RV Trip Part 4 - Zion National Park

The RV park at Waheap was clean, well organized and left us in good spirits as we made the drive towards Zion. Almost immediately we were back in Utah and made a quick stop in Kanab to get some bottled water and sundries. A very picturesque town, numerous westerns and TV shows have been filmed here and apparently it has a strong Mormon backbone (this is Utah after all).

Entering Zion via the two tunnels cut into the mountains is awesome. The first is two lane and short; the second is 1.1 miles long and requires larger vehicles (like RVs) proceed single file. Once you exit, the views of the Zion Canyon valley and the surrounding mountains is simply spectacular and up there with Yellowstone and Yosemite in terms of natural beauty.

Emerging from the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel


We spent most of the the day taking in the vistas and found the park shuttle bus* to be an excellent way to get around (*instituted in the 1990's due to traffic congestion).

The Zion Valley


The valley has been carved over the eons by the Virgin River, which is placid enough in the summer time but can be a raging force in the spring when the snows melt. The park was busy with a lot of organized tours, especially from Germany, England and Australia.

The Virgin River


Friendliest Squirrels West of the Pecos

RV Trip Part 3 - Monument Valley to Page

Here was one of the few mis-steps along the way. We had to be in Page by 12.30pm and there was unanimous confusion over what the true time of day was. Arizona is technically in the Mountain Time Zone but does not adjust for daylight savings, hence the confusion. Because we had reservations for a raft trip down the Colorado from Page, we did not want to be late... so we skimped a bit on Monument Valley. We did capture perhaps the quintessential photo of the road disappearing into the red sandstone buttes but did not elect to take the 17 mile drive through the valley. It was here John Ford and John Wayne teamed up for several classic westerns, including The Searchers, which for many is the ultimate of the genre.

Monument Valley, border of AZ and UT




We ended up in Page two hours early and were immediately concerned by the 40 mph wind gusts. Even though the Colorado river is well protected by the canyons, our trip was one for flat water and not the white-water variety. We had good cause for concern - the rafting was cancelled due to the high winds. That allowed some time to tour Page and see the Glen Canyon dam, completed in 1966 and despite it's obvious mammoth dimensions, is not nearly one of the world's largest. Like many dams, it is mired in controversy, miles of spectacular canyon land was flooded once the gates were closed.

We had a few hours to kill before pulling in for the night at the Waheap Campground on the shores of Lake Powell. The Ranger at the dam suggested we tour a slot canyon - narrow deep passageways carved into the rock by the season rivers. This turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip. After paying our fee to the Navajo who own the land and getting directions (there is zero signage for the Water Holes Canyon) we found ourselves alone in a spectacular narrow canyon. The descent was sheer and the footing poor - visions of 127 Hours went through my head. In fact, Canyonlands, where Aron Ralston was forced to hack off his own arm after been trapped by a falling boulder, is only couple of hundred miles northeast of Page.

We walked for what seemed like a few miles, alone except for the lizards and the fantastically colored and shaped rocks. The impact of water and wind on the sandstone is incredible. I can only imagine what the canyon floor is like when rains and a flash floods rage. It was hot down there and by the time we made it out and to Waheap, we were ready to turn in and make the trip to Zion National Park the next day.

Water Holes Canyon, near Page, AZ

RV Trip Part 2 - Gallup to Mexican Hat

Those unfamiliar with RVs (we were once in that cro-magnon group) will tell you that RV parks are nasty places where your valuables will stolen by some meth-addicted 12 year old. They will also ask you have you seen the Robin Williams movie and did the septic back up... Most (not all) RV parks are exceptionally clean and the people that stay there are some of the nicest you will meet. After all, some of these behemoths on tires cost over $300 grand... not exactly trailer trash. And as for the workings of the RV plumbing, it's simple gravity.

So night one was spent in Gallup and rising early, we departed for Window Rock in northeastern Arizona. For some reason the entire vacation was marked by early bedtimes and early, sometimes pre-dawn, rises. Window Rock is the capital city for the Navajo Nation, a reservation covering some 26,000 square miles, about the same size as the Republic of Ireland and about one-fifth of AZ. It is remarkable for the window rock, a huge 75 foot doughnut hole weathered into the 200 foot sandstone rock.

From here we proceeded to Canyon de Chelly, entirely on the Navajo lands which limits access somewhat. The canyon is a mini version of the Grand Canyon and is known for its Indian ruins and cliff dwellings. The Navajo still farm the valley floor.

Ancient Cliff Dwellings in Canyon de Chelly - for scale see truck in lower left


Onward to the Four Corners Monument, where NM, AZ, UT and CO all meet. It is off the beaten path but the opportunity to be in four states at once mean it is a tourist trap and the Navajo have permanent booths set up, selling pottery, jewelry and other trinkets. Funny how once the White man bought land from the Indians for beads, now we buy beads from the Indians.

Departing the Four Corners around lunchtime, we cut through the most southwestern part of Colorado (and some real bad road) to Natural Bridges National Monument. Three huge arches span the canyons, eroded at first by water and then by wind. We would have liked to hike down closer but it was hot and windy, so our stay was brief.

Natural Bridges arch, several hundred feet high

Next on the itinerary was Goosenecks State Park. Not exactly world renowned but if I had my way, it would be. This place is way cool. 1,000 feet below the viewing area, the San Juan River meanders back and forth carving through the rock, flowing for something like four miles but only going one mile as the crow flies. It is an absolute spectacular example of the impact of a river on rock over time.

Goosenecks State Park on the San Juan River

Leaving Goosenecks for the hamlet of Mexican Hat (smaller than Tulsk) we had a choice: travel 50 miles on paved road or take the 5 mile shortcut, the one lane unpaved switchback riddled "Moki Dugway". Of course, we took the latter. Now I don't know what "Moki" means but it must translate into "only goats need come this way". It was awesome and harrowing all at once. Blows the road to Slieve League away. We found out later it was built for trucks hauling uranium in the 1950's. It is carved into the cliffs and drops 1,100 feet in just three miles. No way can two larger vehicles meet; we were fortunate and did not see another car until we were safe at the bottom. In between, the drive was white-knuckle time and reminiscent of The Wages of Fear, a brilliant 1953 film about trucking nito-glycerin on mountain roads.

The Moki Dugway ("the staircase can be treacherous")

They really should sell "I Drove the Moki Dugway" t-shirts at the bottom.

And so on to Mexican Hat, so named for the huge rock outside town that is shaped like a sombrero. The RV park was on the dodgey side but early Monday we would be heading to Monument Valley, made famous by countless westerns.

RV Trip Part 1 - Getting used to BB, Acoma

Somewhere over the winter months it was decided that a trip to see the Grand Canyon and other parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah was in order and the only sensible All-American way to get there was via a rolling behemoth, a/k/a an RV. We perused the options and settled on renting a 25 foot model that sleeps five. Not quite the full blown forty-footer with marble counters, queen bed, flat screen TV and fireplace, ours was more of a baby behemoth, or "BB".

Weeks of planning went into which sights (and sites) to stop at, "must-pack" items, weather, etc. We were happy to see gas prices start to decline in May, for the BB would not be a fuel-sipping Prius. Rather that drive the RV from Dallas across the "flat, treeless, desolate plain" that is the Panhandle, we elected to drive the family van to Albuquerque NM and pick up BB there. We left Dallas around 6pm on Friday, arriving in Amarillo by 11pm and stayed the night in a very forgettable Super 8. Amarillo to Albuquerque is a four hour drive on I-40 and we were at the RV rental joint by 10.30am. Paperwork signed and RV loaded, we hit the interstate by 11.30am and headed west towards Sky City, the ancestral home of the Acoma Pueblo Indians for over 900 years.

What the don't tell you in the 10 minute RV tutorial is that you are driving a giant sail. I was too cautious at first, keeping it around 60mph and when an 18 wheeler would pass at 70, his nose wind would first violently push the RV to the right and as he went by his tailwind sucked the RV back to the left. This weaving, coupled with pots and pans rattling, kids chirping and various window rattles was all a bit unnerving. I soon figured out the best option was to not let the truckers pass me and to try to be the lead dog. The RV actually handled better at 80mph... the Stig would have been proud.

And so to the Acoma Pueblo, about 90 mins west of Albuquerque. Also known as Sky City, the Acoma people settled around 1100 and established on top of a sheer-cliffed 400 foot mesa, a city comprised of over 250 adobe walled dwellings on about 10 acres. No water, electricity or plumbing, in one sense it was a bit like the Aran Islands - but in the middle of semi-desert. At one time it could only be accessed via a secret stair-case hewn into the rock. It has unparalleled 360 degree views of the surrounding area and was deemed impregnable by the Spanish when they first came across it. Approximately 13 families or 40 people live there year round and certain elders remain there for five year stints, almost like a sabbatical. The Acoma fought the Spanish in the early 1600's but were ultimately conquered (tricked into revealing the hidden access), slaughtered / enslaved and forced to build a huge Catholic church starting in 1629. The mission and it's accompanying multi-layered graveyard are impressive feats - given that then there was no road up to the top of the mesa. Timbers were hauled from mountain forests over 40 miles away.

Downtown Pueblo, Saturday Night


The Acoma Indians are proud that they ultimately chased the Spanish away (including throwing some monks off the cliffs) but continue to practice Catholicism and their own traditional belief system side by side. You can only visit the pueblo by guided tour and our native guide was excellent. Today, the Indians make a living by selling pottery and jewelry and like most natives, will only allow a photo if paid a small fee. Of course they also get Federal aid and income from the casino about ten miles away... It is fascinating to see buildings in the US that predate Columbus and even many structures in the Old World. Unlike some tribes, the Acoma have held on to their ancestral lands and seem very capable of embracing the future while proudly remembering their past (see Navajo comparison later).

View from Sky City - the mesa in the distance is similar to the one that Sky City is built on


More adobe homes - ladders face east and are sharpend so as to pierce rain clouds

The Church of St. Stephen, completed 1641