UTAH - Part 2, May 14-21

Driving NE along Route 160 away from the Grand Canyon really felt like we were heading into the wild wild west! The scenery really is amazing along this stretch of road. It became obvious that we were traveling through the Navajo Indian Reservation which covers over 27,000 square miles, what a huge wonderfully pristine part of America. The temperatures were rising and the air was fresh. We stopped along the way at a large roadside stand and discovered that the Hopi Tribe reservation is completely surrounded by the Navajo Nation. The ladies purchased beautiful handmade jewelry that will bring back wonderful memories of this trip.








We would cover around 180 miles on this leg of our trip. Just past Kayenta we turned onto route 163 which would take us directly into Monument Valley at the Arizona/Utah border. At first sight of the many towering monuments we pulled the family truckster over. As I said before, it is quiet here, the air was dry and the warmth of the sun felt amazing. The daytime temps were in the low 80's and nights were probably low 60's. I think weather wise, we couldn't have picked a better week. We rarely saw another vehicle along this stretch of road and at one point my wife and daughter just started running back and forth on this abandoned roadway, I really think they wanted to run the final 10 miles to the hotel.








The turn off to our hotel "The View" was clearly marked and we proceeded to the gated entrance. This is the entrance to the Navajo Tribal Region so of course our National Park pass didn't work here, cost was only $20. "The View" is set beautifully into the landscape with its earth tone colors, from a distance you can barely see it. What's truly amazing is that it's located in the heart of the monuments, I mean you are right there! The Navajo Indians were incredibly nice and helpful during our stay. We quickly checked in to our clean, spacious beautiful room. We had reserved a room with a premier view and boy was it worth it!









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We arrived late in the afternoon and at check in they recommended that we eat dinner before the sun set or risk waiting an hour for a table, great advice! Dinner was very good, we each tried different local fare including Red Chili Pasole, Green Chili stew and Navajo taco's. FYI, the Navajo Nation is "dry" but I had planned for that and filled a cooler with local IPA's and lagers at the Grand Canyon! After dinner we walked around the complex taking in the vast beautiful sights. We noticed many cameras set on tripods on a hillside so we took a spot near them. At first I was fixed on the sun setting in the west, but soon discovered everyone was facing the opposite direction. Once the sun hit the horizon the most amazing light show began. The enormous monuments began to glow in bright red and orange hues, casting long shadows into the desert. I had envisioned this scene, but it way surpassed my expectations!

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After the light show we went back to the dining room for a dessert for the room, homemade apple and pecan pie with vanilla ice cream, yum! We hit the sack by 11pm so we would not oversleep the sunrise. Beds were extremely comfortable, but we forced ourselves up at o-dark early to witness one of my top sunrises ever! A Caribbean sunrise on a boat is outstanding, but this one was really something special!

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Breakfast was buffet style and very good, but we didn't linger too long because we were going to drive a 17 mile red dirt road circuit around and through the towering monuments. My wife wanted to get a head start and chose to run down the red road until we could catch her in the truck, she probably covered 3 miles before we could retrieve her. We basically had the Navajo Tribal Park all to ourselves, we would constantly say that we timed this trip perfectly before the tourist crowds arrived. We stopped several times along the way for photo's and spent probably 2-1/2 hours on the trail.

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We really enjoyed our one night stay here and would love to return and ride horseback on these precious lands . However, it was time to cover some ground, we had 142 miles to cover on our way to MOAB! Not to get ahead of myself, but MOAB is where the REAL adventurous thrill seeking starts, including a horseback ride!


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To be continued......CHEERS!