Day 15: Headed to Monument Valley
After some trip planning last night, we randomly came across a critical fact: part of today’s planned route had a portion of steep, windy, unpaved roads with no guardrail and 1,000+ ft drop-offs. We were both so surprised thinking there was no way Google Maps would take us that way, but more research showed it was true so we had to pick a new, longer route.
Rob was thrown some extra challenges this morning after a poor night’s rest due to congestion. Air bubbles were coming out of the toilet when flushing (indicating a blocked black tank vent), and the compressor he tried to use to inflate the car tires was broken. Fortunately, he was able to fix both items before we headed out.
We filled up on gas, as the first sign on the road was “no services for 100 miles.” It was very remote, probably one of the most remote roads we have ever been on, and we saw just a handful of other cars. Oddly, nearly every car we did see was hauling a boat. Apparently Lake Powell was on our route, but the boats seemed so out of place surrounded by desert.
The scenery continued to be beautiful. Our first stop was for lunch in White Mesa, where we pulled over at a gas station to make some grilled cheese sandwiches.
We’d planned a couple stops during our drive today: a Monument Valley overlook and another called “Forrest Gump overlook”. The kids thought I was crazy, but did it anyway, when I asked them to run down the middle of the highway like the scene in Forrest Gump. Our family photo was a bit of a fail, but, hey, it’s all about making memories.
Once we arrived at Goulding’s Campground, we confirmed that the Navajo Nation still has all their parks closed (including Monument Valley), so we will be hanging out at the campground for these two nights. The boys were not bothered at all, since we quickly headed to the pool. We ended the night with hot dogs and s’mores. It felt ridiculous sitting around a fire in 97+ degree weather, but we’ll do it to get s’mores. It did make the chocolate and marshmallows extra soft. Cooper did have a little incident when testing his hot dog with the hot skewer stick so he now has a “firework” burn on his cheek, but it doesn’t seem to bad.
The boys headed back to build with Tinker Toys in their” play space” while Rob and I continued chatting around the silly fire. We couldn’t help but laugh.
The night ended with Rob and me playing cards outside, while the boys read and chatted inside before falling asleep. It was perfect.