(c) 2010 Lydia Hinshaw
A stunning rock formation
...and another
...and another.
When will this road end?KANAB, UT -- Thursday was a three-state day, four if you count both times we visited Utah.
Here in the Four Corners area, long distance navigation can be a problem. You need (a) four state road maps, and you can imagine the folding issues involved or (b) four widely-spaced pages in an alphabetical road atlas. Thursday, I might add, was a fine day and we were traveling with the windows open.
Drastic measures were called for. In a gift shop in Bluff, UT, we bought a map that centers on the Four Corners and includes relevant parts of all four states, on one sheet.
To get here from Cortez, CO, we drove east into Utah, then south into Arizona and north again into Utah. There aren't many roads here and if you aren't careful, you can wind up on the wrong side of a mountain range and face hours of additional driving.
If this happens, you'll at least see plenty of great scenery.
During our first visit to Utah, we happened on the Valley of the Gods, a 17-mile loop road that combines some of the gentler effects of a roller coaster with some of the harsher effects of a washboard. There were a couple of low places where we had to splash through water too.
Prince Charming always balks at dirt roads, but I managed to persuade him to give this one a try. After a couple of incredible rock formations, he was hooked and we used up millions of pixels. There was something more interesting around every turn.
Eventually we returned safely to the pavement and continued through the more famous Monument Valley, which didn't seem all that great after the Valley of the Gods.
Here in the Four Corners area, long distance navigation can be a problem. You need (a) four state road maps, and you can imagine the folding issues involved or (b) four widely-spaced pages in an alphabetical road atlas. Thursday, I might add, was a fine day and we were traveling with the windows open.
Drastic measures were called for. In a gift shop in Bluff, UT, we bought a map that centers on the Four Corners and includes relevant parts of all four states, on one sheet.
To get here from Cortez, CO, we drove east into Utah, then south into Arizona and north again into Utah. There aren't many roads here and if you aren't careful, you can wind up on the wrong side of a mountain range and face hours of additional driving.
If this happens, you'll at least see plenty of great scenery.
During our first visit to Utah, we happened on the Valley of the Gods, a 17-mile loop road that combines some of the gentler effects of a roller coaster with some of the harsher effects of a washboard. There were a couple of low places where we had to splash through water too.
Prince Charming always balks at dirt roads, but I managed to persuade him to give this one a try. After a couple of incredible rock formations, he was hooked and we used up millions of pixels. There was something more interesting around every turn.
Eventually we returned safely to the pavement and continued through the more famous Monument Valley, which didn't seem all that great after the Valley of the Gods.
1 comment:
OMG. Places like that make you feel like a speck of dust. Beautiful views. And awe-inspiring photos. Thanks.
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