Earth, Wind, and No Fire: Memorial Day Weekend in Utah and Arizona
Jun 8th, 2012, 02:06 PM
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Earth, Wind, and No Fire: Memorial Day Weekend in Utah and Arizona
We had planned a three-day trip to Silver City, NM, over part of Memorial Day weekend, but the large forest fire in the Gila Wilderness made us reconsider. My inlaws live in Cedar City, UT, so we made a last-minute switch and decided to visit them instead. Mr. Pickle found he had more vacation days left for 2012 than he originally thought, so we extended our time away, scrambled about to get hotel reservations, and the trip was on!
We left Saturday morning. Our original thought was to head northwest through Farmington and over to Monument Valley. When I got out the road atlas, I realized we could drive to Gallup, through Window Rock, and go north through Chinle, visiting Canyon de Chelly on the way. None of us had ever been to either place, so it was the work of a moment to change our route.
Unfortunately, once we got to Ganado and started driving north, we ran into the worst sandstorm we've ever experienced. At times, we could barely see the hood of our car. There is nowhere along the highway to pull over and stop, so we had to keep going.
Conditions weren't any better in Chinle, so we gave up on seeing Canyon de Chelly on this trip.
The sandstorm lasted almost all the way to Kayenta, our stop for the first night. Occasionally we would see some large, probably attractive, sandstorm formation loom out of the sand on our right or left. It was sort of like viewing attractions through a reddish fog. We doubted that we would get to see Monument Valley that day.
The sand eased up somewhat by the time we got to Kayenta. We had a very nice room at the Wetherill Inn. http://www.wetherill-inn.com Frankly, when you're looking for a room for Saturday on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend, it's not easy to get one, but we were really pleased with this motel. Comfortable beds, an indoor pool, and a pretty decent extended continental breakfast are are included in the price.
Mr. Pickle had done most of the driving, so he was a little stressed after the sandstorm and decided a nap was necessary. By 4:00, the wind had died down and we decided to give Monument Valley a try.
I'm sure most of you are familiar with the scenery in Monument Valley thanks to countless Westerns - and Doctor Who.
We spent about an hour there taking pictures and enjoying the beauty.
Dinner was at the Amigo Cafe. PickleDude ordered their fry bread burger, Mr. Pickle had chicken fried steak, and I had a Navajo taco. Both PickleDude and I had plenty of leftovers to supplement breakfast the next morning - the taco completely occupied a large plate, and the burger was two patties set side by side in a huge piece of frybread. Tasty, tasty stuff!
More to follow....
Lee Ann
We left Saturday morning. Our original thought was to head northwest through Farmington and over to Monument Valley. When I got out the road atlas, I realized we could drive to Gallup, through Window Rock, and go north through Chinle, visiting Canyon de Chelly on the way. None of us had ever been to either place, so it was the work of a moment to change our route.
Unfortunately, once we got to Ganado and started driving north, we ran into the worst sandstorm we've ever experienced. At times, we could barely see the hood of our car. There is nowhere along the highway to pull over and stop, so we had to keep going.
Conditions weren't any better in Chinle, so we gave up on seeing Canyon de Chelly on this trip.
The sandstorm lasted almost all the way to Kayenta, our stop for the first night. Occasionally we would see some large, probably attractive, sandstorm formation loom out of the sand on our right or left. It was sort of like viewing attractions through a reddish fog. We doubted that we would get to see Monument Valley that day.
The sand eased up somewhat by the time we got to Kayenta. We had a very nice room at the Wetherill Inn. http://www.wetherill-inn.com Frankly, when you're looking for a room for Saturday on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend, it's not easy to get one, but we were really pleased with this motel. Comfortable beds, an indoor pool, and a pretty decent extended continental breakfast are are included in the price.
Mr. Pickle had done most of the driving, so he was a little stressed after the sandstorm and decided a nap was necessary. By 4:00, the wind had died down and we decided to give Monument Valley a try.
I'm sure most of you are familiar with the scenery in Monument Valley thanks to countless Westerns - and Doctor Who.
We spent about an hour there taking pictures and enjoying the beauty.Dinner was at the Amigo Cafe. PickleDude ordered their fry bread burger, Mr. Pickle had chicken fried steak, and I had a Navajo taco. Both PickleDude and I had plenty of leftovers to supplement breakfast the next morning - the taco completely occupied a large plate, and the burger was two patties set side by side in a huge piece of frybread. Tasty, tasty stuff!
More to follow....
Lee Ann
Jun 9th, 2012, 12:57 PM
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Sunday morning we battled a busload of French tourists for breakfast at the motel, stopped at McDonald's for coffee, and hit the road. The wind had stopped and we had a blessedly sand-free day.
We arrived at Zion's east entrance around 2:00 and managed to find a place to park at the Canyon Overlook Trail. We'd used Fodor's "one day in Zion" page in their National Parks of the West guidebook to plan our time there.
Tip: Don't visit Zion over Memorial Day weekend if you can help it, as it's very busy. Once we got on the trail, though, there weren't lots of people there. There is a fairly steep stairway at the start of the loop, but otherwise it's a fairly easy hike, and the view of Zion Canyon at the end is worth the effort.
After the hike, we managed to find a parking spot at the Zion Visitor Center, refilled our water bottles, and spent some time reading the displays. Most of the Visitor Center information is outside, which is a nice change from a lot of other national parks we've seen.
On our way to Cedar City, we stopped at Kolob Canyon, Zion's northmost bit. This part of the park was practically empty compared to the main section, and the scenery is pretty spectacular. PickleDude hadn't been all that impressed by what we'd seen so far, but this got his attention.
Lee Ann
We arrived at Zion's east entrance around 2:00 and managed to find a place to park at the Canyon Overlook Trail. We'd used Fodor's "one day in Zion" page in their National Parks of the West guidebook to plan our time there.
Tip: Don't visit Zion over Memorial Day weekend if you can help it, as it's very busy. Once we got on the trail, though, there weren't lots of people there. There is a fairly steep stairway at the start of the loop, but otherwise it's a fairly easy hike, and the view of Zion Canyon at the end is worth the effort.
After the hike, we managed to find a parking spot at the Zion Visitor Center, refilled our water bottles, and spent some time reading the displays. Most of the Visitor Center information is outside, which is a nice change from a lot of other national parks we've seen.
On our way to Cedar City, we stopped at Kolob Canyon, Zion's northmost bit. This part of the park was practically empty compared to the main section, and the scenery is pretty spectacular. PickleDude hadn't been all that impressed by what we'd seen so far, but this got his attention.
Lee Ann
Jun 9th, 2012, 02:17 PM
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Lee Ann, did you stop at Window Rock? It has a very nice park with information on the code talkers.
I totally understand about the sandstorm, once we hit one between Chinle and Kayenta. At the light in Kayenta you couldn't even see the street light in the center of town until you were at the stop line. We found a motel and it raged all night, the sand came in through the bathroom fan and everything in the bathroom was covered with red dust. You had to rinse the tub and use the bottom towels if you didn't want to be covered in dust. Kind of like a blizzard in the north.
Do get back to Canyon de Chelley it is very special.
I totally understand about the sandstorm, once we hit one between Chinle and Kayenta. At the light in Kayenta you couldn't even see the street light in the center of town until you were at the stop line. We found a motel and it raged all night, the sand came in through the bathroom fan and everything in the bathroom was covered with red dust. You had to rinse the tub and use the bottom towels if you didn't want to be covered in dust. Kind of like a blizzard in the north.
Do get back to Canyon de Chelley it is very special.
Jun 9th, 2012, 04:41 PM
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emalloy, no, we didn't stop. Since we live in New Mexico, we have heard quite a bit about the code talkers. There was a pretty good display about them at the Monument Valley visitor center.
Lee Ann
Lee Ann
Jun 9th, 2012, 04:51 PM
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LeeAnn,
Enjoying your trip report! Canyon Overlook is one of my favorite Zion hikes. I assume you have been there before? It sounds like you just drove thru Zion.
Yes, Mem Day weekend at Zion is a zoo. So is Thanksgiving!
Enjoying your trip report! Canyon Overlook is one of my favorite Zion hikes. I assume you have been there before? It sounds like you just drove thru Zion.
Yes, Mem Day weekend at Zion is a zoo. So is Thanksgiving!
Jun 11th, 2012, 02:45 PM
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Dayle, no, we hadn't been to Zion before. That first day was mostly driving through to get to my in-laws' house, with the stop at Canyon Overlook and the visitor center.
Back to the report!
Monday was a quiet day in Cedar City. Mr. Pickle's stepmother has some health issues, so we spent time doing yard work and helping around the house - mostly things Grandpa P hadn't had time to get to.
We packed up Tuesday and headed back to Zion for the day. We didn't have too much trouble finding a parking place since some of the Memorial Day crowds had left.
For those who don't know, summer visitors to Zion have to take a shuttle into the canyon unless they're staying at Zion Lodge or camping in the park. We decided to take the shuttle to its last stop, the Riverwalk/Narrows. Our shuttle driver gave us an informative commentary as we drove along.
The Riverwalk is a flat, easy loop bordering the Virgin River. It is very popular, but the trail never felt overcrowded, and it's a lovely walk as you travel into the canyon.
It was fairly hot - I wouldn't want to visit Zion any later in the summer! - and it felt good sticking my feet in the chilly river! We considered renting shoes, etc. to walk some of the Narrows, but PickleDude is recovering from a recurring sprained ankle and we didn't want to risk him injuring it again.
Our next stop was Weeping Rock. This was a hot, steep, walk in the sun; probably it would be better to tackle this one in the morning when the trail is shaded. But you get a nice, cool, damp stop at the end! We were all entertained by a yearling buck who was grazing next to the rock overhang.
Our last stop was the Emerald Pools Trail. After the other two walks, this one was a little underwhelming, but it's a pretty trail just the same.
We returned to the car and went into Springdale for a late lunch at the Zion Park Gift and Deli. Their sandwiches were tasty and reasonably priced, and we shared a double scoop of Russell's ice cream for dessert.
We made one last trip through Zion to reach Kanab, our evening's destination. We considered cancelling our reservation and heading to Page, but decided we were tired enough from all the walking that Kanab was a better choice. Our room at the Rodeway Inn was fine, except the air conditioner kept turning itself off automatically and then not coming on again.
We walked to the Spurs Grill for dinner. Even though we could see plenty of open tables inside, we were told there weren't any seats available and had to sit outside in what appeared to be their fenced-in parking lot. Fortunately, we found a table that had some trees between us and the setting sun.
Their salad bar is decent, and their main courses are well done, but the side dishes were not that great - soggy corn on the cob, instant mashed potatoes, etc.
We realized why the sides are mediocre and why the inside seats were empty when three buses filled with Asian tourists arrived. Obviously they must have to get a lot of food out on plates fairly quickly. We won't eat here again the next time we go through Kanab.
We spent Wednesday traveling home.
Lee Ann
Back to the report!
Monday was a quiet day in Cedar City. Mr. Pickle's stepmother has some health issues, so we spent time doing yard work and helping around the house - mostly things Grandpa P hadn't had time to get to.
We packed up Tuesday and headed back to Zion for the day. We didn't have too much trouble finding a parking place since some of the Memorial Day crowds had left.
For those who don't know, summer visitors to Zion have to take a shuttle into the canyon unless they're staying at Zion Lodge or camping in the park. We decided to take the shuttle to its last stop, the Riverwalk/Narrows. Our shuttle driver gave us an informative commentary as we drove along.
The Riverwalk is a flat, easy loop bordering the Virgin River. It is very popular, but the trail never felt overcrowded, and it's a lovely walk as you travel into the canyon.
It was fairly hot - I wouldn't want to visit Zion any later in the summer! - and it felt good sticking my feet in the chilly river! We considered renting shoes, etc. to walk some of the Narrows, but PickleDude is recovering from a recurring sprained ankle and we didn't want to risk him injuring it again.
Our next stop was Weeping Rock. This was a hot, steep, walk in the sun; probably it would be better to tackle this one in the morning when the trail is shaded. But you get a nice, cool, damp stop at the end! We were all entertained by a yearling buck who was grazing next to the rock overhang.
Our last stop was the Emerald Pools Trail. After the other two walks, this one was a little underwhelming, but it's a pretty trail just the same.
We returned to the car and went into Springdale for a late lunch at the Zion Park Gift and Deli. Their sandwiches were tasty and reasonably priced, and we shared a double scoop of Russell's ice cream for dessert.
We made one last trip through Zion to reach Kanab, our evening's destination. We considered cancelling our reservation and heading to Page, but decided we were tired enough from all the walking that Kanab was a better choice. Our room at the Rodeway Inn was fine, except the air conditioner kept turning itself off automatically and then not coming on again.
We walked to the Spurs Grill for dinner. Even though we could see plenty of open tables inside, we were told there weren't any seats available and had to sit outside in what appeared to be their fenced-in parking lot. Fortunately, we found a table that had some trees between us and the setting sun.
Their salad bar is decent, and their main courses are well done, but the side dishes were not that great - soggy corn on the cob, instant mashed potatoes, etc.
We realized why the sides are mediocre and why the inside seats were empty when three buses filled with Asian tourists arrived. Obviously they must have to get a lot of food out on plates fairly quickly. We won't eat here again the next time we go through Kanab.
We spent Wednesday traveling home.
Lee Ann
Jun 11th, 2012, 08:50 PM
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Thanks for a great report, Lee Ann!
Very, very glad for you that there was "no fire", but those sand and rain storms in the desert are truly awesome.
Hope you get to Canyon de Chelly one day and do some of the hikes. The one I remember the best was the one to the "White House", on the way up, we met and chatted with an elderly Navajo woman dressed in full Navajo dress. It's really a different world.
Thanks again for your lovely report!
Very, very glad for you that there was "no fire", but those sand and rain storms in the desert are truly awesome.
Hope you get to Canyon de Chelly one day and do some of the hikes. The one I remember the best was the one to the "White House", on the way up, we met and chatted with an elderly Navajo woman dressed in full Navajo dress. It's really a different world.
Thanks again for your lovely report!
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