Roadtrip: Day 3
I'd like to open todays journal entry by reiterating a statement I made yesterday: Arizona really doesn't contain much else than gargantuan quantities of dirt at various elevations. I could go for 20 miles at a time with the only signs of civilisation being the road I was driving on and a row of telegraph poles beside it, stretching off into the distance.
I've also decided that Flagstaff is quite an awesome place. As well as being quite a "quaint" little city/town, it's located in a fantastic part of the world, with some of the best scenery imagineable within driving distance. I decided to get up very early and try and see both Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon in one day, about a 400 mile round trip. Started off by heading up the AZ-89 North, and then continued along the AZ-160, before finally heading onto the AZ-163 for the final couple of 30 miles or so to Monument Valley. The environment turned pretty dry and arid very quickly upon leaving Flagstaff, with lots of red desert rock stretching out for miles. Thankfully there was some cloud cover for most of the morning, meaning that temperatures didn't soar quite as high as they had done the previous two days; the hottest it got was a manageable 96 F. After turning onto the AZ-160 the terrain started to get much more picturesque, with some amazing stone artifacts appearing all over the place. The were a large number of rocky hills that displayed the strata-like layers, all weathered down, and it was all very beautiful.
Monument Valley itself was visible from a long way away, and it was quite spectacular watching the monolithic stone structures get larger and larger and larger the closer I got, more and more detail being revealed with every mile. I stopped at the tourist center there for about 30 mins, most of the time snapping photos with my digital SLR camera, but I also wandered through the trading post and crushed a cent coin for my little sister (she made me promise to get her one every time I saw a machine). Words cannot really describe how big and awe-inspiring Monument Valley is. The sheer size of the mesas is overwhelming and impressive beyond belief. Sadly, I couldn't spend time driving along the dust trail that actually goes down to the valley floor and between all the mesas, but I'd definately recommend that anyone else who goes does it.
Before heading back down the AZ-163 I drove about two miles further up it into Utah. I hadn't planned on visiting Monument Valley until yesterday evening, and upon realising it was so close to another State I just had to add it to my list! After spending all of 5 mins in the wonderful shanty town of Gouldings I turned back, and headed all the way back down to AZ-89, and about 20 miles later turned right onto the AZ-64 East that led to the South Rim pf the Grand Canyon. The road follows along the ridgeline of the Canyon for pretty much all the way, and although I didn't stop in an effort to make good time the views as I drove were simply stunning. They were, however, nothing compared to the views from the official viewpoints once I had entered the National Park proper. There is a certain majesty to the vastness of the canyon, and it's hard to put into words exactly how big it is. It's big. It's very, very big. And so deep. Needless to say, I spent a very happy hour there snapping away and marvelling at the beauty of the place. However, my time there was cut short by the arrival of a thunderstorm, so I left (earlier than I wanted to, sadly), and headed back into Flagstaff.
One thing I've noticed, epsecially today, is how polluted the air in California is, especially along the 101 and the I-5. When driving along those, visibility was awful, and a horrible haze covered the horizon. Here in Arizona, especially in the Northern parts, the air is so clear I could see for miles. It made for a really refreshing change!
In other news, I managed to sunburn my left arm despite the lack of direct sunlight for most of the day. I was also incorrect in putting my watch foward an hour when I came into Arizona. While it is technically in th Mountain Time zone, it doesn't observe daylight savings, and is therefore on par with Pacific Standard Time. Which meant that I got up stupidly early this morning, and arrived back at the hostel with plenty of time to spare before heading out to meet Jessie, a friend of mine who lives here in Flagstaff.
Tomorrow shall be a nice long day; hoping to drive all the way through Mexico to Amarillo in Texas!
Pictures
Roadtrip webpage
I've also decided that Flagstaff is quite an awesome place. As well as being quite a "quaint" little city/town, it's located in a fantastic part of the world, with some of the best scenery imagineable within driving distance. I decided to get up very early and try and see both Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon in one day, about a 400 mile round trip. Started off by heading up the AZ-89 North, and then continued along the AZ-160, before finally heading onto the AZ-163 for the final couple of 30 miles or so to Monument Valley. The environment turned pretty dry and arid very quickly upon leaving Flagstaff, with lots of red desert rock stretching out for miles. Thankfully there was some cloud cover for most of the morning, meaning that temperatures didn't soar quite as high as they had done the previous two days; the hottest it got was a manageable 96 F. After turning onto the AZ-160 the terrain started to get much more picturesque, with some amazing stone artifacts appearing all over the place. The were a large number of rocky hills that displayed the strata-like layers, all weathered down, and it was all very beautiful.
Monument Valley itself was visible from a long way away, and it was quite spectacular watching the monolithic stone structures get larger and larger and larger the closer I got, more and more detail being revealed with every mile. I stopped at the tourist center there for about 30 mins, most of the time snapping photos with my digital SLR camera, but I also wandered through the trading post and crushed a cent coin for my little sister (she made me promise to get her one every time I saw a machine). Words cannot really describe how big and awe-inspiring Monument Valley is. The sheer size of the mesas is overwhelming and impressive beyond belief. Sadly, I couldn't spend time driving along the dust trail that actually goes down to the valley floor and between all the mesas, but I'd definately recommend that anyone else who goes does it.
Before heading back down the AZ-163 I drove about two miles further up it into Utah. I hadn't planned on visiting Monument Valley until yesterday evening, and upon realising it was so close to another State I just had to add it to my list! After spending all of 5 mins in the wonderful shanty town of Gouldings I turned back, and headed all the way back down to AZ-89, and about 20 miles later turned right onto the AZ-64 East that led to the South Rim pf the Grand Canyon. The road follows along the ridgeline of the Canyon for pretty much all the way, and although I didn't stop in an effort to make good time the views as I drove were simply stunning. They were, however, nothing compared to the views from the official viewpoints once I had entered the National Park proper. There is a certain majesty to the vastness of the canyon, and it's hard to put into words exactly how big it is. It's big. It's very, very big. And so deep. Needless to say, I spent a very happy hour there snapping away and marvelling at the beauty of the place. However, my time there was cut short by the arrival of a thunderstorm, so I left (earlier than I wanted to, sadly), and headed back into Flagstaff.
One thing I've noticed, epsecially today, is how polluted the air in California is, especially along the 101 and the I-5. When driving along those, visibility was awful, and a horrible haze covered the horizon. Here in Arizona, especially in the Northern parts, the air is so clear I could see for miles. It made for a really refreshing change!
In other news, I managed to sunburn my left arm despite the lack of direct sunlight for most of the day. I was also incorrect in putting my watch foward an hour when I came into Arizona. While it is technically in th Mountain Time zone, it doesn't observe daylight savings, and is therefore on par with Pacific Standard Time. Which meant that I got up stupidly early this morning, and arrived back at the hostel with plenty of time to spare before heading out to meet Jessie, a friend of mine who lives here in Flagstaff.
Tomorrow shall be a nice long day; hoping to drive all the way through Mexico to Amarillo in Texas!
posted by Nebhead at
04:35
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