As we pulled out of Page, AZ the sights were as we suspected and there was nothing to see...
BUT we weren't 40 minutes into our drive when out of nowhere these cow pie shaped rock sculptures popped up about 50 feet into the air.
The most incredible thing about this area of the country is sculptures like this show up and then they are gone. These existed for about a quarter mile and then we never saw anything like it again. And that is going to be the case of everything in this posting.
After the cow pie rocks, the road dove into this split rock formation.
Which ended up being 1/8 of a mile long and opened to the end of the earth. The air was so dry, my throat would get sticky each breath I took. There was no smell and the sun was out with a temperature around 45 but the wind was sharp as needles. This is a panoramic set of pictures, starting to my right and working my way left...
Now, the most amazing part is the Navajo Indians actually live on this land. How they survive here astounds me!!! No water, no way of growing a garden, not animals to hunt, and power has to come from sun or wind. I have got to give these people a hand because they have found a way to survive off of land the rest of us would consider inhabitable.One way they make a living is by making items out of clay, horse hair, and beads. At the viewpoint, they have little tables set up with necklaces and other art.
I am probably the biggest sucker when it comes to handmade items because I have been in their shoes. Seeing these tables brings back many memories of my mom and I traveling all over the country, setting up booths, selling steel and wooden dog silhouettes. This is the Indian lady that I bought a necklace and clay canoe from.
And here is the canoe. It is made of clay and then cooked with horse hair on it to form the black lines. There is no glaze or paint used to finish the pottery but rather deer or elk hide is applied to seal it. With the canoe I got, they painted a design on the side with sand.
Welcome to Bitter Springs, AZ. A Navajo Indian city planted in the middle of this desolate land...
A neighborhood where the kids were playing in their yards, all dirt, the dogs ran free, and the houses were stained from the blowing dirt.
The rest of the people live in trailers out on the land. As we traveled down the highway, we noticed that every house had a little round hut about 100 feet from the main residence. These are called a hogan and every house or Navajo family must have one. They are a 5 or 6 sided structure that is about 23 feet in diameter. These used to be where they lived to get out of the elements, but in today's times, they are used for family ceremonies and to keep themselves in balance. The door always faces east. The men sit on the south side, women on the north, and visiting dignitaries sit on the west side, facing the door- the place of honor. As they enter, everyone moves clockwise, imitating the sun's movement.
As I was standing on the side of the road to take the picture of the hogans, I looked down to see this rock. WOW!!! It was probably 4 feet in diameter and had an oval shape of crystals showing through.
The land changes again...
This was so unusual because these red cliffs were sheer and had rough rocks falling off of them and then out in front were piles of pink sand. They were not touching the cliff but angles back in that direction. We can't figure out how the piles got there except maybe the sand blew off the tops of the cliffs and like a snow fence drops the snow, the cliff's edge dropped the sand. Hmmm... Don't know...
Now, welcome to the moon...
A place where the soil is so poisonous nothing will grow...
And where the landscape changes by the feet from rolling mounds of red, black, gray, and brown soil to mountains of red with some weak shrubs...
To very weird hills that pop up out of nowhere...
As I walked across the cracked ground, it was like dried clay with soft sand underneath. The ground under the clay would give and the clay on top would wrap up around the sides of my feet.
For all of you with the dream to retire in Arizona, I have found an affordable spot just for you at the corner of Hwy 64 and Hwy 89.
That arrow points to here...
Your address might be something like this...
Help is exactly what these Indians are looking for...
This was about 14 miles outside the Grand Canyon National Park and they have stands at all the viewpoints selling their goods!!
Finally, after 4 hours we completed the 120-mile drive to the park's entrance.
But first...
Oh, that's better...
Now that we completed the ceremonial photo entering the park, it was time to see what all the talk is about...
Ooooo... Ahhhh....
Brrrr... it was soooo cold...
This is a view tower overlooking the canyon...
But the real view was inside the tower looking down the middle...
Welcome to Bitter Springs, AZ. A Navajo Indian city planted in the middle of this desolate land...
A neighborhood where the kids were playing in their yards, all dirt, the dogs ran free, and the houses were stained from the blowing dirt.
The rest of the people live in trailers out on the land. As we traveled down the highway, we noticed that every house had a little round hut about 100 feet from the main residence. These are called a hogan and every house or Navajo family must have one. They are a 5 or 6 sided structure that is about 23 feet in diameter. These used to be where they lived to get out of the elements, but in today's times, they are used for family ceremonies and to keep themselves in balance. The door always faces east. The men sit on the south side, women on the north, and visiting dignitaries sit on the west side, facing the door- the place of honor. As they enter, everyone moves clockwise, imitating the sun's movement.
As I was standing on the side of the road to take the picture of the hogans, I looked down to see this rock. WOW!!! It was probably 4 feet in diameter and had an oval shape of crystals showing through.
The land changes again...
This was so unusual because these red cliffs were sheer and had rough rocks falling off of them and then out in front were piles of pink sand. They were not touching the cliff but angles back in that direction. We can't figure out how the piles got there except maybe the sand blew off the tops of the cliffs and like a snow fence drops the snow, the cliff's edge dropped the sand. Hmmm... Don't know... Now, welcome to the moon...
A place where the soil is so poisonous nothing will grow...
And where the landscape changes by the feet from rolling mounds of red, black, gray, and brown soil to mountains of red with some weak shrubs...
To very weird hills that pop up out of nowhere...To a place where it is so dry the ground has cracked...
As I walked across the cracked ground, it was like dried clay with soft sand underneath. The ground under the clay would give and the clay on top would wrap up around the sides of my feet.
For all of you with the dream to retire in Arizona, I have found an affordable spot just for you at the corner of Hwy 64 and Hwy 89.
That arrow points to here...
Your address might be something like this...4590 Desolate Nothing Lane, Middle of Nowhere, AZ 99help!!
Help is exactly what these Indians are looking for...
This was about 14 miles outside the Grand Canyon National Park and they have stands at all the viewpoints selling their goods!! Finally, after 4 hours we completed the 120-mile drive to the park's entrance.
But first...
Oh, that's better...
Now that we completed the ceremonial photo entering the park, it was time to see what all the talk is about...
Ooooo... Ahhhh....
Brrrr... it was soooo cold...
This is a view tower overlooking the canyon...
But the real view was inside the tower looking down the middle...Whew... long way down...
The view from the tower...
The Colorado River running through the bottom of the canyon...
Magnificent, huh!?!
Check out these mystical trees. They were so strange as they twisted and turned their way out of the ground...
Dad, having a moment...
Here you can see the layers a little closer. They really are incredible and one of the most vibrant reds I have ever seen...
My thoughts were of inspiration as I looked at this. Every inch was different, including the other people there looking. Some had huge cameras, some just a throw-away. Some from India, some from Asia, some from Mexico and South America and just a few of us from the US.
I have asked many people to take our picture and most often they cut off the tops of our heads, or get only our heads and all sky, or cut off an arm, but this couple did it perfectly!!
We had to have a little fun...
And this was the last view of the Grand Canyon. The sun was almost down and our time was up. There is still many more sights that we couldn't get to in time, but we both feel fulfilled in seeing all that we did.
As usual, it wasn't just the destination that made the trip. It was everything on the way!!! Tonight we are tucked into Flagstaff and will see the sights here tomorrow.
I think this will be my last long posting. So from now on, you can know that each posting will only require one cup instead of a pot of coffee while you read!!
The view from the tower...
The Colorado River running through the bottom of the canyon...
Magnificent, huh!?!Check out these mystical trees. They were so strange as they twisted and turned their way out of the ground...
Dad, having a moment...He's probably thinking engineer thoughts, like, how deep is each layer of soil? What year was that soil deposited there? How many years did this take to form? If it is one mile down, how long does it take a snow flake to make it from the top to bottom?
Here you can see the layers a little closer. They really are incredible and one of the most vibrant reds I have ever seen...
My thoughts were of inspiration as I looked at this. Every inch was different, including the other people there looking. Some had huge cameras, some just a throw-away. Some from India, some from Asia, some from Mexico and South America and just a few of us from the US.
The happy father and daughter enjoying the sights. A really fun couple took this picture. They had huge cameras so I knew they would take a good one.
I have asked many people to take our picture and most often they cut off the tops of our heads, or get only our heads and all sky, or cut off an arm, but this couple did it perfectly!!
We had to have a little fun...
And this was the last view of the Grand Canyon. The sun was almost down and our time was up. There is still many more sights that we couldn't get to in time, but we both feel fulfilled in seeing all that we did. As usual, it wasn't just the destination that made the trip. It was everything on the way!!! Tonight we are tucked into Flagstaff and will see the sights here tomorrow.I think this will be my last long posting. So from now on, you can know that each posting will only require one cup instead of a pot of coffee while you read!!
Good night!!!
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