Monday, April 28. Off-road day!

Leon noticed first thing in the morning that his side of the air mattress lost most of its air (each side is inflated independently. While he thought it was probably the air valve not properly sealed, he also thought it could be a pinhole leak. Either way, on a cold morning we put up everything quickly and headed south for a charge, then Valley of the Gods. During our charge in Bluff, we had breakfast and a nice visit in the Bears Ears National Monument visitors center. We got some basic info on the Valley of the Gods and assuaged our main concern that it was safe for our non-4-wheel drive vehicle. 

We turned into Valley of the Gods and immediately realized this would be a challenging drive. The gravel / rock road was full of potholes, large rocks, and steep inclines / declines which could easily bang off a bumper or bottom out if you didn't take just the right path. Leon handled the drive like a seasoned pro, only bottoming out slightly one time.

The monuments and walls on the drive were frequent and breathtaking. The 17-mile drive took about 80 minutes with just a few short stops for pictures. 

The Rooster on the right and Setting Hen Butte on the left.

I think that this is called Seven Sailors Butte

The Rooster Butte from another angle

Mexican Hat, for which the nearby town is named

We headed south from there towards Monument Valley. We stopped for pictures at Forrest Gump point (which was a really cool point even without the movie reference) and had a picnic lunch near the visitor's center. 

We drove the rest of the way in, paid our fee, and headed out for our drive. This drive was very similar to our last one. Gravel / rock road full of potholes and hazards. Again, Leon avoided all hazards and we made it through unscathed, but it was exhausting for a drive. The monuments here tended to be fewer but more dramatic and large. With a few stops for pictures this 17-mile drive also took around 80 minutes. This was one of the highlights for me - I've wanted to see Monument Valley in person for a long time.

That's the 2 Mittens behind us.

The Three Sisters

We originally planned to spend the night in a campground near Kayenta, but since we were ahead of our planned schedule, we decided to charge there, wash the car (it was caked with fine red dust), get a snack at Burger King, and head all the way to the Grand Canyon where we would camp for the night. We had dinner at the historic Cameron Trading Post, which was more than 100 years old. The setting was amazing, the food (ribs and fried chicken) was decent, but the service was poor. The staff was few and of poor quality. 

That said, it didn't dampen our day. We were headed to the Grand Canyon! We attempted a quick stop for a view of the Little Colorado on the way in, but it was already closed. We got a few quick peaks of the canyon before we headed to the campsite. 

We continued to see interesting formations on our drive to the Grand Canyon.

Darkness was setting in, so we moved quickly. We unpacked the car completely, drove to the shower, got $20 in quarters to pay, showered quickly (they were pretty ick), and then headed back to the campground to set up the car for bed. At altitude it cooled quickly and a warm day turned into a very cold evening. As soon as we got the car set up it was completely dark and we turned in.

The time zone areas here are weird, and while we thought we turned in around 9:15, it was really 8:15 (and dark). Despite the early hour, we were ready to go to sleep. For a day not hiking, it was still tiring due to the hard driving we had done through the 2 scenic valleys.