Flagstaff to Page via not much

Today was a good day. I’m feeling a bit better, and I had a really good afternoon. Let me tell you all about it, I know you can't wait. 

I ended up getting up quite late, well, relatively late, and went for breakfast at the fantastic La Bellavia. They’re known for their eggs benedict, so I finally decided to try them. They were good, but a pint of Hollandaise is just a little too much in the morning – even for me. Anywho, I ate them all (and a pancake), and hit the road. Under a clear blue sky I went straight up US-89 towards Page, only stopping once to say hello to some lovely old Navajo women selling jewellery, and to stretch my legs.

I was too early to check in, so I had some lunch then went to Glen Dam for a visit.

Lots and lots of concrete

I had hoped to do the full tour, going deep down into the dam, but because it’s me, the lift down was closed for repairs. I could, however, go on to the dam and walk around a bit. That was fun.  

It’s all really big. Here’s one of the turbines. Old people for scale

After a walk around, I moved on to Lake Powell for a walk, a swim and a lie down. I love it here. It’s so peaceful. 

Shade!

I won a prize (in my head) for finding a spot with shallow water and shade. I win.  As boats occasionally go past, forcing rolling waves up the rock, I think how much Melvin would like it here. I can’t wait to bring him.

I sit, I wander, I swim and I stare out across the water for a couple of hours then make my way back to the motel where I check in successfully. After a trip to Sainsbury's for food and bits and bobs, I sit outside and do internet things for a 30 minutes.

I like Page, always have. The whole town was built to accommodate the men who built the dam. It just sort of appeared. There’s a whole street of motels that used to be the workers’ houses. I’ve stayed in a couple of different ones and they’re lovely. Worn, but lovely. Unfortunately they were all booked up this trip, so I'm in a motel down the road. Anywho. The good thing about Page is it has the world’s best burger joint which I’ll visit tomorrow. Today, I fancied something simple for dinner, so I added some roast chicken and salad to my basket.

They're everywhere

After stocking up, I hit the road and went to Horseshoe Bend to watch the sun set. So did everyone else, but it was beautiful. I think I’ll come back tomorrow too.

Pretty place

Actually quite hard to get a shot with no people in it

The masses

Back at the motel, I ate my simple dinner while I prepared for my hike tomorrow. I’m very excited. I’ll leave quite early to beat the heat, and so I can spend a few hours out there – all day if necessary.

Well there you go. A short but great day. I’m so pleased my cold is moving on. It’s not fair to be poorly on holiday.

Until tomorrow!

Flagstaff

What a day. For some reason I actually thought I’d avoid the car today. Boy was I wrong. I started out with a late breakfast at La Bellavia, an excellent breakfast spot downtown. Eggs Benedict, pancakes and bacon. Just a wee something...

Next door at Macy's I have a coffee and use the internet to get the addresses for my day’s sightseeing. Back to the room then in the car I get. My first stop is Walnut Canyon. The canyon was home to cliff dwellers called the Sinagua around 800 years ago. The buildings are built into the natural overhangs that circle around the canyon’s walls. They’re incredibly simple, but I wouldn’t mind living there. What more do you need?

The roofs and parts of the canyon’s walls are still covered in soot, and while you can see remains of buildings dotted all around the canyon, an unknown number have been pillaged and destroyed by trophy hunters in the 1800s. Pure ignorance, I suppose, but it’s hard not to be frustrated.

I spend about an hour and a half walking down and back up the canyon, enjoying the sun that has poked through, and chatting with the guys who are rebuilding the path. Sometimes I wish I was a park ranger. I reckon I’d be good. Not too sure about the uniform, but beggars can’t be choosers. 

From Walnut Canyon, I head towards Wupatki and Sunset Crater Volcano. At least, I try to. I’ve no idea what’s going on but I somehow manage to get really quite lost. My GPS won’t recognise the address, so I revert to my map book. I find it, and head towards it, only after about 40 minutes realise I’m on the wrong road. I don’t know how I didn’t realise sooner. I pull over and ask for directions, and the bloody woman put me on another wild goose chase. Another 20 minutes go by – all with very nice scenery mind you – until I finally get on the right track. The plus side to this is that I drive past Twin Arrows, an abandoned Indian trading post that I had marked on the map to look at but forgotten about! I am very pleased.

One careful owner...

Once I’ve nosed about, I head on to the bloody volcano. I doubt I’ll have time to do the last two things on my list today, but that’s how life is sometimes. You can’t climb up the volcano anymore as those pesky people from the 1800s did what they do best and tore it all up. Now you can look at it from a distance and check out all the lava.

Pretty cool. It erupted less than 1000 years ago, so in geological terms, it’s a wee baby. Anyway, on I go to the Wupatki pueblos, aka really old houses built by the Wupatki people.

They are beautiful, stark and exposed. Needless to say that when the volcano went bang, life here changed quite a lot. Some came back, others moved to Walnut Canyon, and others went…somewhere else. I imagine a lot of that is guesswork but that’s what we’re told.

The wind really picks up as I wind my way through the park, and rain clouds gather overhead. I move through the last buildings, which is actually a village, quite quickly, and as I get in the car, the rain comes. I drive back towards the highway, passing one car, and loving the landscape.  

I realise I do have time to make it to the Lowell Observatory, where Pluto was discovered, so off I go, pretty happy with things. There's a beautiful rainbow as I head back in to Flagstaff, but because I'm a good driver I don't try to take photo. I do think about it though.

Outside the observatory there’s a big kaleidoscope. I have a look, turn the handle and think it’s all very pretty until boom! Marvin the Martian pops up. My view of Lowell Observatory has just skyrocketed. No pun intended.

I arrive just in time for Cosmic Zoom, a 45 minute talk about the universe. It’s just me, so I have to answer all the questions the incredibly intelligent and equally geeky guide has to ask. I don’t remember what planet comes after what planet and feel stupid, but the guide is nice and doesn’t laugh.

He talks and I listen as my brain leaks out of my ears. By the time he’s talking about the edge of the known universe I’m busy trying to tell myself that despite what the rumour that went around school said, I won’t go mad if I think about it all too much. Still, I feel myself questioning this and try to think about something else, like the fact I missed lunch. It’s an amazing lecture and I wish I could have recorded it because information overload. Space, man. It’s something else.

Only me here.

I head up to the Clark Telescope, through which the first evidence of the expanding universe was discovered (careful, madness that way lies). It’s big and old and hard to take photo of. All the guys who work here are adorably geeky and I think they're awesome. They clearly love their stuff and just want to tell you everything about space. 

Then I have a wander around the gardens, and head to the visitor centre to have a look. It’s very spacey and very cool.  

Whoa...

I don’t have the time to do the Museum of Northern Arizona, but might do it after my hike, for which I leave tomorrow! I’m very excited. It will be nice to leave the car behind, get some exercise, and experience the Grand Canyon like never before.  

For now though, it's dinner, pack and hopefully a movie on TV in bed. What luxury! There’ll be no update for a few days, but prepare for a mammoth one on Saturday when I’m back.  

Until then!

Flagstaff to Page

It’s been another exhausting yet brilliant day. I’m in bed right now, and have no internet. I didn’t last night either, at least, not good enough to upload photos and a blog post. Gosh darn it, America.

Well, let’s see. The day started out with a walk to La Bellavia for breakfast. Eggs and bacon and a big mug of coffee. Then I walked up to the railroad tracks that traverse Flagstaff and sat and waited. I was determined to recreate a photo I took in 1999. See below.

I waited and waited then decided to go find some water. Needless to say, as I wandered off, I heard a train approaching. I literally ran back, only to discover it was coming from the other direction. So I wandered off again. And again, a train came – from the right direction – but this time I couldn’t make it back in time. Frustrated but determined, I plonked myself down and waited. I read my Lonely Planet. I looked at empty Flagstaff. I was just beginning to realise that what I was doing was a bit daft when bingo – along came the BNSF. Not nearly as good, but I'm pleased enough. 

For some reason this made me incredibly happy and I bounced off back to the hotel to pick up my bags and hit the road. Which I did. My plan was to hit Cameron Trading Post (there’s a lovely bridge), then Marble Canyon (lovely bridge), Grand Canyon North Rim (lovely br – view), then potter on to Page (best burgers in the world). I took my time today. I’m getting to the Arizona I really love. The red rocks, pink cliffs and skies so blue it’s hard to believe. Sometimes I look at the view and just can’t believe that what I’m looking at is completely natural. Sounds daft, but just look at the colours. How can you not fall in love with views like this?

 Marble Canyon proved to be rather good too. I’ve never been here before, so that was exciting. Saw some Californian Condors too.

I drove for hours along some of the most beautiful cliffs and rocks I’ve ever seen. It makes me so excited for Monument Valley.

This is a house built on to/under a rock. Cliff dwellers, they’re called. Not anymore, but they were. Big rocks rolled down the cliff face, and people just build their homes on to them. It was cool, robust and cheap. Not bad.

Then the climb started. The highest viewpoint (Imperial Point) of the Grand Canyon is at the North Rim. It’s over 2,742 metres up, so it’s quite a climb. Suddenly, the pine trees that cover, completely cover, the Kaibab Plateau, surround me and the air is thick with the smell of them. It’s almost delicious – lush even. I roll down the window and gulp it in.

A couple of hours later, and I’m there. It’s later than I had hoped, but so what. I walk, I stare, I look enviously at the log cabins perched on the edge. I’m struck by how empty it is. If you’ve ever been to the South Rim, you know how busy it is. Hundreds of people, all desperate to get a good look, all stopping at the same points – it’s enough to make you not want to go. It’s changed so much every time I’ve gone, and that’s partly the reason I decided to skip it and go north instead. There’s also the obvious fact that I’ve never done the north so it was about time. I’m glad I did. I’d say the views easily match, if not rival, those at the South Rim, and the solitude make it all the more striking.

Unfortunately, there’s never enough time (one day I will do a rim to rim hike), and I peel my eyes off the sheer drops and head back to the car. I realise that I’m going to be getting to Page much later than hoped, never mind the fact that the 89 is still closed, and the recently paved 89 T is only open in daylight hours. This means a loop around into Utah and coming into Page from the north. Another 45 minutes to the journey.

By the time I roll across the Glen Bridge, I’m virtually running on fumes, the sky is black, and I’m ready for bed. Check in, hit the supermarket, find out I was given the wrong code for the internet, but it’s too late – I’m in bed.

It’s been one hell of a day. Tomorrow, I hardly drive. If I’m unlucky, I’ll be in the car for an hour, max. In place of 4 wheels, I’ll be on a raft, and then a kayak. Colorado Rive and Lake Powell, here I come.