Today, we got up and had breakfast at the Airport restaurant before we headed for Chinle.

Our first stop was Flagstaff to check out the Lowell Observatory. The guys really enjoyed this pit stop. We ended up staying quite some time while we waited for a prescription(DH left important meds at home - geesh!).

After getting refueled at Sonic Burger, we drove to Chinle. We really had to watch the road as we drove through Navajo territory, as livestock are not really fenced well. I had to slow down for sheep grazing alongside the road at one point.

We stayed at the Best Western in Chinle. I had set up a tour with Tseyii Jeep Tours with Bobby back in February. A couple of weeks before the trip, I called to confirm. This is where the frustration began. His cell number was no longer in service and messages left at the other number were never returned. I called at least 4 more times, to no avail. I finally called the Best Western the morning we were to arrive and asked if they knew if he went out of business or not. They checked their books and told me he didn't have me down, but they would pencil me in. This was very upsetting, as I'd made the reservation well in advance. When we arrived, a couple of women were checking in before us and I overheard them discussing a tour booked with Bobby for the next morning. It was my understanding that we were to have the tour with Bobby, as I had requested him from the positive feedback I'd read about him here. I spoke to the front desk about this and they checked their books and told me they didn't even have me down at all - even though I was told I was being put in the books that morning!! Ugh! They called him directly, at that point, and I spoke with Bobby who assured me that he had me down and that another guide would take us (and that all of his guides are good). ANYWAY...we did meet Delbert for our tour the next morning and he did turn out to be great. The whole tour was wonderful and this turned out to be our favorite part of the whole trip. We learned a lot and felt that we were exploring a real gem of a place that is unspoiled by man.

That afternoon, we stopped by the store to load up on a few more snackables and got ready to head out toward our next destination. We encountered a man in the parking lot who knocked on our car window and seemed to be very needy. It appeared as though he was looking for a handout, but I shook my head no, as I wasn't going to open my window to a stranger in a strange place. He wouldn't leave, though, and got a little closer until his face was almost touching the window. I was afraid I'd run over his feet, he was so close. Nevertheless, I had to leave so I started the car and drove away very slowly. The poverty was obvious while driving through Chinle. It made me think about how lucky I am.

Next, we drive to Monument Valley...

We still need to be watchful of animals on the road as we drive to Monument Valley. At one point, we have to stop for a calf in the middle of the road. He gives us a look that says, "What's your point?" when we honk to make him move. Finally, we just drive around him.

As we approach Monument Valley, we are impressed with the many sandstone monoliths before us. We check into Gouldings and are thrilled with our rooms. When I reserved our accomodations back in February, the place was full. Luckily, somebody cancelled because I was able to snag 2 rooms at the last minute. This is the nicest place we stayed on this trip.

Unfortunately, we weren't as lucky with our tour reservation. Are you beginning to see a theme here? As with the last tour, this was scheduled well in advance and yet I couldn't reach anyone as the trip drew near. This time I'd booked with Simpson's Trailhandler Tours and specifically asked for Richard, as he'd been recommended here. I called one last time just about an hour before our scheduled tour and left a message saying that if my call wasn't returned in one hour, we would book with Gouldings instead. Well, no call...so we went with Gouldings. The tour was okay, but not that impressive really. I almost wished we'd saved our money and driven ourselves around - but the rented minivan probably wouldn't have handled the road that well, We didn't get much history from our guide, but maybe they're all like that. It is a natural wonder, afterall, and maybe the tours aren't meant to offer the history we'd received on our tour at CDC. We sort of had to do the tour since we'd driven all that way, but MV definitely wasn't as great for us. I checked out Simpson's on another site and saw that they were a no show for someone else, as well, so I would be cautious about relying on this company for your tour of Monument Valley. Tomorrow, we finally make it to the Grand Canyon.

We were in Monument Valley last month. We did the Gouldings tour as well. We were like you, the tour was OK, but nothing great. We had an expensive Balloo ride over MV, that the guy cancelled on us (not due to weather) the last minute. I too had made reservations 6 months ahead of time.

Hope you enjoy the GC!!!!!!! are you headed to north rim or south rim?

Look Forward to hearing about GC and Canyon De Chelly. I haven't been to CDC, but suspect that is somewhat like Mesa Verde.

Hi spiro - glad someone is reading this. Hopefully it will help someone.

We headed out the next morning for the Grand Canyon, but first stopped at the BK in town for coffee and a quick perusal of the code talker display. It turned out that I was the most interested person in my group. I really like history, so no surprise here! The guys take in the science and my friend, well....she likes the gift shops!

Along the way, we decided to stop to see the dinosaur footprints. We kind of laughed at ourselves as we pulled in, but thought it would be something to do for a quick break from driving. My friend stayed in the car because she thought it sounded so hoky. Anyway, we actually enjoyed this. The guys took a bunch of pictures and we gave the "guide" a couple of dollars for showing us around. Glad we stopped.

We stopped again in Cameron to check out the trading post because we hadn't already shopped enough! Just kidding, since we stopped at numerous places along this trip to shop for jewelry, etc. and eat Indian Fry Bread - yummy! We also sent a picture message of the Cameron Trading Post sign home to our son's phone to tell him he was famous (his name is Cameron). We found the prices to be fair for the horse hair pottery, which is what I'd been pricing at each place we stopped.

We stopped again and the Little Colorado River Overlook. I was surprised to have to pay, as I didn't have to when I'd visited here last. I still think it is worth the stop and the money, though.

Our first view of the Grand Canyon came at the Desert View. I'd seen if before, but the guys in the group really took it all in. It was fun to see their expressions. My friend, however, was not impressed. She has a great fear of heights and I wondered if it got the best of her. I found out later that she still thought she was viewing the Little Colorado and not the Grand Canyon at that point. We ate our lunch there and then drove a little further into the park. As we rounded a turn and the canyon presented a different view, she gasped and started getting very excited. We stopped at the next opportunity and she went right up to the rail to take it all in. I've never seen her so fearless. This trip was mostly designed around her, so I was thrilled to see her so excited about the Canyon.

We spent the rest of the afternoon stopping at various viewpoints and finally arrived at our Bright Angel Lodge cabin just before check in. We shopped a little more and read some of the history behind the Canyon while we waited for our rooms to be readied.

For some reason, I thought we were getting cabins closer to the rim. When I asked about this at the front desk, they told me you have to be very specific in the comments section of your reservation made online in order to get those cabins. When we saw how many people were clustered around those cabins, though, we decided we were glad to be back a little way so that we could have more quiet.

Once we'd checked in we grabbed a bite to eat and headed out for the sunset. It was quite a sight. On the way back to the cabin, we walked by the Bright Angel Trail to check out how steep it was. My friend decided that she had to go down some of it to say that she had hiked the canyon - so we all walked down a few hundred feet of it for her. We couldn't go far at all, since it was getting dark but it was enough for her to brag about. She was like a giddy child!

Tomorrow, we explore a little more of the Canyon before heading back to Sedona.

The next morning at the Grand Canyon, our friends woke up early for the sunrise. I'd seen it before and my husband wanted to sleep so we got a little later start.

After breakfast, we walked some of the rim trail heading west from our cabin. We caught up with a tour about fossils, but as the ranger wasn't explaining anything we didn't already know we took off on our own. A little further down the trail we discovered all of the fossils for ourselves. We spent some time looking around there and then walked further along the trail. We got some great views of the village and Phantom Ranch. We also got up close and personal with a cicada. These little buggers were really loud on a visit to Illinois and Wisconsin last summer. I didn't know they lived here, too. He was so loud, we thought the tree must be full of them...but it was just one little guy making all that noise.

After spending the morning and some of the afternoon exploring the Canyon, we headed back to Sedona. We went through Williams so we wouldn't repeat the drive from yesterday. It was really hot in Sedona - 103! We knew it was going to very warm so we didn't hurry back, stopping along the drive from Flagstaff to eat lunch. You might have noticed that I haven't spent much time discussing food, but that is because we didn't eat anywhere to write home about - except for Picazzo's. Since my friend has food allergies, we are a bit limited when it comes to food. Once we got back to Sedona we rested, read books, took in the scenery and enjoyed one last gluten-free pizza!
Heading home tomorrow - but first we must swing by for a quick visit to Jerome and Prescott...

On our last day of vacation, we decided to visit Jerome and Prescott on our way back to Phoenix since we had an evening departure. We stopped in at the museum in Jerome for some history and science behind the mining upon which this town was built. Then we stopped at a few shops for some last-minute shopping. I still had to pick something up for my mom for watching the kids while we were gone.

After a couple of hours in Jerome, we headed toward Prescott. I wanted to check out this town the last time I visited, but didn't have the time. I'd read some about it and wanted to see if it would ever fit us for retirement. I'm glad I did because, although my husband thought it was nice, it just wasn't for me. I'm sure the locals are glad to hear that because I've read about how some feel about Californians coming to their town to retire! They were having some kind of rodeo event so the downtown area was bustling. We drove around a bit, enjoyed a cool drink from Starbucks and then headed to Phoenix.

We did a lot on this trip in a short amount of time, but it was just right for us. If you like to keep moving on vacation, you might enjoy it, too!

So nice to read your report as I'm thinking about a trip to Canyon De Chelly in Oct. after the experience you had with booking your guide so far in advance, do you feel it's really necessary? Was it a private trip in the canyon or were there others in the group? and if you do recommend pre booking what would be the best way to do it?

Hi joeyi. Our tour was private, but there were 4 of us so they couldn't have fit anyone else in the jeep. I don't know that it was necessary to book ahead after the experience I had. The women who got the tour with the guide I originally wanted made the reservation with him that day for a tour the next morning. I hate to take a chance, though, so I'd still probably try to book ahead. October may not be as busy, though. You might want to research the weather to make sure it is okay in October. It probably is, but the jeep takes you into the canyon and it is full of deep sand because it is basically a wash in the rainy season. I don't know if monsoon weather might be a factor when you are going. Anyway, you just might want to check on it. You will love the history of Canyon de Chelly! Try some of the Indian Fry Bread at the White House ruins. It's yummy and is a great snack as you listen to the flute playing and try to imagine the people who lived here so many years ago.

thanks for your reply. it would be early Oct so the weather should still be good, and with school being in session i'm hoping not busy time of year.

Did you stay 1 night or 2 in Chinle? i'm thinking 2 nights so we could have a full day in the canyon. and i have heard that the town is rather depressing so i am prepared for that.

we live in San Diego so this would be a road trip for us with friends and family to visit in tucson, one way and phoenix the other way. Have already been to Grand Canyon and Sedona, Jerome and Prescott but not Monument Valley, so may try to fit that in too.

anything else you may like to add would be appreciated. i sometimes over plan my trips and this one i'm sort of going with a wait and see attitude. i hope that i do not regret that.

Hi joeyi. Sorry it took so long for me to get back to you, but I've been camping and just got back to civilization. We only stayed one night in Chinle before we visited Canyon de Chelly. I don't think you need to stay a second night just to see what is there, but that really depends on where you will be headed the next day. If you go to Monument Valley it isn't that long of a drive, but if your destination is far from there you may need an extra night to rest and get an early start the next morning. October sounds like a wonderful time to go. I used to have that month off at work and it was my favorite time to travel. Now I'm back to a more traditional school schedule and have to travel mainly in the summer. All of my traveling group teaches so that's when we take trips together. Have a wonderful adventure in Arizona!

When you went from Jerome to Prescott, did you drive over Mingus Mountain?

Yep - it kind of reminded me of the "I think I can" train.

thanks holly for getting back to me. glad you had some time out camping in the wilderness.

Holly:
Regarding your experience in Chinle with the guide, hotel, etc. You have to realize that when you are in the Navajo nation, you are dealing with a completely different culture. Their ideas about what is important are really different from what you might consider normal. Please be sensitive to their history and way of life. Do a little research about the Navajo before you go. You will come away with a deeper appreciation of who they are and where they come from.
Thanks

I'm confused about your message dncee11. I'm sure it is well intended but it seems a little condescending and almost to insult the Dine' and their culture.

Regardless, outing a tour company, that ignores reservations is highly appropriate on this forum.

It looks like you took a trip that I want. Do you have suggestions for me?I've never been to Arizona before and want to visit for 6 to 7 days the last week in March.I'm flying in from New York and want to see a friend in Phoenix and I want to see the Frank Lloyd Wright buildings.
I like to drive thru the deserts but 4 to 5 hours a day is plenty. I don't like resorts, malls, crowds, golf or new age spas but I also don't want to stay in motels that don't feel clean or safe. I wanted to get to Monument Valley and Canyon de Chelly. Suggestions?