Day 5 and we entered what many consider to be the highlight of a southwest road trip: northern Arizona's Monument Valley. Hollywood director John Ford put it on the map in the late 1940s with his iconic shots of land and sky and the U.S. Cavalry marching along led by John Wayne.
The terrain really is stunning. Each mountain monument has a name and takes on a character of its own. Some call this one "the High Sign", the one-fingered salute.
You have to pull over and get out of the vehicle to spend some time taking it all in. Don't just zip through it. That's no way to experience Monument Valley. Off in the distance here behind the 2010 Lance 2285 is a monsoon storm headed our way.
We paused a spell by an abandoned Navajo roundhouse or "hogan" and discovered it was once Chief Tecumsah's summer home. He would have Cochise, Geronimo, and Sitting Bull over for fire water and after a few pops they were the ones giving the rocks their names. Them Ein-gines. They's a hoot.
We do the same thing in Sedona: sit around, drink wine and name rocks. 
This is the heart of the Navajo reservation near the Four Corners, the largest privately-held piece of land in the nation. And how large, you ask? Seventeen million acres. That's 26,000 square miles. The same size as the state of West Virginia. It's all within the states of Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Colorado. On a map you can see where all four states come cleanly together, hence the name "Four Corners". The Navajo nation is so vast it makes the huge King Ranch in Texas look like a stamp-sized lot in a subdivision.
With one or two stops it takes about an hour to drive through Monument Valley and then you reach the small settlement of Mexican Hat, Utah. Yep. Home of the "Swingin' Steak". Never heard of such a steak? Or that it actually had a home? In a place you've never heard of? Well, we hadn't either. Wanted to show you a picture of it here but again, the computer took over and inserted a shot of Paul (below) standing by the San Juan River instead. That's Daisy in the distance ready to jump in. The San Juan runs through Mexican Hat and is popular with river rafters. Downstream the San Juan flows into the Colorado. While these waters look calm, danger lurks below. The water is often so full of silt that even strong swimmers can sink under the weight of their mud-soaked clothing.
Found this road kill on the banks of the San Juan. Actually, it's Daisy after a swim in the river. We thought that would be a way to give her a quick bath. It lasted only briefly until she swam back to shore and rolled in the mud and sand. Nothing like a muddy, sand-laden mutt in an RV.
Stayed in Mexican Hat in a small, friendly RV park that would only allow Marines or ex-Marines to park there. Lance Corporal Francis Paul Ryan was afforded a hero's welcome but I was forced to move on down the road even though my Dad was a Marine.
Geronimo in one of his inebriated stupors saw this balancing rock and dubbed it "Mexican Hat". I think it really does look like a sombrero. Paul, in one of his drunken stupors, thought it looked more like Sarah Palin's petrified brain.
San Juan River again. But where's Daisy?
Oh, she's on shore, taking a second roll.
And lest we forget because the computer didn't. Here is the swinging steak. A big, thick juicy porterhouse that swings on a grill above the fire. And only $38 but that includes all the fat you can eat. A delicious damn thing but a tad pricey. This ain't New York City and this ain't Ruths Chris. Go figure. We're going on deeper into Utah to follow the trail of the Mormon pioneers/polygamists and enjoy Fourth of July fireworks on July 3rd because July 4th, 2010 fell on a Sunday, a Mormon day of prayer and rest and absolutely no festivities. Go figure.
Day 5 and we entered what many consider to be the highlight of a southwest road trip: northern Arizona's Monument Valley. Hollywood director John Ford put it on the map in the late 1940s with his iconic shots of land and sky and the U.S. Cavalry marching along led by John Wayne. 
The terrain really is stunning. Each mountain monument has a name and takes on a character of its own. Some call this one "the High Sign", the one-fingered salute.
We paused a spell by an abandoned Navajo roundhouse or "hogan" and discovered it was once Chief Tecumsah's summer home. He would have Cochise, Geronimo, and Sitting Bull over for fire water and after a few pops they were the ones giving the rocks their names. Them Ein-gines. They's a hoot. We do the same thing in Sedona: sit around, drink wine and name rocks. 
This is the heart of the Navajo reservation near the Four Corners, the largest privately-held piece of land in the nation. And how large, you ask? Seventeen million acres. That's 26,000 square miles. The same size as the state of West Virginia. It's all within the states of Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Colorado. On a map you can see where all four states come cleanly together, hence the name "Four Corners". The Navajo nation is so vast it makes the huge King Ranch in Texas look like a stamp-sized lot in a subdivision. 
With one or two stops it takes about an hour to drive through Monument Valley and then you reach the small settlement of Mexican Hat, Utah. Yep. Home of the "Swingin' Steak". Never heard of such a steak? Or that it actually had a home? In a place you've never heard of? Well, we hadn't either. Wanted to show you a picture of it here but again, the computer took over and inserted a shot of Paul (below) standing by the San Juan River instead. That's Daisy in the distance ready to jump in. The San Juan runs through Mexican Hat and is popular with river rafters. Downstream the San Juan flows into the Colorado. While these waters look calm, danger lurks below. The water is often so full of silt that even strong swimmers can sink under the weight of their mud-soaked clothing. 
Found this road kill on the banks of the San Juan. Actually, it's Daisy after a swim in the river. We thought that would be a way to give her a quick bath. It lasted only briefly until she swam back to shore and rolled in the mud and sand. Nothing like a muddy, sand-laden mutt in an RV. 
Stayed in Mexican Hat in a small, friendly RV park that would only allow Marines or ex-Marines to park there. Lance Corporal Francis Paul Ryan was afforded a hero's welcome but I was forced to move on down the road even though my Dad was a Marine. 
Geronimo in one of his inebriated stupors saw this balancing rock and dubbed it "Mexican Hat". I think it really does look like a sombrero. Paul, in one of his drunken stupors, thought it looked more like Sarah Palin's petrified brain. 
San Juan River again. But where's Daisy?
Oh, she's on shore, taking a second roll.
And lest we forget because the computer didn't. Here is the swinging steak. A big, thick juicy porterhouse that swings on a grill above the fire. And only $38 but that includes all the fat you can eat. A delicious damn thing but a tad pricey. This ain't New York City and this ain't Ruths Chris. Go figure. We're going on deeper into Utah to follow the trail of the Mormon pioneers/polygamists and enjoy Fourth of July fireworks on July 3rd because July 4th, 2010 fell on a Sunday, a Mormon day of prayer and rest and absolutely no festivities. Go figure. 
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Keep it clean, please. And nice. And complimentary.