find things. After dodging dozens of deer and cows in the road in the 40 mile drive in the dark, we arrived at the North Rim. Since it was so dark though, we couldn't find where to check in and figuring our where to park was dicey at best. We managed to use our phones as flashlights and find the lodge where we checked in and got our cabin number.

I should mention it's extremely difficult to get a place in the North Rim since there are not many options. I checked daily for 6 months and only found the room about a month ago. It's a cabin near the rim that has two rooms and a bathroom in the middle. It's rustic but seemed ok in the pictures and got decent reviews on TripAdvisor. Well, getting there in the pitch black and lugging our bags a good way wasn't ideal and neither were the moths in our beds. Let's just say the girls had a rough night once they saw the bugs and mouse traps. We did all walk out down a trail to view the night sky and it was pretty amazing. We then turned in and hoped we could get some rest in there.

As the Navajo say, "Run, Forrest, run." Note: They do not say this.

32 Feet Doesn't Sound So Bad...

After a very long day yesterday, we thankfully didn't have to get going super early this morning. We stayed in Farmington, New Mexico (my first time in New Mexico and the 47th state I've visited) and it was not the greatest place. Last night we had to make a quick stop at Walmart and we had a guy knock on our car window and beg for change. The plus side of the town was we were less than a half an hour from the Aztec Ruins National Monument, our first stop.

This small park contains ruins of a large complex that was built 800-1000 years ago. Much of the original structure remains - including original ceilings and window coverings - and you can even walk through some of the rooms. It was a short self-guided tour and they give you a big booklet with some information at various points. I was narrating and while I was (mostly) reading from the materials, I don't think they believed me. For good reason - I did tell them that one of the ceremonial Kivas was their group toilet.

After this we ended up at Four Corners National Monument. The site is pretty small and I had heard mixed reviews about it but it was fine for what it was. The scenery around there was nice and the monument itself was reasonably well done. They also had many Native American vendors but it was organized with each vendor in a booth so it wasn't like it was a pressure sale. We did find a couple neat pieces of local art that we'll be displaying at home soon. The only questionable thing I saw was one vendor with a Washington Redskins hat. Was he being ironic? Was the team name a source of pride? Did he just like bad football? I was pretty confused.

Our final stop of the day was Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado. This is the park with the cliff dwellings and like Meteor Crater, I had been fascinated ever since reading about it as a kid. (Side note: Did I have a Southwest Time-Life book or something? I don't know how I got so fascinated with this area of the country.) The only problem was to see the better dwellings, you had to get a tour ticket and they go on sale two days prior so they can sell out. We showed up and while there wasn't much left, we did manage to get the tour I wanted all along.

We had a couple hours to kill so we drove up towards the mesa and as usual with the parks, the scenery was great. There were great mountain and valley views from over 8,000 feet up. We also got to see a canyon where you could see some of the cliff dwellings across from us. After that, we got to our tour location and waited.

When we signed up for the tour, they warned that there is a narrow tunnel to crawl through and a 32-foot ladder to climb. The dwelling is below where we started the tour so you have to climb down a bunch of stairs and then climb the ladder into the dwelling. That sounded fine and since I had researched this, everyone knew what we were in for. That said, when the ranger spoke to the group, he said the tunnel to crawl through was on the width of a ranger's hat and the first ladder was 32-feet and then there were two other smaller ones coming out of the dwelling. I think Jess and Jen were getting a little bit nervous but it really set in when we went down the stairs and saw the ladder.

In the picture I saw online, it looked kind of tall but the angle wasn't that steep so it didn't seem bad. However, it was taller than we all thought and was pretty steep climbing out. We waited our turn and watched a lot of other people go and thankfully, we all made it up (though it might have been touch-and-go for a minute). Truthfully, it looked worse from the ground but it certainly was longer than I had imagined.

The dwelling itself was really cool to be in. We saw a couple rooms and finally crawled through the very narrow tunnel, which was very small but this is where Jess and I being small (well, average size for Ancient Puebloans) came in handy. We did have to climb two decent sized ladders out and use footholds to make our way up a steep, smooth rock. We all made it and at the end, everyone was glad they did it.

We ended the day going to a Mexican restaurant and then turning in early. This may be the last post for a day (or more) since the internet connection at the Grand Canyon may be pretty spotty.

As the Anasazi say, "Don't call us that." Note: The Ancestral Puebloans never said that, but their descendants did.

Trains, Trees, Trading Post, Etc.

Today started at a very early, still dark 6am but we were all definitely awake as driver Ryan decided to race a train. Yup, red lights flashing and after a little pause Ryan speeds up as the wooden arm is dropping alarmingly close to the roof of our rental SUV. (Ryan here - the arm wasn't coming down until I had already committed and there were other cars going through so by the time I realized what happened...yeah, I nearly killed us all but we were all awake after that).

We made it to Petrified Forest National Park and while waiting for the visitor center to open so we could grab a map we decided to grab some quick snacks and walk around. After a mishap of driving with the back of the SUV wide open (totally my fault) we began our first hike of the day.
It all began about 200 million years ago when there were trees everywhere - big, tall trees. Then some stuff about water and the trees falling and getting buried in silt when minerals crept into the wood and turned it to beautiful, colorful stone. It was amazing-  it just looked like tree bark from the outside but the inside was all quartz and other stone. We hiked about 2.6 miles just looking at all the different trees. Some were small pieces here and there and other times the whole tree was laying there in pieces that looked like you could just put it back together.

The second hike was only about a mile and was the Crystal Forest part of the park were the terrain was a little more hilly with less vegitation than the first. Still as pretty but a different look and feel. We took some fun pictures and moved along.

The rest of the time in the park we just stopped at the lookouts and walked around a little for some great views and photos.

Next stop Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site. That's right folks, Jen and I got some more stamps in our National Parks Passports! Everyone might have had a different highlight from this charming little piece of history but mine was 2 sweet little kittens that came out to visit. Of course I had to find a Park Ranger and get the names of these sweet beasts (Pinocchio and Jazz). I guess I should let you know that it is a trading post from 1880 something and still in business today. It was a quick but fun little stop.

After a longish car ride we get to our last stop of the day - Canyon Dd Chelly National Monument (pronounced duh shay). I had no idea what to expect but whoa this place was cool. The sides of the canyon were reddish and opened at the bottom where there was green grass and trees. We stopped at several lookout points and hiked out to some awesome views.

The drive out of there was through mostly Indian reservations and for a couple hours we didn't see much and while the views were pretty amazing, the mountain roads were terrifying. Some of the roads were at 8500 feet and curving, winding with a 20 MPH speed limit and even that felt too fast for the cliff at the edge of the road.

Most of us are a little sunburned and all of us are tired so after a quick bite to eat we are in Farmington, NM for the night.

As Ryan says: "I think I can beat this train" (Ryan's note: I can and did.)