Good Morning! It was just sheer luck that I cut on the TV this morning and it was on the Albuquerque station. They were reporting live from the Hot Air Balloon Park and reported that no more balloons would go up this a.m. due to bad weather coming in from the west. So, I took photos of the television screen and voila! I have my hot air balloon memories! Here are the pictures. We are going to get on I-40 and hot foot it over to Mississippi and then home! I am very home sick at this point and will be glad to catch up on the local news and my wild animals. I know they don't depend solely on me for their nourishment, but I feel that they do to a certain degree. Home sweet home. There's nothing like.

Today was one of the best "back to nature" days of our trip. We ventured into the Monument Valley not knowing what to expect. We were pleasantly surprised that there is a lodge, restaurant, gift shop, restrooms and tour guides in abundance. The View lodge reminded us of the accommodations in Yosemite; that is, you need to reserve a room/cottage at least a year in advance. The Navajo people are so kind and gentle and easy going. We got some breakfast at the restaurant (super good) and then after perusing the gift shop for hat pins and t-shirts, we met up with our guide, Sam, or Uncle Sam (the good one) as his co-workers called him! He was just awesome. He took us on a great tour of the valley and a genuine hogan with a Navajo woman inside who showed us how she turned fur into thread and wove blankets. Incredible. This is an art and if you need a blanket on a cold night, you could learn this in a heartbeat. We were shown "John Ford" valley, where he shot most of his westerns. Sam told us that when a movie producer wants to film there, they have to shut down all the tourist rides and even the locals cannot go into the area, so it has to be pretty expensive. These guys are true capitalists. There is nothing free, nor should it be. We are on their homelands and we should respect it. We were so impressed with Sam. He told me that he was born and raised on this land; he has 6 kids and 3 grandkids and they are all self sufficient. You know Nixchix aren't afraid to ask questions! We noticed that there were little piles of rocks here and there along the valley road and asked Sam about them. I thought they might have been something that the locals put up, but no, he said the Italians and French make them and he didn't know what they meant. Speaking of the Italians and French, they were out in force, and lots of Germans, and Scandinavian people, too. They are all so self-centered! As we were taking photos of the beauty and natural phenomenon, they were striking poses and making like they owned the place. Curious. Also, there were about 12 Navajo GIs who were Code Talkers during WWII and the Japanese never could crack it. Sam told us that on one of his tours there was a man from Japan who told him that he had cracked the code. Well, Sam said he offer up two Navajo words for the Japanese guy to translate. He got the first one, but not the second!! It was a moral victory for Sam, as the Japanese guy didn't give him a tip!!! It is so amazing and wonderful and beautiful. It was an experience that we will never forget. After that wonderful adventure, we wanted to get to the Four Corners before we headed into Farmington, NM and our HI Express room! The Four Corners is not like it used to be. There are vendors, craftsmen, cafes and all sort of commercial enterprises going on. We did get to stand on the Four Corners and got some pictures, but it did not have the spiritual feel that I had expected. No matter, we went there, we saw that, and we moved on. Tomorrow we go to Albuquerque to see the tag end of the Hot Air Balloon races. We will then race home on I-40, then I-10 and hope to be home by Monday or Tuesday. I have officially gotten home sick! I will post tomorrow evening but may be over and out until we get home. Roll Tide and go Falcons!! There is Sam sitting watching his cousin make yarn. He was such a great guide. Patient and kind and eager to please. The drawings were made by Sam's ancestors, circa 1200 or 1300 AD. Such awesomeness is hard to put into words. More beauty and a shot of The View from the valley. So cool, such a great place to visit. Four Corners.

What a great day today has been! We started out by touring Zion NP by happenstance. We had decided that Bryce Canyon was a truly great example of the rock formations and flora and fauna, so we would not need to see Zion, but as it turned out, we had to drive through Zion to get over here to Arizona, close to the Monument Valley. There were so many people there and all the campgrounds were full and all the parking lots were full, it was amazing. There were so may Europeans and Asians there and retirees. Very few children, since I assume all schools have started by now. This must be a famous place to visit for those across the pond!! We thoroughly enjoyed our time there and got some good pictures. Onward!! We are in Kayenta, AZ smack dab in the middle of the Navajo Indian Reservation at the Monument Valley Inn. We are going to hire a guide to take us into the Valley via jeep in the a.m. We are so excited. After touring Monument Valley, we are heading to the Four Corners, which is about an hour away from here. Then onward to Albuquerque to see the final day of the hot air balloon races. I have started getting a little homesick and will look forward to hot footing it back across Texas, Arkansas with a stop in Baton Rouge to see how Jane Henry and family are doing since their flood.

Bryce Canyon II

All of the photos did not upload. Here they are.

I am posting more pictures this evening, as they speak volumes about this area and the Red Canyon/Bryce Canyon vistas. Incredible and unreal and so beautiful. We were in the car all day, except for exploring Bryce Point and taking photos there. It is very cool and dry, but the sun is out in force. I have slathered on sunscreen to no avail. I have a red face, neck and arms but it is no use trying to remedy them except to cover up. I was so excited that I left my hat in the car! The parking lot is small and cars were madly jockeying for a place. This terrain is very similar to Zion NP, so we are going to forego that park to head to Monument Valley (where LOTS of western movies and tv shows have been filmed) and then the Four Corners monument and then make our way to Albuquerque for the hot air balloon races, that end this upcoming weekend. We are having the time of our lives, but keep a comfy room and bed with all the amenities for our evenings. We don't want to miss any of our shows!!! Enjoy the pictures and I will have more tomorrow evening! The first pictures are showing the terrain driving up to Red Canyon and Bryce Canyon. The tunnels are in Red Canyon. The photos in Bryce Canyon are of the Hoodoos and other formations as viewed from atop one of the mountains. John took most of these pictures as I was clinging to the railing. Heights terrify me!

Curiouser and Curiouser is this part of the country. We left Eureka NV after a nice breakfast and coffee at 9:30 a.m. with plans to make it as close to Bryce Canyon and Zion NPs as possible. Once again, after you leave a town out here, there is nothing but miles and miles and thousands of acres of ranches and very few glimpses of animals or man, for that matter. We saw lots of cattle and lots of folks harvesting and baling hay, getting ready for the winter and the snow. On and on we went, mappage and atlas in hand and hoping that we could make it out of the state by lunch time. It was not to be. We finally got to the Utah state line and a little store was there, but nothing there to eat except more snackage, of which we have plenty. I must say, though, that at every town, no matter if a wide place in the road or a town with a main street, there are always casinos and slot machines. Even the store at the state line had slots, lots of slots and people were playing them????? Weird. We are out in the middle of east Egypt and there is a store with slot machines!! The people are very well done (tan and leathery) and come in all shapes, sizes and ilks. Looking at the pictures again, reminded me that when we were making our way from the Nevada/Utah border, we encountered this lake, which we surmised was a salt basin. Sure enough, there was a small sign indicating that it is the Asan Basin (salt). Very eerie and the whole of this area is like another planet. Very interesting. We finally, finally get through the desert and make it to the middle of Utah and interstate 15! Glory be! Exits with gas and food and motels. Hallelujah! We get a very late lunch and head for Cedar City, which is a relatively big town with a HI Express and Wal Mart! It is on the outskirts of both Bryce Canyon and Zion NP. We will stay here two nights. We had to make a Wal Mart run when we got here and what a difference in the Wal Mart here and back home. We saw Mormon moms with their little boys dressed as cowboys, but mom had on a pioneer dress and hair drawn up in a bun. No little girls were with them. And the assortment of cowboys and lots of older ladies with bright red or burgundy, even purple hair, skin tight jeans and long painted fingernails and very young, hip looking tops. Kind of scary, really! Now we are back in our cozy room for two nights and I am so relieved that we can just sleep in and not worry about checking out and loading all of our various and sundried bags!!! We plan on touring both NPs tomorrow and then on Thursday, we will trek over to Monument Valley and the Four Corners. Then we will make a bee line to Albuquerque, as the balloon races will end on the 8th. I am hoping to get better pictures in the next couple of days. These past two days were travel days, to get us from Sacremento, CA to southern Utah and we have made!