Monument Valley

 September 2021 Road trip with Minal

Day 3:

Part A :  Monument Valley:

When I woke up Sunday it was about 4 am. It was still dark outside. I took a quick shower. Then pulled out the binoculars to get more of the night sky from the room balcony. There was Uranus on the eastern horizon just below the Big Bear constellation. The air seemed more cleared overnight thereby allowing a much better starry view. A few minutes later I could see a thin crescent moon rising over the eastern sky just behind the monuments. Everyone was still asleep in the room. I slipped out quietly.

From the hotel lobby there was an access to the viewing deck outside. I was the only person there at that hour. The silhouettes of the monuments were indistinctly visible against the dark sky. The crescent moon was hanging over the mountains in the background. Uranus looked blue and was the most shiny object in the sky at that time. I could see occasional beams from the headlights of cars moving on the road in the foregrounds of the Monuments.These were moments to simply feel and absorb. 

Slowly the eastern sky was beginning to show the arrival of the day. Monument silhouettes were becoming gradually sharper. The road in front of them was getting more visible slowly. The stars were fading away and Uranus was getting dimmer every minute.The crescent was rising slowly over the Monuments.

As it got closer to sunrise a few more hotel guests arrived on the deck. We helped take each other’s pictures. 

I have always been fascinated with sunrise. It brings a childlike wonder to my mind every single time. Even when I drive to work sometimes I take a turnout to watch a sunrise before proceeding to the office. The sunrise over the Monuments was a thousand times more magical .I do not have adequate words to describe!  It needs to be experienced to understand what I’m talking about. 

The sun slowly peeped from behind the mountains and made me forget about the beautiful moon I was reveling in earlier. As it kept rising,its million rays lit up the Monument Valley into a magical place. The entire panorama was astounding and magnificent beyond words.

Minal was out,in the mean time, for a hike around the Monuments and heading back. The guys had showered and were ready.The hotel booking included breakfast but we left in a hurry without it, to be picked up for our guided tour on time.

Monument Valley allows private cars but not to the end of the road. Also they stagger the cars to permit only a certain number at any time inside the valley. So there can be a wait of a couple of hours if you are in your own car on a busy day. 

Our tour operator met us outside the hotel. The first thing I noticed was he was wearing a printed mask very similar to my ajrakh mask. He was kind enough to pose with me for a photo when I requested and was amused to see the similarities in our masks. We completed our payment to him and got into an open truck with our driver Joe who mostly spoke Navajo language, very little English.

We drove on the rather rough sandy road which had occasional slush and  puddles from the recent rain. Other areas looked parched. The sand was red. The ride was bumpy but fortunately weather cooperated with a light breeze and not too hot temperatures. Also, surprisingly, not much crowds despite the long weekend ( Labor Day). 

The valley is located 5500 feet above sea level off US Highway 163. It comprises of a cluster of tall sandstone buttes that rise to a height of 400 feet to 1000 feet, and spread across 30,000 acres. The road is a 17 miles loop. These buttes were formed millions of years back from natural forces of water and wind.

From the Visitor Center or our hotel deck one could see the Mitten Buttes and Merrick Butte. Besides these main monuments, during our tour we saw the Three Sisters, the Elephant, the Camel and the Chieftain. At the end of the drive that limits private cars is a Navajo village where there are huts inhabited by Navajo Indians. The women spend time with their crafts. They shear wool from their sheep, make yarn and weave blankets and carpets. Men tend to horses, make traditional tools. A local artisan gave us a demonstration of weaving with wool yarn. I showed the Navajo lady the motifs on my saree that were nearly identical to those on her work and she was truly surprised. She pointed out to the head saying human imagination spontaneously works in similar ways across the globe and beyond cultural differences without a need to copy. 

Our tour driver/ guide took us beyond that point to Mystery Valley. He showed us some hidden arches and petroglyphs. Under one arch he sang a Navajo song for us. 

Just as we were returning from the Mystery Valley we saw another tour group standing by the road side. Their truck was stuck in the muddy slush while making way for another truck. The more the driver had tried to get out , more it got stuck deeper and deeper.

Our driver got a rope from the nearby Navajo village and with help from the people in the tour tied one end to the back of our truck and other end to the back of the truck that was stuck and yay ! He successfully pulled it out and got them back on their way. We were back on our return trip too. Midway he stopped and turned to us to say his owner shouldn’t know about this because he wasn’t permitted to pull another truck. We assured him our mouths would be sealed when we meet the owner( the man with the matching mask as mine ). 

Once done with the Monument Valley tour we warmed our homemade food in our room, had our lunch and checked out of the hotel. Next destination was Moab,Utah.