Day 5: January 20, Kayenta, AZ to Gallup, NM

Hi husbands!  We made it east -- all the way to New Mexico!

This morning we headed up to Monument Valley (which requires a short detour into Utah).  On the way up, the moon was setting and the sun was rising.  This is just out of Kayenta and quite typical.

If it looks idyllic, it's not!  My windshield had spots on it, so I sprayed it.  The spray immediately froze because it was 21 (-6C) degrees out.  Oops.  After stopping to clean up the mess, we safely made it to Monument Valley proper. Rumor has it that you need a guided tour because the roads are so bad, but they have nothing on Duplin county in terms of ruts.  I probably could have made it in the Spyder.  Save your money and drive -- even better do it in January when you only see 3 other cars in the 17 mile loop.  The drive is well worth it for shots like:

 

If the pictures seem familiar, it's because you've seen these rocks in a million movies from John Wayne's 1939 Stagecoach to Forrest Gump.  If you want these famous shots, drive in the morning.  If you want shots going the other way (also very pretty), drive later in the day.  Monument Valley is a Navajo Tribal Park, not a US National Park or Monument.  Therefore access is limited to driving (for a $5/person) and one 3 mile trail (though we weren't tempted this morning due to the weather).  Additional access is by guide only for $30 or more.  The land also has horse pens, some residential structures, some traditional Navajo hogans (see below) which may have been occupied or may have just been for show, and many place selling jewelry, pottery and other "Navajo crafts."

In addition to the scenery, we found two new birds.  Denise spotted a Northern Shrike (distinguishable from the Loggerhead by the very hooked beak) on the top of a shrub. Catherine found a pair of Black Throated Sparrows next to the visitor center.

We headed out of Monument Valley back down 163 and then 160N briefly to IR 59S (Indian Road 59, marked by an arrowhead with the number in it) to 191S to Canyon de Chellys (rhymes with May).  IR 59 headed through fields dotted with horses, cows and sheep.

Canyon de Chelly contains more red rocks and several Anasazi and Navajo Ruins.

Anasazi is Navajo for "ancient people" according to the signs or "ancient enemies" according to Wikipedia.  Wikipedia also says no one really knows why they vanished -- possibly a drought, possibly they just scattered and evolved into other cultures.  In any case, when the Navajo got there, they found (and used) the ruins of that civilization.

The picture above on the left shows a couple of dwellings, one on the floor and one maybe 50 feet up.  But more dwellings (though more difficult to photograph) are dotted hundreds of feet in the air.  Oh, the river is damed, hence folks live and farm on the valley floor.  If you look closely, you can even see some road in the picture on the left.

Denise has her own theories about why the folks died out.  She thinks its because all the kids fell off the cliffs.  Catherine has 3 theories.  1) The mommies all died from heart attacks.  The other 2 have to do with the fact all dioramas show the Native Americans in loin cloths and nothing else.  2) In the summer, they died of heat stroke and/or sunburn without hats.  3) In the winter, they froze to death.

Throughout all of the Navajo Nation there are signs to watch out of cows and horses on the roads.  We did find a horse crossing the road as well as 6 hitchhikers.

The Navajo Nation seems very impoverished.  Nearly all the houses are prefab or mobile homes (many with tires on the roofs).  According to the folks at the National Park Service, the number one industry is tourism, followed by teaching and then health care services.  There is a tiny bit of agriculture (mainly livestock).  Wikipedia says the median family income is around $25k.  We've never been through so many hundreds of miles without seeing any what would appear to be wealthy areas.  No doubt the Najavo have a rough history, but Catherine doesn't believe having a Navajo Nation is doing anyone any favors at this time.  Even the stray (or loose dogs).  Although the polite canine panhandlers at the Canyon de Chelly visitor's center and the mom and pups who reside at Church's Chicken seemed fat and happy.

We headed out of Navajo country on snowy route 191 which has to be one of the straightest roads Catherine has ever encountered.  We then headed West (ARG) on I40 back to the Painted Desert and took a quick look at a few giant piles of cement (well, that's what we think they look like) with petrified trees on them.

And after a gorgeous sunset and a quick trip on I40 E in the dark, we safely arrived in a new state for Denise, New Mexico!