Tuba City, Arizona, and Monument Valley, Utah (Day 6 - 3/1/14)

Monument Valley. Hi-ho silver!

Today we take a drive around the 'Grand Circle' - a large area across four American states that encompasses many natural attractions. The idea is to see Monument Valley and maybe something else, but the Duck's ambition ends up taking us on a 300-350 mile round trip. 

The first goal is to cross over into Utah and see Monument Valley. On the way out we pass through a lot of Navajo country and witness firsthand the impoverished conditions some of the people live in. Small hogans and caravan-sized boxes dot the cold, dry landscape in random places alongside the highway, many without water or electricity. 

The hogan, a hexagonal-shaped building, is the traditional style of home for the Navajo. There are two different kinds - one for men and one for women.

Floyd later explains to me that a great portion of Navajo land was 'frozen' by the government between 1969 and 2007, meaning that repairs and development were not allowed for a very long time. The U.S. Government in 1969 had decided to do this in the hope of forcing the Navajo and Hopi tribes to resolve their internal land disputes, but it didn't work out and a lot of Navajo families (and presumably Hopi ones too) have been suffering for a long time as a result. Compensation is currently being sought by the Tribal Council but the current government hasn't been very receptive to this idea.

Monument Valley is my favourite thing about the trip so far. Nothing prepares me for the sheer majesty of these huge red monoliths (called buttes - something I learned today). Looking down on the valley gives me the exact shot used in the Doctor Who episode The Impossible Astronaut and also transports me to a handful of westerns. I even stand in the footsteps of the great John Wayne; the Duke liked to observe the valley from this exact spot and filmed some of his most famous films amongst the god-hewn structures in this rusty red landscape.

Abandoned or closed Indian jewellery store outside Monument Valley.

Monument Valley - panorama shot.

We drive back into Arizona and the Duck decides to take me to a Navajo diner called the Blue Coffee Pot, a place she had been to with her Navajo chaperone two years earlier.

This time, though, it's just me and her - two very white Australians in an all-Navajo restaurant.

Stepping into the diner gets us more than a few stares from the Navajo staff and customers, and I have to admit that I did not feel very welcome. This could very well just be racial paranoia, but it gives me an unexpected insight into racially-based discomfort nonetheless. It's hardly comparable to the hardship experienced by minorities the world over, and we tough it out and enjoy our lunch the best we can, despite the staring.

Hungry Jacks in Navajo country, note the hogan in the foreground.

From here we drive into a national park to see the the National Navajo Monument - a series of trails that lead to lookouts overseeing a heavily forested canyon. The snow is thick and, this time, is soft enough for a snowball fight. Despite my pleas to the contrary, the Duck takes great delight in showering me in ice - the crisp snow sharply dusting my face and filling the pockets and collar of my hooded jumper.

The Navajo Monument - the ancient pueblo can be glimpsed at the base of the arch.

At the lookout we see down into the canyon where a huge natural alcove shelters a perfectly preserved Navajo pueblo - far bigger and less eroded than the Hopi ones we saw at Sedona. Such is the remarkable state of these ruins that I can almost see how they were in the 13th century - peopled and vibrant with life, a cliffside community in equilibrium with the American environment.

As the sun sets we race to Antelope Point, a strange red rock beach on the Colorado River. It's getting cold and dark by this point so there is no chance of a swim - though Duck picked up what she thought was a shell before I help her identify it as animal bones, prompting her to drop the dangling vertebrae in disgust.

After the day's 10 hours of travelling we meet May and Floyd back at the Cameron Trading Post (15 minutes past Tuba City) for the restaurant's famous Navajo Tacos. This is basically like a big soft taco, only with Navajo frybread used to wrap up the meat and salad. It's delicious but also extremely filling. We look around the Trading Post afterwards, and Floyd is surprised to discover that the store is selling a buckskin that he tanned himself (he recognises the secret trademarks he put into it).

A Navajo taco. I didn't get a chance to take a picture of one because it was too delicious not to eat straight away. This pic is from eatingtheworld.wordpress.com

Later, when we get back to Tuba City, I speak to Floyd at great length about politics, mainly the differences between Australia's and America's political systems, and he fills me in on the ongoing political struggles of the Navajo nation, as well as the decreasing use of the Navajo language and customs among the younger generation. He also speaks about his experiences in the Tribal Council, including some explosive stories about the Indian Rights Movement, as well as a corruption scandal that saw the most influential members of the council imprisoned. At this point I am still only aware of Floyd's occupation as being something to do with politics, but as we ate back at the Cameron Trading Post the Duck and I noticed two young Navajo men who came over to Floyd to pay their respects to him. They call him 'sir' and seem a bit chuffed that he speaks back to them in such a friendly manner. It is at this point that I realised Floyd is kind of a big deal within his community.

Oh, and I almost forgot. Earlier today we drove on Floyd's Road. It's not called that, but it's a road that he fought very hard for - a replacement highway for a collapsed road that now diverts a lot of traffic through Navajo communities. He and May speak so fondly of it, so the Duck made sure that we drove along it on our travels today. We take roads for granted, but how often do you get to meet someone who was instrumental in the construction of one, and then get to drive along said road? Maybe I'm just a weirdo, but I get a big kick out of that.

The Duck in Monument Valley.

Buttes and snow

Navajo in ceremonial mask.

South-West Utah (Day 6)

Utah wouldn't be Utah without a Book of Mormon. Seen in the Silver Bear Gem Store.

Hello from Utah!

Who knew it got so bloody hot in America during their autumn? It reached 103 degrees Fahrenheit today (39 degrees Celsius). That's pretty hot, right? It feels absolutely oppressive. 

Kolob Canyon

We start out our day by heading south to explore the Zion National Park area. The first stop is Kolob Canyon, a quiet wilderness of bright orange mountain peaks spotted with the lushest greenery I've seen in this part of America so far. Signs warn of Mountain Lion activity; apparently they've been skulking about a bit more than usual lately. Nicole finds this strangely motivating and wants to head off into the forest, hoping to see a Mountain Lion. As much as I'd also like to see one, I'm not sure I want it to be on the animal's terms. Besides, once we get to the top of the canyon we decide it's too hot to go traipsing off around the clifftops.

Zion National Park

Next stop is Zion National Park, which is another hour away. It turns out that this park is even more popular than Bryce Canyon... after travelling through the busy tourist village of Springdale we reach a queue of cars outside of the park. A rockfall on the road between Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon two days ago has caused a few issues, and means that we can't take our car any closer. Doing the park on foot or by shuttle bus will eat up the rest of our day so we decide to give it a miss. Despite the road blockage the place is still packed. This is the most people I've seen anywhere since San Francisco, which also puts me off a bit. 

So we visit Springdale. I have Chili Nachos Verde for lunch, which is the closest I've been able to get to Mexican food since I got to America. I am seriously jonesing to eat some serious Mexican. This needs to seriously happen soon. 

The restaurant 'Wildcat Willies' in Springdale, with a helpful side of Americana

Silver Bear Gem Store, Springdale, Utah

Nicole then pulls in to the Silver Bear Gem Store, which has all these huge piles of minerals out the front. I'm not particularly into gems so I start talking to the nice lady behind the counter after she picks up on our Australian accents. Her name is Mary-Anne and she's super-nice. She tells me about her previous career as a naturalist, and her work as a teacher's aide. She also used to be a librarian. Nicole buys a few things and Mary-Anne insists that we try some of her home-made beef jerky, which she finished making just the night before. I am a huge fan of jerky, so I really enjoy it. She gladly poses for a photo before bidding us farewell.

Piles of gems!

Mary-Anne, a gem in the desert!

Home-made beef jerky

Shortly before consumption

Americans have a bad wrap in Australia, but (this being my second visit to the U.S., and Nicole's third) we've found them to be nothing short of amazing in terms of their friendliness. Another shop clerk, Betsy, has a nice long chat with us about animals and prickly pears. She's shocked to hear that prickly pear is considered a pest in Australia... in America it's used as a food source, and is quite delicious. She tells me about the times that her dogs met up with porcupines, and the proper way to remove porcupine spines from a dog (you have to snip them short before pulling them out).

Prickly Pear fruit

'Utah Werewolf', seen in Virgin Trading Post

We also have some fun visiting Walmart near the city of St. George (Nicole needs to seek out some advice on her swollen feet). One of the pharmacists is an Aussie ex-pat and seems really happy to meet us. She's lived in America for 23 years and comes from Canberra. A sight that is less appealing but no less engaging is a young mother also standing in the pharmacy section... she's dressed in a tank top and shorts but for some reason is wearing a one-piece swimsuit underneath with the sides cut out. It's a strangely amusing sight, though she doesn't seem all that amused.

Dinosaur Discovery Museum

Rah!

Actual impressions of dinosaur skin.

Inside the Museum

Our last stop for the day is a Dinosaur Museum on Johnson's Farm. Nicole doesn't really like it much because she can't help but compare it to the dinosaur archaeological site we saw in the Navajo Reservation on our previous visit to America, but I think it's fantastic. The museum is actually a huge warehouse built over the top of a real excavation site. A fun fact that I learned (and Nicole wasn't really interested by) is that this site is one of only 5 places in the world where tracks have indicated a carnivorous dinosaur sitting in a resting position. I found this really cool because I have trouble visualising dinosaurs as real animals, and imagining one crouched on the ground with its hands resting in front of it just makes it feel to me more like a living, breathing creature.

Resting Dinosaur impression

By this point in the day it's the dreaded 103 degrees. It's not like an Australian heat where there's a bit of moisture in the air. This is a dry, heavy heat that presses down on you from every direction. We quickly slip into the car and head off out of Utah to our next port of call, Arizona. Around 8:30 pm we cross the state line into the northernmost city, Page.

Cedar City (Day 5)

Service Station near Newcastle. If you look up close at this pic, you can see Kokopelli (a deity popular with the Anasazi cultures in South-West America) drawn on the rock.

Day 5, South-West Utah. After eating a service station breakfast and pre-preparing a service station lunch (a packet of chips), we strike out of Caliente and head for the Utah border. In the cold daylight it's suddenly apparent that Caliente is surrounded by mountains, and that it's also a bit of a tired and skint-looking town. But this is my second impression... my first impression was of the friendliness of the service station staff last night and the comfort of the Rainbow Canyon Motel, so I'll fondly remember Caliente as a place of rest and hospitality.

After our whirlwind, day-long tour of Nevada we find ourselves across state lines and in Utah. Driving for a couple of hours leads us to another gas station (near Newcastle), a small town where guns and shooting seem to be the predominant interest. The gas station features a lot of literature on shooting and advertisements for large hay purchases that come with a free rifle. We even get stuck behind a pick-up truck shortly afterwards, on the back of which is a large freshly-killed elk - its antlers as wide as the vehicle itself.

Oh deer.

We pull into Cedar City around lunchtime and it turns out to be much larger than I expected. There are at least 20 fast food restaurants lining the main stretch, and the city (whilst small for America) is as big as any non-capital Australian city I've seen. After re-assessing our progress across this country so far, Nicole and I decide to base ourselves in Cedar City for the night so we can reach the two national parks on either side of it. Today we'll 'do' Bryce Canyon and Cedar Breaks, which are about an hour or so east of the city.

Cedar Breaks

Cedar Breaks is quite a beautiful place, with a breathtaking view of the orange clifftops known as the 'Breaks'. The surrounding forest is firmly in the grip of autumn, many green-leaved trees are beginning to fade to yellow, and some have already bloomed into a deep russety orange. The drive between these multicoloured corridors of pines, firs and aspens is peaceful and relaxing... a far cry from the tense journey taken yesterday.

The road to Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon is one of the main reasons we have come to this part of America, and we wind our way through the aptly-named Red Canyon to get there. Bryce is a fairly busy area, touristy but not overpopulated. We take a punt and look in a wildlife museum on our way. I have mixed feelings when I see the myriad of stuffed animals arranged in facsimiles of their natural habitats, and my amazement soon turns to sadness as we note the faint bullet holes that can't quite be hidden. Upon closer inspection, some of the large stuffed turkeys have painted, life-like plastic heads... which leads me to the realisation that they probably had their heads blown off. A quick meeting with the owner and perusal of newspaper clippings on the wall imply that he probably shot each and every one of these animals on his many travels throughout the world. He seems to be a genuine animal lover, which baffles me a little, but I don't dare ask him further questions because I don't want to know the answers. The museum is undoubtedly impressive but it also leaves me feeling a little horrified.

Stuffed Javelinas and a Coati.

Beavers

Prairie Dogs and American Badger.

The canyon we've come for is the complete antithesis of the museum. If Cedar Breaks is beautiful than Bryce Canyon is absolutely spectacular. Not actually a canyon at all, Bryce Canyon is a huge, cathedral-like, ampitheatre-shaped rock formation. We descend from the clifftop down a rather steep series of pathways called 'the Navajo Trail' and wind our way deep into the crimson valley of stone. The rocky walls range from white to pink and almost-red, their towering walls sculpted by wind and water into wave-like shapes. One solitary spire of rock is named 'Thor's Hammer' for its odd and square-shaped top, and many other spires (known as 'hoodoos') form a diverse and fanciful range of shapes. Trophies, sisters, soldiers and monks... all so high above and ready to topple should the years and weather continue to do their part.

Caption unnecessary?

Thor's Hammer

The way down into the 'canyon'.

Coming back up out of the bottom of Bryce Canyon is no less majestic. That said, myself and Nicole tread a fine line between optimism and collapse as we slowly pick our way back to the top. What goes down must come up!

View from below.

As we head back to Cedar City we see a couple more Mule Deer eating grass by the highway. They barely notice us, these deer pretty much own the place. 

Arby's. Inside the alfoil is a whole lot of brown and yellow.

When we get back to town we book a room in a Quality Inn and eat a fairly late dinner at Arby's across the road. Arby's is one of the gazillion carb-loaded fast food chains that line the main stretch of Cedar City. Their angle is 'MeatCraft' (trademarked). It's passably edible but not something I'll seek out again, if given the choice.