relaxation and decompression

after dropping Kate off, I had open road in front of me, and a week and a half before I need to be in flagstaff for my rafting trip through the grand canyon.

I had a few people to visit, but was completely beat, and needed an unscheduled, unplanned day of relaxation. pretty much on auto pilot, I drove back up to Sedona (cuz it is so beautiful!), and found an Internet cafe to camp out for a bit to get my bearings. I had a little bit of work to do, but mainly spent my time browsing the web, and seeing what is going in in the world. I've been so out of touch!

it was a nice change of pace to sit, and have no plans for a minute or two!

by the numbers...

this phase of my summer Roadtrip has come to a close. traveled west to east with christina (phase one), spent three weeks catching up with friends and family on the east coast (phase two), and drive east to the grand canyon with Kate (phase three). two more pieces to go... chilling our west (phase four, this coming week), and grand canyon rafting trip (phase five) yet to go. woah.

by the numbers, Kate and I traveled 3,610 miles together in 9 short days.

since I left SF 6 weeks ago, I have driven close to 8,500 miles... and I am still a month away from being back in sf. there is so much to think about and to say about that... but right now, I need some sleep. ;)

crack of dawn. literally.

to make kate's 10am flight out of Phoenix, we had to leave Sedona by 6am. the alarm sure came fast this am!

although we were both in a non-caffeinated haze, we drove out of Sedona as the sun was rising behind the giant red rocks, and it was gorgeous. I'm glad Kate got to see the beauty, even if only in passing.

the drive down to phoenix was fast, and as we descended the mountains, the landscape filled with giant cactus, and the temps rose rapidly. as the news told us, the temps in Phoenix haven't gone below 90° at night for 6 days, and it was already over 100° at 8am when I dropped her off. ugh!

our goodbye was brief. we have had the adventure of a lifetime in the past 9 days. there are no words available to top off our adventure.

winding down

we took our last looks, and left the grand canyon around 5pm, heading south towards flagstaff and Sedona. it is hard to comprehend taking anything else in, but the drive from the canyon to flagstaff up into the mountains, is another beauty unto itself. up and over 8000ft + passes, flag is nestled into the side if the mountains, and has a real charm to it. i couldn't pass up a stop at the beaver street brewery for a much needed beverage and bite to eat.

we drive down to Sedona from flag just as the sun was going down. by the time we got to town, it was dark... but you can feel the surrounding beauty.

we settled into the hotel, and we got Kate packed up for her flight back to MA. it is bittersweet for this chapter of my road trip to come to an end, but I couldn't have asked for a more special time, spent with such a special friend. I feel truly blessed to have had this time and opportunity in my life. :)

stunning, saturated and satisfied

we spent the day Monday wandering around the grand canyon village, taking in the sights, park films, gift shops and generally being overwhelmed by the canyon itself. we took the park bus out to the western viewing area if hermit's rest, and enjoyed the serenity of the ride, as well as a some time just chilling at picnic tables writing out postcards. as the culmination of an already overwhelming trip, to say that Kate and I were pretty saturated is an understatement, but it didn't take away from the wonder of the location.

the grand canyon is truly an amazing hole in the ground. it is full if history, science, culture, art, and wildlife. there are people from all over the world converging in this spot to take it in, and it is a place everyone should make a point to see in their lifetime, it is that grand. standing at the upper rim, it is truly surreal and untouchably expansive. floating on the river at the bottom of the ditch, as I will be doing again in two weeks, is another kind of connection and perspective. it is tactile, and consuming.

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. ;)

rolling into Albuquerque

we had a good chunk of miles to travel from Amarillo, but crossed another timeline, so managed to arrive at the hotel by 8pm. this was early for us for us! our days have been filled end to end, and we have been settling in late.

we look on yelp a bit, and looked online for someplace to walk around and grab a bite to eat. it was after 8pm, but figured since it was Friday night it shouldn't be a problem. our hotel was close to old town, but when we asked the lady at the front desk, she recommend we head to central street in downtown. sounded good. short drive, we parked near a lot of places, and walked. turns out it was a big clubbing and bar district, and it was a strange scene. some people roaming, but not a ton. mostly clubs / bars. no good looking food to speak of. we decided to get out of there, and head to a brewery somewhere north.

the "chama river brewery" was a bit tricky to get to, but worth the trouble. the food was outstanding, and c were also pretty tasty. Kate had the really rich stout (even I liked it!). , and I had the Jackalope IPA and Hopricot. both very tasty! :)

Cadillac ranch

after lunch, we walked around a few blocks on 6th street, along old route 66. there were some awesome vintage and antique stores. It was a mixed blessing that we don't have room in the car for too much stuff!

just outside of Amarillo, there is one of America's quintessential roadside stops... the Cadillac ranch. a field on the side of the highway with 8 old Cadillacs doing nose dives into the ground. the cars are covered in spray paint, and everyone who visits seems to leave their mark. some folks leaving as we arrived gave us 2 cans of spray paint, and kate and I dove in!

from the highway it doesn't look like much, but up close the cars are pretty cool, and it really was a ton of fun to spray away anywhere we liked! :) there aren't too many places in the world that encourage this kind of behavior. i felt like a rebel. ha.

big Texas!

rolled into Amarillo around lunch time, and the nice man at the visitors center gave us some recommendations for lunch. while we try to avoid the tourist stops as much as possible, there was a new microbrewery operating at the "big Texas"... and I couldn't resist. it was all tourist and then some, so we opted to sit at the bar, and enjoyed some big steak sandwiches for lunch washed down by the "rattlesnake IPA , which was quite tasty.

the bar was right next to the shooting gallery, so before we hit the road again, I had to shoot some stuff. ;)