Anyone Game? 2 Castles and a Road Trip TR! Last Day and TR Wrap Up! #2796; 10/01

[Aussie Wendy]

Road to Pagosa Springs 25 September 2013


And just like the promise of a new day, this year promises much for me on the work front. I successfully negotiated my first preference with work and am looking forward to the promise of a work situation for this year that is saner and more balanced than last year.


May we live in interesting times!


(Continued in Next Post)

Wonderful pictures capturing the sunrise - so beautiful. Glad your work negotiations were successful. That's very good news. Here's to an excellent 2014 then...

 

[franandaj]

Wow! I got behind on your updates. After reading this, I'm so glad that we are spending three nights at the View Hotel. I'm sure we will suffer food dilemmas with the lack of choices, but we'll take your advice and pack some food. At least there are refrigerators and microwaves in the room.

We definitely want to try the dinner at least once, we both love fry bread and your green chili stew sounds awesome! I'm glad to hear about your sunset tour, I'm wondering if we should book a private guide with Fran and her mobility issues. That way we can go at our own pace, leave at a time in the afternoon when we can get some bright light photos and then see the sunset.

With three nights, I hope we can see one night from the room, one night in the field, I want to see a sunrise from the room, your pictures were incredible! But I also want to do a sunrise tour. There is also the midnight tour. We have a lot to study and decide! Thanks for giving me some insight! Awesome pictures and information!

 

[PrincessInOz]

What powerful sunrise shots! So glad things are getting better for you at work.

Thank you.

The photos are so beautiful. I am not surprised that this inspired you to come up with some solutions. I am glad that this gave you some peace of mind and better still that work accepted one of your proposals. I hope that you will be in a much better place this year.

Corinna

Yes, I was pretty lucky that work was open to negotiate. I was back at work today. I was a lot calmer and less stressed. Hopefully, it'll stay that way for the rest of the year.

I'm usually more of a sunset than sunrise person, but those pics were worth getting up for.

Cheers to a calmer 2014!

Here's to a calmer 2014 at work......for ALL of us.

Very nice pictures of the sunrise. What a great start of the morning.

Thanks Bret. It was a very good way to start the morning. I was totally fascinated by the colour of the sunrise. Many years ago, we stopped at a Trading Post in the viscinity that sold Ute pottery. I looked at the colours on the pots with Monument Valley in disbelief. Didn't believe for one moment that the colours were that intense or that they were separated in those colour bands. Well. do. I. feel. dumb. now. !

We did drive by that Trading Post on this trip. It was all boarded up and closed.

Beautiful pictures, I'm enjoying a vicarious vacation with you as I'm not sure this road trip is something we will ever get to do.

Glad to hear to have your work situation sorted ... it can be hard to get the balance right. I'm very lucky that my boss is super accommodating and allows me to work family friendly hours throughout the year, but even then I am always exhausted by the end of December and really enjoy my lazy January at home with the kids!

Lucky you! Enjoy the rest of January. I sure wished I had an extra week's holiday today. No such luck for me.

But I am hopeful of a better work-life balance this year.

Great sunrise pictures!

Thanks.

Those pictures are stunning! Worth waking up early for. Glad you came to some clarity with your work situation and it is resolving itself.

Jill in CO

I was so pleased to see the sunrise. As you said....worth getting up for. But I was soooo tired for the rest of the day.

Beautiful pics!

I must admit that that part of the USA has never really interested me as I'm more of a lakes, mountains, and trees person. When I saw the Grand Canyon, I was underwhelmed. But your whole TR is making me rethink. The vibrant reds and oranges you are capturing in your photography are just beautiful. That hotel looks like the kind of place where I could sit out on the deck with a nice drink and just happily let the hours pass by.

Also, good on you for striking some work-life balance. I know exactly what that feels like - it's so relieving.

I wouldn't judge this area just by the Grand Canyon. It is a lovely place to visit and all that....but there is so much more to the 4-corners, canyonlands, grand circle than the GC. If you're after colour, lakes, mountains and trees; and you haven't gone before, maybe Zion and Bryce might be more to your liking. I love Zion. God's Country indeed!

Great shots! Good on you for making the most of being woken up early in the morning

Thanks. I was very happy with the shooting this morning.

Those sunrise pictures are awe inspiring, and I can understand that they put you in a state of mind to sort work things out.

I guess I need to head to out to watch the sunrise for a solution also...

Yup. I'll say it again. Here's to a better work year for ALL of us.

There ya go! That one!



Oh no- wait! This one!



Jud

Someday, you'll have to check out the other hundred or so billion shots I took of sunrise on this morning.

Wonderful pictures capturing the sunrise - so beautiful. Glad your work negotiations were successful. That's very good news. Here's to an excellent 2014 then...

Thanks Wendy. Yup. 2014 has certainly started out better than 2013. The promise of a great year is still fresh in the air. I. can. taste. it.

Wow! I got behind on your updates. After reading this, I'm so glad that we are spending three nights at the View Hotel. I'm sure we will suffer food dilemmas with the lack of choices, but we'll take your advice and pack some food. At least there are refrigerators and microwaves in the room.

We definitely want to try the dinner at least once, we both love fry bread and your green chili stew sounds awesome! I'm glad to hear about your sunset tour, I'm wondering if we should book a private guide with Fran and her mobility issues. That way we can go at our own pace, leave at a time in the afternoon when we can get some bright light photos and then see the sunset.

With three nights, I hope we can see one night from the room, one night in the field, I want to see a sunrise from the room, your pictures were incredible! But I also want to do a sunrise tour. There is also the midnight tour. We have a lot to study and decide! Thanks for giving me some insight! Awesome pictures and information!

I enjoyed the green chili stew and would recommend you try it out.

Alison - Goulding's Hotel is about a mile or so down the road from The View. I believe they have a restaurant there and it might be worth checking it out as an option for dinner. There is also the Visitor Centre right at the turnoff from the 163 into Monument Valley. There are a bunch of permanent stands selling silver jewellery and Indian souvenirs there. It might be something that you head out to visit and shop; before heading to Gouldings to dinner. It's pretty much right there at that intersection.


Definitely bring stuff for breakfast if you have 3 nights. The cost of breakfast is about $26 per person and there wasn't any a la carte option.


I would highly recommend that you and Fran do a private tour; if you can. That way, you can definitely go at your own pace. And perhaps the company/guide can also tailor the sights to what you want to see and do.

 

[ejud]

Just to tie in the last few pages with WDW, in the lobby of the magnificent Wilderness Lodge, stands the Grand Canyon Fireplace. On the third floor, there is a display that explains this tribute to that natural wonder.





Jud

 

[WanderlustNZ]

You're right, I just googled Zion and Bryce NPs and they look stunning. Will have to had them to my bucket list under the Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, and pretty much all of Alaska.
I think it's time to start buying more lotto tickets

 

[PrincessInOz]

Just to tie in the last few pages with WDW, in the lobby of the magnificent Wilderness Lodge, stands the Grand Canyon Fireplace. On the third floor, there is a display that explains this tribute to that natural wonder.





Jud

Fantastic information! Thanks for sharing.

You're right, I just googled Zion and Bryce NPs and they look stunning. Will have to had them to my bucket list under the Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, and pretty much all of Alaska.
I think it's time to start buying more lotto tickets

Let's go halves. You buy them in NZ and I'll buy them in Oz. We can double our chance of winning.


Now. to. remember. to. BUY. a ticket.

 

[Pluto0809]

Monument Valley is just breathtaking! Gorgeous pictures of all times of day!

 

[wiigirl]

Monument Valley is just breathtaking! Gorgeous pictures of all times of day!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Monument Valley is just breathtaking! Gorgeous pictures of all times of day!

It sure is. I'm thinking of printing a series of shots for sunrise as a set; but I might include a daytime and nightime shot as well.

 

[PrincessInOz]

The Trail of the Ancients



I'm not sure why but it took us a while to leave The View hotel.






It could have been the fact that I was pottering outside looking at the valley and taking pictures of the hotel.






Or it could have been that DH was busy shopping in the Trading Post.






Despite best efforts, even when we left, we didn't really leave.

We stopped at the Visitor Centre at the corner of the Monument Valley turn-off and the 163. There were very permanent structures there for more shopping of all things silver and native souvenirs. DH and I were definitely in our element looking at silver jewellery on this trip. If you are in the area, I thought the shops here were worth a stop. I’m not sure why I didn't take a picture of them.

I had decided that we were heading north/east on the 163. I was chasing the Trail of the Ancients today.






The Trail of the Ancients scenic road network encompasses a web of roadways which honours the Anasazi people. The Trail of the Ancients within the Navajo Nation connects the Four Corners states of New Mexico, Colorado, Utah and Arizona. The 25 mile or so stretch of US-163 from Monument Valley to the village of Mexican Hat is stunning.





I made sure we had one stop along this stretch.






Anyone recognise where we are and why I stopped here?






It's Mile Marker 13 on highway 163.







Run, Forest, Run.


Yup. This vista has been immortalised in Forest Gump. He stopped running at Mile Marker 13. And ever since that movie, there have been people stopping at this spot to take their tourist pictures. We were no different. In fact, there must be a very steady stream of people as there is at least one roadside stand selling more jewellery and trinkets here.






Time was marching on. We pressed on.


The village of Mexican Hat has a population of about 100. Yes, 100. Many years ago, DH and I had stayed here for one night in a rather shabby motel when we were driving the Grand Circle and the place has not changed at all. The village consists of about 4 motel/hotels, a gift shop, several restaurants and a gas station that we stopped at. The one end of the village where the San Juan River runs through that can be considered pretty; but that’s about it.

Aside from Kayenta, it's about the only spot to get gas around this part of the world. And captive market = bad service.


Hands down. The worst 'no service' we experienced on this trip was by the girl behind the counter at the gas station. All she did was take money and nothing else. I asked her two questions. I got two grunts. Not even close to answering the question and no further grunts were forthcoming. And as for using the restroom facilities here....if looks could kill, I would not be here typing this right now.


The name 'Mexican Hat' comes from a curiously sombrero-shaped, 60-foot (18 m) wide by 12-foot (3.7 m) thick, rock outcropping on the northeast edge of town.






You can walk up to it; but I had a feeling we were going to be very pressed for time today and I've long learnt to trust my feelings. So, we kept going.






Here is where I regretted wasting the morning at the Hotel. We continued driving along the 163 heading east. We came across the Goosenecks State Park and saw the brown sign to the Valley of the Gods. I wished we had time to stop; but there was a long way to go to our final destination for the day. I had driven through here once before this day and that was in total darkness. At least I got to wave at it from the window of the car this time.



Time was marching on. We pressed on.


The 163 finishes at the 191. I think I might have picked up more unfinished business here. I chose to head south on the 191 and realised shortly after that we could have followed a smaller road along the Trail of the Ancients here. I miscalculated and we should have taken the 162 to the 160.

We would pick up the Trail of the Ancients on the 160 again and stay on it for the rest of the day.


Somewhere along this stretch, we lost the red rock and hit yellow desert.

Driving through Red Rock landscapes easing to yellow sand
Gusty winds
Yellow sand spouts can be seen
Always a dust in the air
Gusty winds.





(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

(Continued from Previous Post)



One Push-up is All it Takes to be in Four States




Four Corners.



Why is this area called Four Corners?






Well, there is only one place, one single point in the United States where FOUR states. Here meet. In Freedom. Under God.






You'll find the Four Corners Monument off the 160. Strictly not quite an 'ancient' ruin, the Four Corners Monument actually marks a boundary between Navajo lands and Ute. We turned in, parked....






....and headed in.






As we had just proved by driving rings to get here, it's a tourist destination of sorts and crazy people like us will drive out of the way to get here! Just don't make it the focus of your trip here because there really isn't very much to see.


The monument is ringed on all four states by permanent stands selling silver jewellery and native artefacts. Whilst DH went mining for more silver, DS and I had a lot of fun going round to all four states; at least twice! The four states meeting here are:

Utah.











Colorado.











Arizona.












New Mexico.













DH dragged himself long enough away so that we could get our family shot at this location.







And yes. One push-up is all it takes to be in four states at the same time.







The irony of the Four Corners Monument is that the placement of the marker was incorrectly calculated. The actual geographic location is located about 1000 feet east of the marker. Still, it is recognised as the boundary point.


I'll confess that DH and I had been here before. My recollection of that visit includes one very strong memory of tasting Fry Bread for the very first time. It was actually from this spot. I think it might be the same stall; although there was now a more permanent temporary structure around it.






I think we paid $1.50 for Fry Bread the last time.






DS and I also shared some shaved ice whilst we were waiting for the fry bread to be cooked. Perfect snack to have on yet another wonderfully hot and sunny day.







The fry bread? Still so good!






(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

(Continued from Previous Post)


Rocky Roads Mountain High





Time was marching on. We pressed on.



Strange as it seems, I could smell a difference in the air within 30 minutes of us leaving the Four Corners Monument.


California air had smelt of excitement, smog and money.
Arizona air was redolent with spice and musky dry desert.
Utah was heavy with sand and open skies.
Colorado……Colorado smelt of sweet water, cold and ice.




We finally left the red rock and desert of Arizona behind us around 1 pm. Driving along the 160, we briefly were in New Mexico for a very short period of time. I was tempted to take the right fork to Albuquerque. Believe me. I did try to build a stop there in this road trip but it just didn't fit. Instead, I took the left fork towards Cortez. We were still following the Trail of the Ancients along the road from Four Corners Monument towards Cortez.


The feeling of being late finally closed in on us when we got on the 491/160. Seems like the roads were in a constant state of repair in this corner of Colorado. Everywhere we drove, there seemed to be road construction going on about 10 - 20 miles apart. Traffic was very heavy and rather slow. We crawled along at the top speed of about 20 mph on this stretch. It took us twice as long to get to Cortez than what we thought it would. And there was no brown sign involved!



The air in Colorado might have smelt incredibly sweet; but it was one heck of a welcome to Rocky Roads Mountain High!



(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

(Continued from Previous Post)


Benys Diner




We eventually got into Cortez for a late lunch. We were starving and pulled in at the first place that caught our eye.






It's your typical countryside diner with a little charm and character to recommend it on the inside.






Aside from the references to automobiles sparingly scattered around the diner, it was quite nondescript.






DS ordered nachos supreme.







The salsa came in one of those metal sugar containers and was surprisingly decent. It packed a little bit of a spicy punch and was full of flavour.






There was no vegetarian option on the menu. But they said they could fix DH a bean burrito.






Um. No. This was pretty gross.






I ended up asking the waiter what he would order. No surprises for his choice. His selection was the pick of the dishes we had for lunch. It was a decent enough burger.







Aside from the burrito, the food here was averagely acceptable. However, I won't recommend a visit here for lunch. After we ate here, we got back in the car and kept driving down the road and around the corner along the 160. We got to Cortez proper and found heaps more better looking options there. D'oH!


We stopped at the Visitor Centre in Cortez to make some enquiries about Mesa Verde. By this stage, it was 2.30 pm in the afternoon. They confirmed our suspicion. If we kept going on the 160, we would get to the Mesa Verde turn-off in an hour. It would take us another hour to get up the mountain to the Cliff Dwellings. DH and I talked about it and in the end we came to the only conclusion we could on this day. Our following the Trail of Ancients would have to come to an end here. We had promised to get to our final destination of this day as close to 4 pm as possible, the side trip to Mesa Verde was going to be far too long for us. And it wasn't a promise that we could easily break.


So between the late start from Monument Valley and the traffic, DH and I had to give up on the dream of re-visiting Mesa Verde Cliff Dwellings on this trip. Next time.

For anyone thinking of visiting this part of the world, Mesa Verde is a MUST do!

 

[jedijill]

We have 2 seasons in Colorado. Winter and Construction season.

That area is stunning. So cool about the spot in Forrest Gump! We have a restaurant here in town that makes Fry Bread tacos and it was on Diners Drive ins, and Dives! It is delicious!

Too bad you had to miss Mesa Verde on this trip.

Jill in CO

 

[dolphingirl47]

I love all the scenery again. I will be sorry to see the back of all those stunning reds. I have to hide the photos of Four Corners from DH. He got seriously excited driving backwards and forwards over the Hoover Dam as this meant going from one time zone to the other. I can just imagine his reaction if he could walk from state to state in just a few steps. I am sorry that you ended up missing out on Mesa Verde, but I can't wait to see where your adventure will lead you next.

Corinna

 

[rentayenta]

Hey Jill, we've got the same two seasons.




PIO, your push up in the four corners is just too cute.


Did you see any good polygamists? All the French braided, prairie skirted ones live there.


I recognized the Gump scene right off. Do I win?

 

[ejud]

Anyone recognise where we are and why I stopped here?

Yes! Recognized it immediately in both the film and here. But now, I have a question for you!

Why did Forest stop there?



Jud

 

[ejud]

WOW!

Has that changed!

1971...







Jud

 

[LegoMom3]

"I'm pretty tired..............I think I'll go home now."

WOW!

Has that changed!

1971...







Jud

NO. KIDDING....!!! It didn't look much different than ^ that ^ in '81 either! I seem to recall a bunch of native vendors under tents (much like a farmer's market; I still have the bracelet I bought) surrounding the Four Corners, but that's IT. There was definitely no building or grand entry with all the flags.... Wow.

Can't wait for more on CO!!

.

 

[ACDSNY]

Wow the Four Corner have changed!