Well.. you try to find an original title for this post! I mean, what else can you call that thing? It’s a canyon, and it’s grand! There’s no other word for it. It’s huge, it’s gigantic, but none of these words capture how majestic it is; it’s just grand!
The main difference I noticed with our other hikes is that, usually, every turn gives you a different perspective and a different landscape. Here no. It’s so big that you can walk for hours inside and around it and always look at the same thing!
Only the passing clouds and the changing light allow for a change in scenery.
So of course, you end up taking 50 times the same photo, and now I have too many to choose from!
Our first view of the canyon on a cloudy eveningA little campfire to beat the cold nightGoing down the beast the next morningA little break, we come from the ridge up there As we pass under a stone archUnder the mid day sun, only the clouds draw shadowsBack on the rim to admire the sunset
My mum’s love for westerns began with the movie “Mackenna’s gold” when my dad took her out to watch it. I wish she could be here today in Monument Valley. She’d have looooved it!
After some confusion over the time zone (it’s Utah time in summer and Arizona time in winter) & visiting hours, we realized that it was too late to get in. So we decided to drive through the Valley of Gods which is a dirt road that takes you through some fabulous landscapes. The Routard guide recommended that we should avoid going late as there aren’t many lampposts in the area. So we did just that 🥴
Day -1: I was a bit scared and nervous .I thought we would have a big problem during the trip,like we will be kidnapped.
Day 0: I was very tired in the plane. The flight was 11h and 30 mins. I watched 3 movies (6hours): Luca, Sing2 and the bad guys. Then i slept for the rest of the flight.
Day 1: we arrived in Abhishek’s palace it was amazing. I slept sooo well in the most comfortable bed of my life!!! I also loved the pool.
Day 2: We had a pool party to celebrate Roopal’s birthday .Then we went to Abhinav’s house and i finished the series scissors 7 on Netflix.
5/9: We went to the botanical garden to meet Jasen, and His son Aiden. Michelle met us with their other son Ian. I was getting a bit annoyed with Aiden and lan! In the evening we went to Greg’s house to have dinner and we had delicious tacos 🌮. I talked of drawing with Sailor who is about my age.
6/9: I loved visiting Alcatraz with the cells and the fake head that was used for an escape! I was disturbed by the people who were in jail for no reason.
7/9 downtown broadway. I had to walk all the way across San Francisco because maman wanted to see the houses of the richest neighborhood.
8/9: We saw beautiful murals and just at the right timing jasen proposed to eat in a tacos restaurant (and i wasn’t allowed to drink coke).
9/9: My parents left me alone so with Abhishek we walked a bit next to the lake. Then we ate KFC and we were all set.
10/09: We talked at home then we went to the pool with Abhinav. And we went to a park and we ate indian food.
So this time we’re camping at Wahweap, on the shore of lake Powell, in Glen Canyons.
The campground happens to be sitting just on the border between Utah and Arizona.
It’s notable because Utah and Arizona are in 2 different time zones, so technically, it’s not the same time between one end of the campground and the other end.
Since we plan to visit Monument Valley around sunset -and Monument Valley is in Arizona- we decide to stick to this timezone and plan to leave around 2pm, to reach before 5pm.
In the meantime we take a bath in the lake, with a great view on Glen Canyon’s geology.
We leave on time and reach Monument Valley around 4:30pm and we’re fairly proud of our perfect organisation as we enter the park.
There the Navajo ranger explains to us that it’s actually 5:30pm and the scenic road is already closed, because in spite of being in Arizona, Navajos live on Utah time.
Except in winter, when they switch to AZ, because… why not!
So no Monument Valley for us ☹️
But we still get to see the main ones from outside and soon we’re advised to check another site, “the Valley of the Gods”, a bit further north, after the town of “Mexican Hat” (because why not)
It’s a maintained dirt road that goes across beautiful “western landscapes” and it totally makes up for our initial deception.
Only it’s pretty late already and we’re about half way down the road when the sun has set. So we get a little thrill driving on a bumpy dirt road with an economy car in complete darkness 🙂
We had to decide between Bryce Canyon and Grand Canyon for our last leg. It was a tough call but we picked the grand canyon. When Nancy Neithercut told us that she preferred Bryce, we decided to do a quick visit on wheels. We were literally gasping at the spectacular canyon. I started getting restless after a while so we did some quick trails!
The queen’s gardens trail was simply amazing. It could have been even more enjoyable if I didn’t have a minor panic attack. We started the trail after 6 in the evening. Arjun kept stopping at every corner to take pictures. I don’t blame him! By the time we were midway, we could either go back or embark on other trails. It was already past 7. Arjun picked another trail but I had a bad feeling. After 10 minutes I forced him to return on the same trail. At least we knew where that’d take us and how long it’d take. I also read that there are bears and mountain lions in Bryce. Good decision! The other trail would have taken us two hours and we’d have to find our way back in the dark with no lights, phones with barely any battery, no network and most importantly – no water. So we did manage to return from the stunning Queen’s trail – Alive!
Speaking of the Queen. I’ve been listening to the radio and heard of the death of Elisabeth II. It’s a shame that the queen who represents an empire built on loot and bloodshed, was being mourned across the globe. It’s perhaps time for the British monarchy to put an end to this circus.
The narrows is a trail where you walk through a river. The water levels vary from ankle/ knee/ thigh/ waist high and we’re surrounded by this spectacular rock formation. We were there all day. I couldn’t get enough. Zion national park is a treat!
The icing on the cake was meeting Nancy Neithercut ❤️ I’ve been reading her poetry and listening to her interviews on non duality. Nancy is also a plant medicine practitioner!
Here’s an excerpt from her book of poetry :
“we are lost and found stories… words drifting through rippling whispers and kisses and laughter and tears,
only a shimmering reflection of this great ocean of love can ever be seen as we are inseparable from the water of love, somehow we see ourselves through the wetness of each others eyes, but we can never see ourselves as we are not, nor are others, nor, indeed, is there love, or rainbows or simply this…
we are a cascade of dream colors sliding down a waterfall of dreams…
love pirouettes and we are echoes twirling trailing falling through air through water through nothing at all…
it is all a dream there is no dream…
life simultaneously blooms and wilts without ever flowering, leaving not a scent or an echo…
we are memories of a fragrance from a flower that never was”
The narrows The emerald pool We tried the cactus fruit and ended up with fine thorns all over our palmsNancy ❤️Arjun mesmerized The Watchman trail
Today we only did a day trip to Bryce Canyon on our way to Lake Powell.
If you come visit Bryce Canyon, spare yourself the full road with the many viewpoints turnouts. They’re beautiful indeed, but you can just spend a bit more time in the trails between sunrise and sunset points, just near the park entrance ; everything you want to see is just there. (We only figured that at the end of the day!)
From above, the canyon seems filled with thousands of stone arrows pointing upwards. The trails lead you into a maze of switchbacks overlooked by giant stone guardians, and under stone arches.
After the fabulous Narrows, we spent one more day exploring the trails of Zion.
We walked the « Emerald lakes » and understood that we were indeed in the country that invented marketing. Everyone was complaining « If i see one more muddy pond, I’ll really get mad! Where’s the emerald ?! »
But we had already been warned by the Routard, and the walk is nonetheless beautiful.
We also did the watchman trail which takes you to a big cliff overlooking the valley, where you feel like that Indian watchman on his horse, waiting to attack the Pony Express!
Raahi - A traveling family 