Horsey, Horsey, Don't You Stop ...............

If yesterday was a bit of a ‘meh’ day, then today was definitely a ‘neigh’ day! Up before dawn, pitch black, stars still out, and absolutely freezing cold - again! I was actually quite pleased when my alarm went off as it meant I could get up and go to the toilet - there was no way I was leaving my warm hogan in the middle of the night to traipse across a potentially creepy-crawly-ridden path in the freezing cold armed only with a torch! We were hoping like mad that the owners had remembered us saying we needed to leave by 6am, as they lock the gate at night, and we really didn’t want to have to wake them up. We drove up to the gate - padlocked! Bloody Hell! I tried our door key in the padlock, just in case, but as expected, no joy. Only one thing for it - wake our hosts, at 6.10 am! Just as Steve turned to head back up the drive, what did he see, but a glint on the ground - then as plain as the nose on your face was the key on a bright pink and orange chain! Oh, how awful would that have been if we hadn’t noticed?!

The first 5km of the road from the hogan is on a sandy unsealed road; and quite sandy in places - just keep driving if you hit the sand, she said! Good old Steve, he knows how to do it :-) a bit hairy at times, though. As we drove the sky in front of us gradually lightened and some of the iconic buttes became silhouetted on the skyline - beautiful.

We arrived at the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park visitor centre car park, one of the first cars in the there, just before the sunrise. We joined a good number of eager photographers waiting for that perfect shot. Very, very pretty but really, really, really cold! On the drive over the car said it was only 37˚! 

Seven o’clock came and we headed over to the little hut where we were to meet our guide for our 2 hour horse trek around ‘The Mittens’ buttes. I was a trifle alarmed when I tried to close his jeep door and the fascia panel came loose! I hoped that wasn’t an omen - I haven’t been on a horse for a few years! No worries, all good! In fact, all terrific! 

Steve got on, and stayed on, his horse Brad, without any problems, and all I had to contend with was a horse who liked to pull his head up and down to try to show who was boss - trouble was he kept shaking spit over his head; not nice when it ends up all over you! 

All Steve had to worry about was, why the xbox controller on the front of his saddle didn’t work (I don’t think the pommel was meant to be used like that, babe), his nuts getting trapped when he started trotting, and the ‘Horsey Horsey Don’t You Stop’ song going round and round in his head! He was quite surprised afterwards that I hadn’t been singing it along in my head too! 
Lawrence, our Navajo guide, spoke very quietly with a strong accent, and mostly to the front - so very difficult to follow anything he said to us. But one thing I did hear was the type of horse we were riding - so although we didn’t get our Mustang car, we did get a mustang horse! We didn’t want to be talked to though, really. It was so peaceful and quite absorbing just plodding, and trotting, (galloping if you ask Steve) along, taking in the iconic landscape. Yeeha!! We saw a couple of cotton-tail rabbits and some lizards, but no snakes or tarantulas :-( 

I’d forgotten what muscles you use when you’re riding a horse, and after our time was up I was a bit nervous about what would happen when I got off - yes, I did feel a bit like John Wayne but the feeling soon passed (my nuts to being as big)  thank goodness I only booked for 2 hours not four! Having had nothing but an apple since getting up, by the time we got back to the visitor centre at 10 am, were a tad peckish to say the least. Luckily we were able to get a buffet, all-you-can-eat breakfast at the View Hotel - so we did, just to make sure we could last all day until dinner after our sunset jeep tour. 

Feeling rather full we sat and contemplated the magnificent view for a while then set off on a 5k walk around the West Mitten Butte, hoping to see at least one snake or tarantula. We didn’t, but the creature count did rise to 6 lizards, 1 cottontail rabbit, several birds of prey, a couple of locusts and innumerable ants - very big ants. 

Apparently the paucity of wildlife is due to the fact that most animals are preparing for hibernation. We arrived back from our sandy hike to find the place overrun with coach party tourists - quite a contrast to the peace and tranquility of the morning. Fortunately coach parties tend not to go hiking so at least we’d had the trail to ourselves.

Our 3 hour cultural jeep tour started at 4.15pm - and it was Lawrence again; we’d rather been hoping to have someone we could understand! It turned out fine, though, because there was an American woman (rather a know-it-all actually) along with us sitting up front, and she repeated a lot of what he said. And we kept stopping for photo opportunities and cultural chats. There’s a self-drive trail of 17 miles, but that is definitely not for the faint-hearted - pot holes, ruts, sand dunes, steep inclines etc, etc. We did see one car like ours down there - madman, is all we can say! Our tour took us off the main trail around some sacred sites. At one point I was convinced we were going to tip over! I really couldn’t believe where he was driving us - I just kept looking sideways at the view, not on the track in front. At one point I managed to grab hold of the hair of the woman in front - and I had been hoping to hide my, for want of a better word, anxiety! 

The tour was, however, outstanding, and also a loop so we didn’t have to repeat the near tipping over part! (Apparently we were in no danger (!) according to Steve; the jeep’s built exactly for this terrain) but I didn’t like it one little bit, I have to say! We arrived back, safely and in one piece, just before the sun set over the iconic formations. More photos, 12 hours apart, to mark the passing of yet another amazing day. 

White Knuckle Rafting

But they were only white from the cold, not the ride! Our smooth water canyon rafting kicked off about 8 am, and the sun had not yet risen high enough to radiate it’s warmth (and it actually wasn’t forecast to get very warm today anyway) down to the Colorado River. Fortunately we were fairly well prepared, unlike some of the other passengers, with their shorts and thin long sleeves - poor buggers! Can’t have been much more than mid fifties. It was a pleasant enough few hours, but doesn’t even begin to compare with our last few days - let’s face it, it did have a lot to live up to! 

We did get to see some Native American petroglyphs carved into one of the canyon walls, but it appears that not much is understood about what they mean - could just be ancient graffiti for all we know! Nice drawings of sheep and antelope, though! 
Needing some substantial sustenance before our drive to tonight’s accommodation, we found a little Mexican restaurant offering lunch specials for a very cheap price, which tempted us inside. I don’t know why but we didn’t even ask about the specials. No matter, what we ordered was still cheap and really, really good - warmed us up nicely from the inside. 

Steve reckoned we’d need to drive with the top down for a while - those refried beans really get to you! And he was, as he usually is, quite right! We couldn’t hack it for long though - too bloody cold! Surprisingly we were gaining altitude and at 6000ft it was a nippy 58˚ - Softy Walters had to stop and put the top up.

Before we left we went for a look over the edge of the canyon walls down to where we’d been rafting. 

Horseshoe Bend is really very lovely looking down, but the lengths some people will go to just to get that perfect picture; I couldn’t look at some of them. One girl I noticed sitting with her legs dangling over the edge of an outcrop! - it’s a 1000ft drop for goodness sake! I had to look away, but as I did her boyfriend, who was taking ‘the photo’ put out his hand to help her up - she slipped and sat back down, only inches away from the edge. Any closer, and both would, for the few seconds it took to reach the river, have seriously regretted taking their perfect photo. Steve, on the other hand was less cavalier and crawled on his belly to the edge, having first checked out that there was actually solid rock beneath him. I stood well back - and took a photo of him!

On the way back to the car, we saw a snake!! Only a really little one, about 18”, not an exciting one, but it was still a snake - Steve was pretty happy :-)

So, back to the ride over to Monument Valley. Can I be honest? It was really pretty uninteresting. Maybe if we’d done this journey some days ago we might have been rather taken with the rocks and their strange colours and layers, but after some of the places we’ve driven through, it really just couldn’t cut it. And we’re a bit over miles - they take far too long to drive! We stopped for a coffee in MacDonald’s in Kayenta - you can always trust they’ll have good coffee - and it was busy as, with mainly Native Americans. We really are in the Wild West now! 

Our resting place for the next 2 days is Firetree Inn; we’re sleeping in traditional Navajo hogans - built of logs and covered in mud. Really warm and cosy. There are only 2 hogans and we share a bathroom unit with the other hogan occupants, rather like glorified camping, but we have been allocated our own toilet and shower within the unit! Really cool! I wonder if I’ll say that when I have to make my way over there in the night - it’s not quite Mangawhai Heads; no snakes or tarantulas there!

Peek-a-boo - or a Helluva place to lose a cow!

Yosemite had us in awe, Zion Canyon was breathtaking, but Bryce Canyon, well, it just blew or minds! The day started off well  - what colour are those lenses, asks Steve, green left, blue right, says I. Ah! says he, no wonder I couldn't see properly! He'd only been wearing them in the wrong eyes for the last few days! Warmer clothes required this morning - only 55˚, and blowing a hooley! Set off from the car park with my raincoat on for wind protection! We were at 8300ft, mind you, so not really surprising that it was a little chillier than we've become accustomed to.

I’d been a little concerned that we may have missed the most beautiful colours and shapes to be seen here, as we didn’t get up to see the sunrise over the canyon. I needn’t have worried; what we saw as we looked over the railing at our starting point was some of the most mind-blowing views we have ever seen in our lives. This, I thought, is a serious contender for the most amazing place in the whole wide world. And we hadn’t even got down amongst these massive statues yet.

We’d decided on a figure of eight walk, putting 2 of the many trails together, thanks to a blog that I found whilst planning our trip here; blogs can be very useful things! I must leave a comment on it to say thank you! Even though I had read a bit about the place and looked at a few images, nothing can prepare you for what you see and experience as you walk down into the canyon and wander through and around the imposing rock formations. The photographs do not do justice to the sheer breathtaking beauty of these hoodoos. 

It looked and felt like you were walking amongst hundreds of fairytale castles, and at each twist and turn of the path there was another ‘wowtastic’ moment - have run out of superlatives, so started making up our own! (We are in America, so who would know that it wasn't a real word!) I guess that's why they called this part of the hike the Peek-a-boo loop!

One part of our hike took in the Queens Garden Trail; and here she is above, good old Queen Victoria! We sat and had our lunch here, not because we were paying homage or anything, but just because there was a nice flat rock to sit on. Despite the place being full of them, most were not suitable as chairs!

 We named this shape 'Comrade Corner'! Ssshhhh, don't tell the Americans, they might not like it!

The hike was considerably more up hill and down dale than I had anticipated, and provided ample opportunity for me to practise my nose-breathing; very difficult actually to keep your mouth closed when every few minutes you need to pick your jaw up off the ground! The 10km round trip took us about 4 hours, with goodness only knows how many stops for photos. Having finished our hike we drove around to the highest point, Bryce Point, to look down one last time on where we had walked and on the raw beauty of this spellbinding place. From here it was easy to see why Ebeneezer Bryce, the pioneer Mormon homesteader (who was actually Scottish), thought that it was 'a helluva place to lose a cow.'

We were also quite amused to notice a group of rather mean looking bikers going gooey over the chipmunks which were running around.

It was time to leave, but we will return.

The trip down to Page took us over the high plains, and very pretty they were too. We took a halfway coffee break in a place called Kanab. Not bad coffee, but we thought we'd better hurry up and drink it before Steve's ears started to bleed - great Country and Western on the stereo! He did rather take a fancy to a cowboy, though!

And as we approached our destination, the first clouds we've seen since we arrived here appeared on the horizon - though the temperature did climb to 79˚! 

Tomorrow morning sees us up very bright and early to take a morning smooth water rafting trip down the Colorado River, before heading off into real Native American territory, Monument Valley. We're staying in some authentic Navajo huts for 2 nights, so not sure if a blog will happen tomorrow. If not, I'll post from Grand Canyon where we arrive, of all times, on my birthday - what a present! 

Vertigo, or, Where Bryonys Fear to Tread

Microwaved maple and brown sugar porridge for breakfast once again, and tea made in the coffee pot. But a reasonably early start delayed by having lost all the photos I tried to upload last night; a whole 2 hours to upload and publish yesterday's blog! I think the internet here is quicker - let's hope! 
After checking out, and leaving our car in the 'parking lot', we caught the shuttle bus which takes you to the entrance of Zion Canyon National Park. It was already almost full when we got on, but the driver continued to pack people in - all holding on for dear life to the ceiling hangers. Thankfully it was only a 2 minute drive before we all had to get off and get on another shuttle to go up through the canyon itself. After the first stop we were full, then blow me down didn't the driver allow on almost a whole other busload of senior citizens - sprightly senior citizens, mind you - to stand once more clinging to the ceiling. I offered the lady standing beside me my seat but she declined, which I was quite pleased about because I had a lovely view out of the window! It was a bit of a obstacle course when we had to get out though! We'd decided on one of the iconic walks of Zion National Park - Angel's Landing, although I was a little daunted by the description of the route - long drop-offs, not for young children or anyone fearful of heights (that would be me)(not the child bit), with the last section being a route along a steep, narrow ridge to the summit. Our guide from yesterday said there were chains on the last ¾ mile section along the knife edge ridge; so no problem about the 1500 ft drops on either side, then!

The walk up was pretty much ok - I just kept over to the left - even though we’re supposed to walk on the right, and my mantra of yesterday kept flashing back - don’t look down! There’s one section near the ‘first top’ called Walter’s Wiggles. I don’t know how they’ve built it, but the track zig-zags up in very tight turns, the edge guarded by little walls. The ‘first top’ is actually quite a wide area with flat, slanting sandstone rocks, called Scouts Lookout. We sat here to catch our breath, eat an apple, photograph the chipmunks and congratulate ourselves on a swift and uneventful climb up. It was pretty busy up there - plenty people just sitting around enjoying the view, and waiting for others in their party to come back down from the ‘top top’ - Angels Landing. And I was going to wait with them! Angels might not fear to tread there, but I certainly did! Steve, on the other hand was keen to get up to the landing, so off he set. I watched as he walked, almost crab like, up the side of the first rise, hand over hand on the chains, waiting politely to let those on the return journey pass. Good decision on my part. He was soon out of sight and so I found myself a sheltered little spot, it having become quite gusty up there, to await his return, an estimated 45 minutes later. He was back after only about 20 minutes though, having asked another couple up there how long he could expect to be. Considering I was waiting, and we had a drive to do later, their reply of about an hour return to where he was right now and he decided to call it a day, take a few photos and turn around. What a sweet man :-)

We sat to eat lunch with our backs about 4ft away from the canyon edge - I couldn’t see the drop, so that was ok!

Knife edge ridge leading to Angels Landing

Walters Wiggles

Feeling delighted to have ‘almost’ conquered a rather imposing rock formation, albeit on a very walkable path, we headed out of the incredibly impressive Zion Canyon, over the high planes to Butch Cassidy country, passing through Glendale, (only meaningful to my immediate family!) on the way to Bryce Canyon, but more of that tomorrow.