Utah - 4/1 - 4-7 Page, AZ, Monument Valley, Goosenecks State Park, Valley of Gods, Sand Island

 4/1 - I decided to stay at the campground so that I could awake to a beautiful view, have somewhere to walk Zoe, have internet, and I got another shower too!  The first one I had here was excellent, but this one had no water pressure and was not hot enough.  I still got clean though!

Morning view from campsite

People watching

Lying in goat heads...

The boat houses are so big the wide load vehicles are driving in the oncoming lane so you have to pull over.  There was a tractor trailer pulled over in front of me, but I couldn't see why, so I drove by and the sheriff gave me a dirty look as I pulled over in front of the truck once I knew what was going on.  1 - I've never experienced having to pull over for a wide load and I couldn't see!

I'm still in AZ, but very close to Utah in Monument Valley and will be heading into UT in a day or two.  Photos from my drive to Monument Valley.

The pictures really don't do it justice!

I'm staying at Monument Valley Tipi village and the views from my spot are phenomenal!  

This is my viewpoint from where my van was parked for the night.  Can't ask for much better than that!

4/2 - Today, Zoe and I did the Wildcat trail at Monument Valley.  It's about 4 miles and she did great!  I considered turning around at about 1.5 miles, but decided that she could go on and do the full loop since we weren't in a rush - or so I thought.  I had booked a tour of Monument Valley for 2 PM and at around noon, while still on the trail, I realized that I was on AZ time (pacific), but they were probably on UT time, which meant I'd lose an hour.  I texted Aaron and he was able to push the tour back to 2:30, so now I didn't have to rush Zoe and I could have lunch before the tour (as I had forgotten to eat or to bring anything with me).  The tour ended up being really great.  I'm so glad I didn't try to take my traveling home on the road that goes through the park as it is very rough!  The tour takes you through areas that non-Navajos can't go to.  I took a lot of pictures, but really it doesn't do it justice.  I could just sit and stare at the rocks/cliffs/caves/etc for hours, but looking at the photos just doesn't convey the vastness or the intricacies.  

sunrise

I really need to wash the van - at least the windows so I can get my morning shots without all the spots since I'm too lazy to go outside at sunrise!  LOL.

The hike took us around the mitten on the left.

From the other side.  😀

The three sisters

Where those people are is from some John Wayne movie where he was up on the plateau on his horse.

Seashell shapes

This is called the Big Hogon.  Is was so cool and my guide sang to me in there.  For this photo I was lying against the rock looking up.  I loved this place!

Zoe wondering if we really have to get back in the van (the tour company's - not mine!) and get bounced around some more.  It really wasn't very fun and must be a lot worse for a dog.

To show how big everything is

Totem pole rocks

4/3 - We left Monument Valley after a leisurely morning chatting with some other folks staying there.  I met Yvette who was traveling from CA in her mustang and glamping (she was staying in one of the tipis which were really nice) along the way to her new tiny home in the mountains of NC.  Very cool.  

After leaving Monument Valley, we drove only a short distance to Goosenecks state park and stayed the night.  It was nice and calm.  There weren't too many campers there when I arrived so I got a good spot along the rim.  By evening there were quite a few campers, especially in the area I was in.  I stayed pretty close to the entrance because the road got very bumpy and this was a good site.  It felt like one of the busiest places I'd been and I felt really lonely.  There were mostly couples and groups of people enjoying each others company, which made me wish I was traveling with others.  It all felt very close together too.  I enjoyed my spot overlooking the bends in the river.  It was pretty warm, so I struggled to keep Zoe cool as we didn't have shade unless I wanted to sit on the back side of the van.  I put her cooling vest on and tried to shade her with my body and my chair.  We walked the road along the rim, but other than that it was a mellow day.  

Views from the campsite

Trying to keep Zoe cool with shade and her cooling vest

Sunset at Goosenecks SP

Sunrise at Goosenecks SP

Looks like a main thoroughfare!

4/4 - After another slow morning, we left Goosenecks SP and went to Valley of the Gods which was only about 20 minutes away.  I planned to boondock there.  I knew it was going to get windy and the sand could be a problem, but decided to try it anyway.  I had been told that the road was in pretty good shape, so I could do it in my van, including a small water crossing at the entrance.  All was fine.  It's a 17 miles drive through the whole park, but after about 2 miles I found a good spot.  It was set back from the road probably about 100 feet and had amazing views.  We sat outside and I read a book.  This time I did have shade from the van for Zoe, so that was helpful.  After a couple of hours the wind picked up and I decided I wasn't having fun anymore, so we packed up and left.  I decided to try to do the rest of the road through, but after another mile or so I turned around as it was getting too bumpy for my liking and since it was around 4, I wanted to figure out where I was going to stay the night.  I was either going to stay at the visitor center or an RV park, but after checking out those options I decided to check out Sandy Island campground (BLM run).  I am so glad I did.  I found a spot that isn't nearly as peaceful as where I was at Valley of the Gods as there is a road above, but not a super busy one, but is down low, has some trees and I'm tucked in with trees to my south, which is the direction of the wind.  Tomorrow there are supposed to be gusts up to 65 mph, so I don't want to drive and mostly likely will stay again.  I had to wipe down everything in the van as it was all covered in the red dirt.  I'm definitely doing a wipe bath tonight!

Views from Valley of the Gods campsite (that I deserted after the wind came up).

All setup for a great evening

This is just from wiping the counters

Lots of petroglyphs at Sand Island

sunset from site

Sand Island BLM

4/5 - Took a walk at the campground and was surprised to find a whole lot more petroglyphs, plus a walk on the SantJuan river.

Dirt in the air - the skies should be blue!

4/6 - Headed to Blanding, UT (not far from Bluff, UT where I was the last 2 days), which is a good location to head to Natural Bridges National Monument.  Did some laundry and then went to the Edge of the Cedars museum which has so much information about the ancestral people.  Anyone who is super interested in this stuff should go here if in the area.  It's small but mighty!

Edge of the Cedars ruins

Those mountains!

Zoe wondering if she can come into the kiva (underground room built by the ancestral people) too!

The shadows indicated seasons and time (?)

I finally washed this new sheet/cover, so I could replace the old one.  It's maybe a little dark, but color wise it goes well.