camping under the stars!

for this westward crossing, we have been traveling at such a pace that hotels have been our best option when arriving late in the evenings. we knew we wanted to stay in the park at the grand canyon, and Kate was awesome enough to make us a reservation a month ago for a camp site. we called for a late arrival, but were pushing to get there by 7 to register, before the office closed. I was so nervous because we arrive a little after 7, but it was no problem registering (phew!). we only figured out a few hours later that we had crossed another time zone, so gained an hour in our favor. I sure do like gaining hours traveling west more that I liked losing them traveling east!

we set up camp super quick, and headed up to the rim lodges to catch the sun setting, and grab some dinner. we walked around taking in the breathtaking canyon in the evening light as long as we could, then settled into a restaurant for din when I was about to gnaw my fingers off.

with a sense of accomplishment in arriving at our planned destination for this trip, we were both happy and at ease. it has been a long journey in a short amount of time! we ordered a bottle of wine, toasted Kate and sanjiv's 2-year anniversary, and proceeded to chat like a bunch of schoolgirls for hours. it was a fab evening, and so nice to be sharing it with such an important friend!

the night was topped off by pulling our sleeping pads and bags out of the tent, and sleeping under the stars for the night. there was almost no moon, the stars were bright as can be, and we even caught some "shooting stars" from the persiad meteor shower. of course I was asleep in 3 minutes flat, but not before I made my wish on a shooting star. ;)

...ain't it grand?!

with great anticipation, we made it to the grand canyon national park late Sunday afternoon. our first stop coming in from the east entrance was the desert watch tower. a favorite viewpoint of mine, because it is also the first part of the south rim you can see from the river. ;)

words definitely fail to express that first view of the grand canyon, especially to be sharing it with my best friend Kate. it was such a journey for us, and this is the destination we had been driving towards. truly a moment I won't ever forget. :)

archeological roadside stop!

driving out from canyon de chelly towards the grand canyon, we followed one of the smaller routes (I was pretty done with interstate 40!). it wound us up and down, into and out of deep canyons. super gorgeous drive! on the higher planes headed into tuba city, we even encountered a small dust storm.

just outside of tuba city, there was a sign leading to "dinosaur footprints", and we couldn't resist. we took the detour, and were met by a nice native American woman indicating there was no charge, and she would show us around. what did we have to loose?

just off the parking lot, there was a petrified mud flat with a bunch of genuine Dino tracks. pretty cool. the nice lady was explaining that she wasn't any kind of a scientist, but enjoyed telling us a lot of "facts" that were a bit dubious. ha. we continued the tour, and she showed us the "up fossils", or exposed fossils. the rocks were interesting looking, and I was happily snapping photos. it was about the time that she presented us with the "human foot prints" that I thought Kate might loose it. ha. I give Kate, who works in a natural history museum working with credible fossils for a living, a lot of credit for nicely expressing that we had to be going, and got us back to the car without laughing.

hell, i'm not sure what the actual science of the place might really be, but Kate bought me a pretty turquoise bracelet from the nice lady before we left. lol. worth the stop!

Kate's training canyon... canyon de chelly

for our first stop in AZ, we headed north to Canyon de Chelly. a little bit of a detour, but a gorgeous park with a lot of history. it is a long canyon, with few entrances or exits in which there has been a long history of native american settlements. it is still inhabited native lands, so visitors are able to view the canyon from a northern or southern rim drive, but only allowed to hike down in one location (I did this years ago, but we didn't have the time that day).

the viewing spots offered quite an amazing perspective on the canyon. we were able to see tall towers of rock, with surreal patterns from millions of years of erosion. there were also farm plots and ruins visible on the bottom of the canyon. this was a whole new landscape for Kate (in training for the grand canyon), so we took our time taking it in.

...and finally, crossing into AZ!

on our final leg of the trip together, we set out in the morning headed west to Arizona. our ultimate destination for the day being the grand canyon!! :)

geordie's old stomping grounds (Gallup, NM)

we both really enjoyed the drive west that evening, and were speechless most of the time taking in the landscape around us. there were moody clouds hanging over the endless mesas and painted rock hills and jagged mountains. the fields were glowing green (from the moody light), and we seemed to be chasing trains all afternoon.

we arrived in Gallup, NM just as the sun was setting, and watched the rocks around us glow as if they were in fire. not too shabby!

after a few moments to relax (one of the only nights we arrived at the hotel by 7pm!), we contacted our buddy Geordie who grew up around Gallup for a dinner recommendation. he sent us on our way to "Virgie's" for some authentic new Mexican food. It wax a really laid back local kind of place, and Kate and were both thrilled to get some delicious food smothered in new Mexican green chiles. really hit the spot.

Geordie had also sent us with a cryptic message to ask for the owner of the place, and let him know that he owed Geordie $15. we were a bit suspicious of the message, but figured we had to deliver it. ha. Charlie Chavez, the owner, came out to chat with us, and we all had some good laughs, at geordie's expense, of course. it was delightful to be so welcomed at a place so far from anywhere we knew! :) and Charlie was clear about the fact that there wasn't a shot in hell Geordie was gonna get the $$ (old inside joke, apparently! ha).

Acoma ("sky city")

about an hour west of Abq, we made a little detour south to see Acoma, otherwise known as "sky city". sky city is a native American pueblo located high atop a Mesa that has been occupied since the 13th century. it is still an active community, and you have to take special tours up there, and out of respect, you can not take pictures of the pueblo without permission (a paid permit).

unfortunately, we arrived 30 minutes after the last tour of the day, but it was well worth the detour to see the amazing landscape.

the stunning desert landscape was really unfolding in front of our eyes throughout the entire day, and Kate and I were both awed and blown away. Kate, being here for the first time, and me, overwhelmed with the feeling I was returning home to the west I have grown to love so much.

lunch in Santa Fe, NM

from Abq, we drove north to Santa fe to wander around for a few hours. when planning the trip, I had grand plans to make it up to Taos, and out to the four corners on the way to arizona... but we quickly realized we had to make some decisions, and let go of some of the more distant places. we have been traveling pretty fast, and packing a lot in as it is!

but anyhow... Santa fe is too beautiful to miss, so we made the trek. we arrived around mid-day, and wandered the old town square, and admired all the native American crafts at the governors market. we found a little place with a balcony above the square to get some lunch, and cool off for a few. it was a hot hot day, and scorching in the sun!

after browsing some more shops and outdoor markets, we loaded back into the car, on our way to the western border of new Mexico and Arizona.

petroglyph national monument

the petroglyph national monument is just outside if Albuquerque, so we decided to get an early start and check out the park (before it got super hot).

we began at the little visitors center (I was bummed there was no program or movie, ha.), and learned there were several self-guided hikes we could take. we opted for the one that was a little longer, opposed to hopping in and out of the car at designated sights.

it was interesting to hike into the canyon, and discover the petroglyphs in the hills. nothing is marked, so you need to keep your eyes on the rocks. it was also nice to walk for a little bit, as the road trip has really been mostly time in the car! we discovered what we could until it was just getting too hot, and returned to the air conditioned car. ;)