14 October

Blanding, Utah

With a bit of time up our sleeves, we decided a couple of days ago to take a bit of a detour. Tonight, we are just outside the Navajo Nation which covers three states and is bigger than 10 of the states of the USA. The Navajo Reservation is mostly desert, but what a desert!

The Grand Canyon is probably one of the “wow!” locations on the planet. This was our second visit and it was still “WOW”. Words cannot describe it and the photographs that we are able to take cannot do it justice. Even professional pics you see of the Grand Canyon cannot convey the absolute awe this geological phenomenon inspires. Last time we were here, it had snowed and was more than a little cool. Yesterday was a beautiful, clear day and fairly hot, so the crowds were a bit of a shock to us. Parking was a problem and so, after circling the carpark, like vultures, four times, we scored a spot, then walked about 4 kms of the canyon rim before catching the free shuttle bus back.

Driving through the reservation areas is a bit of an eye opener! The towns are much like small outback Australian towns - a petrol station or two, lots of dirt streets and little else. The Native American settlements are very poor. Set in open, desert landscapes, they are less than attractive.

On the upside, the Native American tribes here, the Hopi and the Navajo, manage their own affairs very much as a state within a state, their independence being something they treasure.

Monument Valley in southern Utah was another 'WOW' event. As kids, we called this Mesa landscape 'Road Runner territory'. On a clear, sunny day, the desert demanded photos! Between us we took almost 100 shots!

Our 'little' detour will continue over the next week or so before we return to Route 66. It's a bit like driving from Brisbane to Sydney via Longreach, but what the... we will see some new sights and .. oh yes, hit Vegas again!