Monument Valley

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This morning we said our sad goodbyes to Sedona and our friends there and headed north to Flagstaff for healthy breakfast and fine latte. Then we travelled on to Monument Valley and finally to our room in a rather lesser-class motel in the little town of Monticello, Utah. Think of Carbon, Alberta and you get the idea. I think the only reason there are a collection of motels here, and they are mostly the mom-and-pop type, is this place is close to Canyonlands and the hiking and mountain biking offered there. Moab is more popular, but it is a full house. This is an ideal time to mountain bike as in a few weeks it will be incredibly hot. As it is, Moab is forecast to be 97F tomorrow. Ouch.

Les and I plan to be through there in the early morning on our way to Arches National Park, so we’ll miss the brunt of the heat.

The countryside we travelled through today was truly unique. Besides the wonder of Monument Valley, the canyons and cliffs of the country around Mexican Hat and Bluff had a stark wonder to them. On the highway you come across each valley suddenly and it often takes your breath away due to the grandeur of the views. They seem to extend off into the horizon in a spectacular way. One surprise for me was the showing of wildflowers everywhere. They were very small but colourful. They seem to grow out of nothing in the sand. It all looks like dry desert, but when you get in close there is a lot of growth. When I travelled this way in the fall a couple of years ago, there was no colour on the land like this.

We stopped at the Comb Coffee Cafe in Bluff, UT for a good latte. I stopped there in 2011. I'll reiterate, this is a very good place and a surprise in the middle of the desert. The drive in and out of Bluff is spectacular and I recommend this route to anyone who travels this part of the state.

I took a lot of ‘snaps’ and a few artistic images today.



As an aside, I can confirm that the 2014 version of the RAV4 has fantastic air conditioning.

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Photos

What is that over there Mabel?
"Those are the monuments in Monument Vally George."
I had to grab this image. Sort of funny to me.

Four ancient monuments at Monument Valley
Rock 1, Jack, Les, Rock 2

Monument Valley
Just a neat image with the storm cloud in the distance.

Redlands
These benches seem to go on forever.

Mexican Hat Canyon
The town of Mexican Hat lies at the bottom of the valley ahead. The shapes of the valley walls got our attention. I have no idea how those scouring marks were made as the local information doesn't talk about glacial action, although that is what it looks like.

Bluff Utah Country
This is the valley leading out of Bluff. Neat.