Our bus tour through Arizona and Utah was coming to a close. Heading back to Phoenix via the scenic route took us through iconic Monument Valley, a desolate desert punctuated by isolated towering buttes of tremendous beauty. The backdrop of numerous films, this landscape has been photographed by many who pass through this unique area, which is home to the Native Americans who live within the Navajo Indian Reservation that straddles the border of Utah and Arizona and encompasses 27,000 square miles. Due to the health concerns that have dominated 2020, Monument Valley is indefinitely closed to visitors, so I am especially thankful for the opportunity to pass through last year.

It was a dreary day with threatening rain clouds, but the rain held off while we stopped briefly at Goulding's Trading Post. In the 1920s Harry Goulding and his wife purchased land in the area and began trading with the Navajo people who lived nearby, eventually building a two story stone trading post, with a store on the first level and their residence upstairs. It was the Gouldings who first brought Hollywood to Monument Valley in 1939 with the film Stagecoach, which starred John Wayne. More movies have been filmed here, bringing economic support to the Navajo people. Now a museum, Goulding's Trading Post offers a glimpse into the life of this couple who lived in Monument Valley for decades. The trading post also offers another vantage of the stunning landscape.

I enjoyed the rustic wooden fence, wagon wheels, and other props around the trading post. It would have been nice to linger awhile longer, but the rain finally began to fall and our next stop was the Navajo Museum. There we would meet one of the four remaining Navajo Code Talkers, a 90 year old World War II veteran who had a fascinating story to tell.

What an honor it was to meet a WWII veteran who had served in such a unique capacity! Initially, 29 Navajos were recruited by the United States Marines in 1942 to develop a secret code for use during the war. Up until then, the Japanese had cracked every code that had been used. Based on the unwritten Navajo language, this code enabled the success of the Pacific campaigns of WWII. Beginning with these first 29 young men, over 400 Navajos became Code Talkers.

Many of the Navajos who joined the Marines were underage, including the gentleman we heard at Navajo Museum. Because secrecy was vital to the successful development and implementation of the code, these young men did not even know what they had signed up for. Those first 29 men developed the code and the others memorized the code. All learned to transmit the code with uncommon speed and accuracy. The Navajo Code Talkers played a fascinating role during WWII and are worthy of honor and respect. 

The next day we headed back to Phoenix. The bus tour had ended, but we still had one last day to enjoy the Sonoran Desert before traveling back to our home in Florida.

~ Debbie
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If you missed the earlier stops, follow the links and enjoy the view. 

First stop - Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden here.
Second stop - Montezuma's Castle here.
Third stop - Sedona here.
Fourth stop - The Grand Canyon here.
Fifth stop - The Desert Watch Tower here.
Sixth stop - Glen Canyon and Lake Powell here.
Seventh stop - Zion National Park here.
Eighth stop - Between canyons here. 
Ninth stop - Bryce Canyon here.
Tenth stop - Utah's Scenic Byway 12 here.
Eleventh stop - Ancient Petroglyphs here. 
Twelfth stop - Goblin Valley State Park here. 
Thirteenth stop - Arches National Park here.
Fourteenth stop - Moab, Utah here.
Fifteenth stop - Monument Valley here. 
Sixteenth stop - Hole in a Rock here.

After our bus drive through Arches National Park, which you can read about here, we spent the rest of the day exploring Moab on our own. People come to Moab, Utah to visit the nearby National Parks, and they come for biking, hiking, driving jeeps, boating and rafting. Some come to ride in hot air balloons. No wonder Moab is called the "Adventure Capital!"

We enjoyed a quiet stroll along the Colorado River. Moab is just one town that the river meanders  through, ever southward, on its way to the Grand Canyon and beyond. Here its banks are lined with invasive tamarisk trees and other plants, a ribbon of green ​beneath the towering red hills.

We crossed over the river on a foot bridge to get a closer look at the red rocks. Was there a peek hole in the rocks, an unnamed arch high in the varnished cliffs? Yes, there is. Can you see it, too?

Red and yellow wasps were buzzing in the heady fragrance of these flowering plants. And the milky white trumpet shaped flowers of Datura plants were open to the sun. Their unpleasant odor is a warning that although beautiful, ingestion of the plant is toxic.

Earlier, we had a chance to see petroglyphs from the bus.These intriguing symbols left by an ancient people remain, mysterious messages carved into the rock varnish of the sheer rock face.

This petroglyph panel can been seen on Kane Creek Blvd. There are many other places to see petroglyphs around Moab. Most involve a hike.

​In this area centuries ago, people left pictures for others to see, pictures captured in rock. Today, people like me capture pictures with a ... 

... camera.
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Well, not with this metal camera sculpture made of hand tools and other odds and ends. But this unique camera certainly captured my attention, so I captured it with my camera!

There is much more to Moab, and we hope to see more of this area some day. Our next stop is Monument Valley, so come along for the ride!

​~ Debbie

If you missed the earlier stops, follow the links and enjoy the view. 

First stop - Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden here.
Second stop - Montezuma's Castle here.
Third stop - Sedona here.
Fourth stop - The Grand Canyon here.
Fifth stop - The Desert Watch Tower here.
Sixth stop - Glen Canyon and Lake Powell here.
Seventh stop - Zion National Park here.
Eighth stop - Between canyons here. 
Ninth stop - Bryce Canyon here.
Tenth stop - Utah's Scenic Byway 12 here.
Eleventh stop - Ancient Petroglyphs here. 
Twelfth stop - Goblin Valley State Park here. 
Thirteenth stop - Arches National Park here.
Fourteenth stop - Moab, Utah here.
Fifteenth stop - Monument Valley here. ​

Continuing our tour brought us to the town of Moab, Utah and its prime attraction - Arches National Park. The world's largest concentration of natural arches is located in this National Park. There are over 2,000 arches with openings that range in size from 3 feet to 306 feet. The park receives over a million visitors each year and the wait time to enter the park by car can be lengthy. One advantage of being on a tour bus was quicker entry to the park, but a major disadvantage was the lack of parking. I was disappointed that we were unable to stop at many of the overlooks and viewpoints due to no parking. But we were able to get out and walk around at a few stops, and of course, I took pictures of the stunning scenery. 
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From the Balanced Rock trail, the Windows Section of the park with more stone arches, including Turret Arch can be seen in the distance with the La Sal Mountains further beyond. The La Sal Mountains are the second highest mountain range in the state of Utah. With peaks up to 12,000 feet, these "Salt Mountains" were an important landmark on the Old Spanish Trail between Santa Fe, New Mexico and Los Angeles, California. On the return drive to Phoenix a few days later, we saw that the first snow of autumn had "salted" the high peaks of the La Sal Mountains.

That morning, most of the arches had to be seen from the windows of our moving tour bus, but we were able to stop and take the short walk to a beautiful arch "hidden" in a slot canyon shaded by two sandstone fins - Sand Dune Arch. The easy trail leads through deep rust colored sand and becomes quite narrow until opening up into a cathedral like room with a ceiling of blue sky. Sand Dune Arch stands alone. It was quite beautiful with golden sunlight streaming from above. 

Perhaps the most photographed arch in Arches National Park is Delicate Arch. With its opening of 46 feet high and 32 feet wide, this beautiful arch is the iconic symbol of the park and is the largest free-standing arch in the park. We viewed the arch from the lower viewpoint, which is one mile away. To get up close involves a 3 mile roundtrip hike up a steep slope of slickrock and takes 2-3 hours. Hundreds of visitors gather throughout the day from sunrise to sunset to take in the view, and some venture out at night.

Some of the nearby rocky hills were covered with a beautiful turquoise green layer of earth, a natural patina produced by minerals in the soil. 

Here are a few more beautiful stone arches that we saw while driving through Arches National Park that sunny day in September 2019:

Here is another view of Balanced Rock:

We only spent a few morning hours in Arches National Park. Someday I hope to return and enjoy more time in this awe inspiring land of balancing rocks and stone arches. 

That afternoon my husband and I took a scenic walk along the part of the Colorado River that winds through Moab on its southward course through the canyons and deserts of Utah and Arizona through the Grand Canyon and beyond. You are welcome to join us in the next post! 

~ Debbie

If you missed the earlier stops, follow the links and enjoy the view. 

First stop - Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden here.
Second stop - Montezuma's Castle here.
Third stop - Sedona here.
Fourth stop - The Grand Canyon here.
Fifth stop - The Desert Watch Tower here.
Sixth stop - Glen Canyon and Lake Powell here.
Seventh stop - Zion National Park here.
Eighth stop - Between canyons here. 
Ninth stop - Bryce Canyon here.
Tenth stop - Utah's Scenic Byway 12 here.
Eleventh stop - Ancient Petroglyphs here. 
Twelfth stop - Goblin Valley State Park here. 
​Thirteenth stop - Arches National Park here.
Fourteenth stop - Moab, Utah here.