June 21, 2010 - First day back home

We all survived our trip, however our blog did not. When we arrived in Albuquerque (the first time), our campsite's wi-fi was down. At Mesa Verde, the wi-fi, which was usually very slow, was even slower due to bad weather. Monument Valley campsite didn't even have flushing toilets, so wi-fi was out of the question. The Grand Canyon charged too much, and by that time we all just gave up! I will make an attempt this week to update each day's activities, and invite the other participants to also add to the posts.

Overall the Wild Southwest Tour was a success. We learned a lot, walked a lot, drove a lot, ate a lot and laughed a lot. We met new people and tasted new foods. We ate at 5-star restaurants and we ate a lot of sandwiches at rest stops. We traveled by seven different modes of transport: private vehicle, walking, boat, tramway, shuttle bus, train, and Segway. We went from nearly sea level to almost 8,000 feet in elevation. Some days it was hot and sunny and one day it was cold and hailing. We saw famous artwork from all over the world and we sat on the rim of the Grand Canyon and created our own. Between us we took a couple thousand photos and a couple hours of video (looking forward to the DVD!).

Day 12: Grand Canyon National Park - the South Rim

We met our guide from the Grand Canyon Learning Institute at 8:30 this morning. Elaine is a long time fan of the Grand Canyon, finally making the switch from accountant to trail guide some years ago. Because she is employed by the GCLI and does private hire guiding, she lives outside the Park. However it's a rule that if you work for the Park Service or Xanterra (who are contracted to run the shops, hotels and restaurants) you have to live at the Park.

Our first stop was Kolb Studio, which is perched right on the edge of the Canyon. The Kolb brothers took photos of visitors, made movies of their exploits in the Canyon and collected the toll for using the Bright Angel Trail. Emory and Ellsworth Kolb would take photos of the visitors as they went down the Bright Angel Trail (think in terms of the modern roller coaster photos taken by the amusement parks), and have the photos developed and ready for sale by the time the visitors were back up from the bottom. Because of our private guide, we were able to fully tour the living quarters of the house which has been beautifully restored a la early 20th century.

We continued along the Rim Trail all the way to Grandview Point, eating lunch outside the El Tovar Lodge. Along the way we learned about different types of stone in the Grand Canyon, Fred Harvey and the Harvey Girls, Verkamps, the Havasupai and Mary Jane Coulter. The free shuttle bus took us back to the Bright Angel Lodge and Hopi House, where we saw a demonstration of Hopi music and dancing. A group of young people from the Hopi Nation performed the Eagle Dance, Basket Dance, Butterfly Dance and Hoop Dance, as well as Native American sign language. After a great photo op, we walked back to Maswick Lodge via the Mule Barn, the railroad, the old Power Station and one of the Park's Community Centers. Although it would have been great to spend more time with Elaine, but we had to go back and get ready for supper at El Tovar.

You know you're in a fancy restaurant when the first thing they show you is the dessert selection! Our reservation was for 8:00 pm, but we weren't seated until nearly 8:30. Having seen the dessert table, we were all very conscious to save room and we ordered lightly. Most of us ordered a lemony pasta with vegetables and shrip, Charles had Mahi-Mahi and Bethany couldn't resist another steak. Waiting for dessert to be delivered, Ashley fell asleep, so I had to poke her in the arm (with hindsight, I should have let her sleep so we could have stolen her dessert). Again we were fairly unified in ordering dessert, with most having flourless chocolate cake with walnut crust, but I had a butterscotch chantilly tart and Anna had lemon creme brulee. No wonder we slept well! It was too close to midnight when we got back to Maswick Lodge, and we were to meet Elaine the next morning at 7:00 am to hike down into the Canyon.

Day 11: Monument Valley to Grand Canyon National Park

Today was the big day. We drove into the Grand Canyon National Park from the northeast, following the canyon created by the Little Colorado River. Not only were we nearing our primary destination, but we were buoyed by the prospect of being back in beds after seven nights in sleeping bags.

Our first stop was at the Watch Tower, built by Mary Jane Coulter, the architect of many buildings, hotels and follys in the National Park. It was not, as we expected, under construction, however it was surrounded by scaffolding so the builders could inspect the structure in preparation for future construction! At first the views seemed unreal, like a giant backdrop where we could stand and have silly photos taken. The first time we all sat down on a wall at the base of the Watch Tower and looked out into the Grand Canyon, it was silent. No "ooh"s, no "ahh"s. Just quiet contemplation.

Next stop - Maswich Lodge, our home for the next three nights. Less than 5 minutes walk from the Canyon Rim, the rooms were comfortable. The beds, especially so. The private shower was nice, too. Following a short rest, we walked up along the Rim to find dinner at the Arizona Room. I can highly reccommend the Pulled Pork Quesadilla (appetizer) and any one of their steaks. I heard that the loaded mashed potatoes were also fantastic. After dinner, a further walk took us to the Mather Ampitheater to see Ranger Pat talk about Rock Art, petroglyphs and pictographs. The night was clear and we could see so many stars!

Day 10: Mesa Verde to Monument Valley, Arizona

By Mesa Verde, breaking camp was finally a well-rehearsed routine, just in time for our final night under canvas. Although we were not in a rush, we were keen to get to Monument Valley to see the famous scenery. Along the way, we took a 10-mile detour to visit Four Corners...which is under construction. Thanks to President Obama's Stimulus Bill, lots of national parks and monuments were under at least partial construction.

Anyways, Four Corners is the only place in America where four states meet at one point. It used to be a signpost in the ground, and they're building a new fancy concrete thing. And it's all the in wrong place, if you believe the crazy people at the US Geological Survey. So, instead of being able to stand in all four states at once, we walked a couple hundred feet outside the chainlink fence around the "official" four corners site, and we visited all four states of Arizona New Mexico, Utah and Colorado. It was also a surprisingly good place for shopping for Native American jewelery and crafts. We girls all picked out a bracelet with a Four Corners bead, and Charles got a t-shirt.

The drive through Utah's most southeasterly corner, and then into Arizona, was spectacular. Lots of photos were taken from inside the van, because the scenery was just too beautiful. A little rain welcomed us to the Valley, which seems unfriendly, but it brought with it a rainbow and some amazing colors in the clouds as the Sun set. Warning to anyone who would like to visit: the Monument Valley Navajo Park campground is VERY basic (1/4 mile walk to the nearest porta-potty and no running water). Of course, we skipped hot chocolate before bedtime to avoid excess trips overnight. But in my opinion, the views were worth it.

Day 9: Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

junToday did not start well. It was raining off and on through the night, and this morning it changed to hail - pea-sized at the largest, but hail nonetheless. Plus it continued to rain off and on for the first half of the day. Ashley had a little altitude sickness, and Anna and Katelyn felt it a little, too. It meant we had a slow start to the day and didn't get up to the Visitors' Center until about 1:30 pm. The weather improved after that and we were able to take a Ranger-guided tour to the cliff dwellings.

As we have come to expect, the Rangers give very good tours and lectures, and on top of all that, Ranger Jose was a "friggin' genious", and a really funny guy! Because a lot of the cliff dwellings had already been restored before the National Park System made the decision to leave these things alone, we were able to walk around and upon some of the ruins. It was very interesting to think about why and how the Ancient Puebloans decided to live in buildings built into the mouth of a cave. We ate lunch late, at a picnic site further into the park, while we started our Junior Ranger booklets.

Day 8: Albuquerque to Santa Fe to Mesa Verde

Another morning packing up our camp into the van. After a short drive to Santa Fe, we walked around Old Town and found a great restaurant for lunch, The Shed. It's tucked back into a little plaza and has lots of very short doors and uneven floors and mismatched tables and chairs. Charming in its disarray.

Our appointment at the Georgia O'Keefe museum was not diappointing. O'Keefe's abstract art was on display, with some of the paintings never being on public display before. Our docent led us through 60 years of art, starting with early experimentation through classic O'Keefe style to later efforts to just keep painting, despite blindness and arthritis. We then went across the road to the Museum's learning center and spent 45 minutes capturing our feelings with paper and chalk pastels.

After a little more shopping (doing our best to boost the American economy) we loaded into the van to drive to Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado. As we got to Durango, it was clouding over and getting cooler. We went up over 2000 feet in elevation getting to our campsite and as we put our tents up in the first few moments of darkness it was getting cold and a little rainy. So we all crawled into our sleeping bags to get warm and sleep.

Day 7: Albuquerque, New Mexico

Last night on our way to the Sandia Tram, we spotted a billboard for an impressionist art exhibit at the Albuquerque Museum of Art & History. We made a spot decision to skip Petroglyph State Park and go to the Museum. We spent the morning looking at 55 original paintings by Monet, Manet, Cezanne, Turner, Van Gogh, Renior, and a host of other artists. Althought not strictly associated with the Southwest, it was a great opportunity to see an exquisite private collection on display.

Then our group traveled a couple miles outside of Old Town to the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center. When I lived in Albuquerque 20 years ago, they had just received funds to build the new Center, so I was excited to see it. We saw exhibits about Native Southwest pottery, Spanish mission art, and a modern exhibit paying tribute to the different Pueblo tribes. We also ate a fabulous lunch that included fresh guacamole, Indian fry bread and lots of carne adovado (spicy marinaded pork).

The rest of the afternoon was filled with shopping, followed by ice cream and a ghost tour of Old Town. It was good value for money, lasting 2.5 hours, instead of 1.5 hours, and none of us was carried away, assaulted or even approached by spectres. The tour included a lot about the history of Albuquerque and the Old Town Area, too, and an excellent Black Widow spider up in the corner of a doorway.

Day 6: Carlsbad to Albuquerque

This morning we had our first try at breaking camp and completely repacking the van. It took longer than expected, but went fairly smoothly. We turned north out of the campground, and our first stop was Roswell and the International UFO Research Center and Museum. Cheesy and touristy, but fun. The souvenirs were especially amusing. Afterward we went to the world's only UFO-themed McDonalds and ate ice cream cones next to Ronald McDonald in a space suit.

We then found our way to Albuquerque and our KOA campsite just off old Route 66. Putting tents up in daylight and without a storm brewing, proved less stressful. As the sun was beginning to descend, we went upward on the world's longest tramway to the top of Sandia Peak. We saw a magnificent sun set and watched as Albuquerque's night lights came on. Our plan was to go to Garduno's Mexican restaurant, but the nearest branch was permanently closed and by the time we got to another branch it was closed for the night. Eventually we found a 24-hour Mexican restaurant called Federico's. It was good food, fast, filling and inexpensive. We finally got back to our tents about midnight.

Day 4: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to Carlsbad, New Mexico

Heather: What a long, terribly long, excruciatingly long day. It took 13 hours to drive 550 miles, when you include stops for bathroom, gasoline, eating, photographing and shopping. We met some nice people today - two ladies at a welcome center just in Oklahoma, and the Mayor of Cookietown, Oklahoma. We're Girl Scouts, so we just couldn't resist a stop in Cookietown!! But like so many small towns, as soon as the interstate was built, Cookietown disintegrated. Now it has just has a Mayor - who is also Police Chief, Fire Marshall and City Administrator. As we entered Texas, the roads became straighter and seemingly flatter, a gradual increase in 3000 feet of altitude. The vegetation changed from cotton and peanut plants, to prairie covered in mesquite bushes, and finally to prickly pears, chollo and yuccas. Lunch was at the world's first Prairie Dog Town in Lubbock, Texas, and we raced against thunderstorms all late afternoon. We finally found our campsite and managed to put tents up before it got too, too dark (some flashlight was required for putting in the last few tent pegs). Standing still is definitely underrated!

Janelle: I am definitely not in Kentucky anymore. Kentucky is all green in the summertime, and although New Mexico is much greener than I had pictured it, it's certainly not the Emerald City. The ground is all gravel and red dirt, speckled with cacti and scrubby brush and plants that look like extraterrestrial life forms. The landscape alternates between plains and mountains, and on the prairies I can see all the way to the edge of the world. In the towns all the buildings are adobe or brick, so that they match the desert around them. Even places like Target or Walgreens, which I'm used to seeing in colors like white or blue, are orange and brown here. We have to watch out for such creatures as scorpions and rattlesnakes--and ticks, because it turns out they can carry bubonic plague here. This desert is beautiful, but it all seems so alien to me, like something from another planet. In many ways New Mexico feels more like a foreign country than England ever did.

Day 5 - Carlsbad Caverns

Last night I learned a lesson about practicing what you preach. I accidentally left some Hersey kisses in my day pack, and when I used my day pack for a pillow I found out why you should never take sweets into your tent. Little fire ants found the chocolate and were kind of mad at me for interrupting their feast. They were all over me and the sleeping bag, biting me and eventually Charles. Charles woke up as I was trying to brush them off my arms and legs, and all Anna heard Charles say, "Heather, you can't kill them all," so she decided to stay quiet and pretend to be asleep. Charles and I slept in the van.

I had been to Carlsbad Caverns before, when I was about 5 years old and we were living in Lubbock, TX. The cave formations were impressive, but the bats really stole the show. It had been unpleasant weather the night before, so few bats flew out. That made our show even more impressive. Thousands and thousands of bats flew out of their cave and swirled around the cave entrance a few times, before flying off to find water. We watched for 45 silent minutes, and only left because we couldn't see any more, but the bats were still coming out.

Day 3: Oklahoma City

Heather: After visiting St Joseph's Old Cathedral for Mass this morning, we ventured across the street to the Oklahoma City National Monument. The only more moving monument to loss of American life that I know is Arlington Cemetery. The entire site holds grief and symbolism and gratitude that all equal hope and rebuilding and courage. I hate to say I have a favorite part, but I really connected with the Survivor Tree, an American Elm that stood outside the Murrah Building. Despite being severely damaged in the blast, the tree survived. As a matter of fact, the Survivor Tree is twice a survivor, because it was originally planted in the back yard of a private home in the 1920s, that was torn down in order for the Federal Building to be built on the site. The tree survived. The worst part was seeing the children who were killed in the onsite day care, and the interviews with their parents who hoped their babies had survived when I already knew that they had not. The Oklahoma City National Momument was far more moving than I expected it to be, and more inspiring.

Janelle: I have never before encountered a museum that literally moved me to tears. When I entered the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum it was like stepping back in time--like 9:02 am on April 19, 1995, had been permanently frozen between two enchanted gates, and I was actually there, experiencing it, as a terrorist's bomb blew up in front of the Murrah Building and killed 168 people. It's hard to describe the museum without going on for pages and pages about it; it's really something you need to experience for yourself. But I can say that it truly is a testament to the goodness and resilience of the human spirit--and, unfortunately, to its potential evil as well. To think that someone would actually load up a truck with explosives and park it intentionally in front of a building full of innocent people--and children...
In the Gallery of Honor I found a little girl named Jaci Coyne who died in the explosion on that day. She was born on February 9, 1994--just one day before I was born. She would be the same age as me now, sixteen years old, if she had lived...

Day 2: West Memphis, Arkansas, to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Heather: We made real good time, driving to Oklahoma City. We spent 454 miles just on I-40 West today. That's over nine hours, when you have to make 2 bathroom breaks and a lunch break. It sure felt nice to arrive at our fabulous hotel suites and get ourselves into the hotel pool. The supper I pre-prepared at home was extra good, and then we gathered around the laptop to watch a chick flick. We were going down to the pool again this evening, but everyone was too tired, so it will be showers and bed for all of us.

Janelle: So much driving in only two days. We've been on the road almost nonstop since 5:15 the other day--and I am proud to say that I have not once asked for a bathroom break (though I did take advantage of it every time someone else did). The Super 8 we stayed at last night was incidentally not all that super, but for one night it was adequate--and in any case it was preferable to sleeping in the van. (I must say that the van is quite spacious, though--probably the biggest vehicle I've ever ridden in, excepting buses and airplanes.) Our hotel here in Oklahoma City is much nicer. Funny, then, that my inner hillbilly would choose to manifest itself HERE--I've been walking around barefoot more than my mother would ever allow, and if it's possible I think my accent may have gotten thicker...We'll see if I do anything truly embarassing at mass tomorrow morning.

Day 1: Sturgis, Kentucky to West Memphis, Arkansas

Heather: So far I have forgotten two things. First, I didn't pack our hiking poles, which is not a really big deal. Maybe I'll "borrow" from someone else. Second, I forgot to tell the Girl Scout parents the address for this blog. I guess I was too excited to get going!