ROAD TRIP!!! DAY 3: The Big Freeze

We didn’t want to get out of bed this morning! It was far too cosy and so much warmer than outside would be. However knowing we were going to be visiting Monument Valley was just about a big enough incentive to get us moving! There was a complimentary breakfast which we made very full use of; it was the best one we’ve seen in a while! There was a cooked buffet and a cold one. Ollie made himself a waffle which turned out not too bad while I very predictably pigged out on the mini muffins and croissants!

Feeling almost stuffed (because there’s always more room in Ollie’s belly!), Ollie and I got in the car and set off back up the 20mile crazily straight road to the valley. We arrived there not really knowing what we would be able to do. Not knowing that you could actually take a drive around the monuments was a big surprise. However there was one small problem. The road was extremely rough and only vehicles that had ‘high clearance’ were supposed to take on the 17 mile round trip. After 5 minutes of discussion, I convinced Ollie that our car was raised enough off the ground to make the drive plausible. We both knew it wasn’t really but it’s easy to convince yourselves when such wonder is at stake! Setting off, Ollie took it really slow and after a few hairy moments where I thought we would fall off the ridges and be lost forever, the road turned more to dust and things were looking up.

We’d seen many of the giant rock formation the previous day but seeing them for a second time wasn’t any less impressive. In fact the light was different today and presented the colours even more vividly for us. The camera snapped away in delight as the novice behind it tried to vaguely capture some representation of what it was actually like to be there. I was pretty good considering I was photographing while in a moving vehicle that bouncing around most of the time! There were view points dotted along the trail so we were able to stop, get out, take some proper photos and simply admire the awesomeness that was the view. Things were going well. We were having a great time. Granted Ollie’s mouth turned into a potty as we had some near misses with stranded boulders but the road was generally o.k. That was until the great divide of view point number 9. Before us the road split apart, the crack filled with water and the sides most uneven. Ollie brought the car to a standstill. We both knew. There was no way our little EW was going to make it over that. Of course I tried to argue the positives of at least trying but thankfully Ollie had his sensible had back on. Uttering a few last ‘Fs’ he backed up, turned around and began to take us back. I’m not going to lie, I was disappointed, but the threat of a big bill when we took the car back in two halves seemed too scary to be upset. The EW was already covered in red dust anyway which we weren’t sure how to explain!

By turning around we hadn’t missed too much, only a few extra close ups. Back at the visitor centre we stood out on the main viewing platform and took a few more pictures. Really, unless you have a super duper camera with one of those mega lenses, the pictures just aren’t going to be as good as the real thing. But I tried anyway! We visited the small museum to learn about the Navajo and had a look at all the wonderful jewlery they make. By this time massive clouds had filled the sky and it looked like snow. We decided to move on and see as much as we could on the way back to our final destination. Along the way we passed through ‘Tuba City’ which wasn’t anything exciting but the name amused me! None of the places here are anything like a ‘normal’ towns. They just appear out of nowhere and consist of a few dusty roads, a school, many fast food joints and some stray dogs running about!

About the dogs. There are so many up there in the reservations. Dogs that look like they’ve spent their entire lives outside with no one to give them a good hug or decent meal. Their coats are long and shaggy, their eyes empty. Most have problems with their legs and limp. It’s not a very happy sight. Ollie fed one dog because he felt so sorry for him. The dog couldn’t really walk and looked as if it was doggy heaven for him any day now. I wonder why no one is looking after them? If they are pets why aren’t they better cared for? It’s not something we’re used to and it was definitely an upsetting experience. Well except the part where I thought I saw a two headed dog but it turned out it was just two different dogs in a post coital stance!!

We carried on the next leg of our trip, making our way gradually back towards the Grand Canyon. I was desperate for another look and another chance to try and take in the view. As we got closer the roads began to become more snowy and the trees running along side were pretty covered. Ahead we saw two cars stopped in the road and assumed there had been a crash. But no, it was deer feeding right on the road side that had caught their attention. It was a beautiful sight and we got to see deer a few more times that evening. It’s amazing to think that human beings can be so cruel and horrible and yet the sight of wild animals still manages to melt our hearts!

We reached the canyon and got out to take a look. Just as the other day, there were clouds moving through the giant space. I stared out for along time but it wasn’t much use. The Grand Canyon is just too astounding for eyes to understand. It will stay set in our memories always though. By this time it was freezing. Faced with another night in the car we looked through our guide we had received a couple of days before and found there was a year round campsite in the park. Ollie looked at me. ‘How much fun would it be to camp in the snow?!’. And so that’s what we did!

While Ollie was organising a pitch for us, a cyclist turned up who also wanted to camp for the night. He was from England too and asked if he could share our pitch to make it cheaper. Of course we agreed. As we all made our way through the snowy site I was more than a little dubious about our latest decision! Our tent was still soaking from the Charleston saga. Perseverance and a little ‘Oh it will be alright’ got the tent up and just in time before it began to snow again. It was only about 6P.M so Ollie and I and our new acquaintance headed over to the massive lodge to partake in their wifi, huge open fire and hot chocolate. And it even came with cream. Lovely job!

The guy we were with suggested we go over and check out the talk a park ranger was giving later that evening on the Colorado river. I thought it sounded interesting so we agreed to go. However a little while later Ollie was already panicking about the looming sleep freeze and decided we had to go over to the big store in Grand Canyon village to find either a blanket or sleeping mats. Well. The only blankets they had were hand woven Navajo beats that cost in excess of $200! Not quite what we’d had in mind. We did find sleeping mats though and gritting my teeth I agreed to the expense. However thanks to Ollie noticing a sign informing him we could hire mats for the night we only had to spend $4 AND we got way better mats than we had intended to purchase. Get in!

By this time we were late for the talk. And I mean five minutes left of the talk late. Feeling guilty, Ollie told our cyclist buddy we’d still go over and try and catch some of what the ranger had to say. We arrived and snuck through the entrance. To our left a shortish man with grey hair was waving his hands wildly, trying to get something across to his audience in a very animated fashion. Before we entered that room, I noticed it was a church service and not our talk! In front of us was a large lecture hall and people were leaving past us. We had missed the talk. Not wanting to give in just yet, the three of us went in and sat down for a few minutes to enjoy the warm. Realising the talk was well and truly over, we made loud comments about how wonderful it had been, how informative and did some wild gesticulations to highlight our points. I don’t think anyone noticed we hadn’t been there the whole time!

We now had nothing to do. But we all knew for definite that we didn’t want to go back to our tents yet. Ollie mentioned that he had seen a common room at the lodge and so we decided to go back over and play some cards. We walked around the lodge for ten minutes until finally Ollie conceded that he must have imagined the common room! All was not lost though because there was a bar and I was quite happy to sit and drink more hot chocolate and eat some fries. We played cards and chatted. Our new friend had been in America since April and had already cycled over 7000 miles across states. Needless to say Ollie and I were both pretty impressed. The guy was extremely chatty. Which made sense considering he was on his own for most of the day, every day! After losing two games in a row and having to eat pepper sauce I decided that it was time for bed. The snow was really heavy now and the temperature way down.

Putting on two pairs of socks and leaving the rest of our clothes on we got into our tent. Ollie had shorts on under his trousers! As we tried to snuggle down it didn’t seem to cold. A few hours later though I was freezing! That cold where no matter how much you hide in your sleeping bag (which is only meant for summer months) or squeeze yourself tight you just can’t get warm. And once our feet had turned numb we knew we had lost the fight! We persevered though...

6/10/11

P.S Just found plug for dead mac, not proof read! Will do later...in the meantime sorry!