Day 4 begins in the Quality Inn across from the Pagosa Springs Resort. We had a nice breakfast, including an omlette station and large tables so we schmoozed with a couple of sets of fellow travelers. We did not actually partake of the baths. A decade ago, getting Karen out of hot springs was an issue. This trip, she was content merely to be in the area.
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Rolling southern Colorado scenery. We did not go in to Chimney Rock National Monument off of US-160, seen here on the right.
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Did see lots of these strikingly blue birds. Not a bad shot for our relative speeds and the dirty window.
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Back in the 1990's I worked for a comapny called Alpine that was related to the lumber business. It is possible that the company I worked for did business with this one.
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An actual, working pay phone! That's how bad cell service is out here!
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Impressed by the nicely made local sign. Depressed by the juxtaposition with Family Dollar.
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Anotehr vanishing roadside attraction. Nostalgia.
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Seeing some color in Colorado.
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Is a fascination with tunnels just a guy thing?
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Playing with panorama mode at a scenic overlook.
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Mesa Verde National Park, recovering from previous decade wildfires.
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Just "Gasp." I got up there walking slowly. Good view, though.
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At the top of Mesa Verde National Park
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Karen walks down to another lookout point in Mesa Verde Nat'l Park
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I believe that is Shiprock, off in the distance.
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On family road trips in my youth, my mother would often have us stop by the side of a road so she could see a flower. Thinking of her.
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View from the top of Mesa Verde National Park
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Now I believe "Colorful Colorado"
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Our trusty ride on its first road trip. Loves the mountains, beats 45mpg up here.
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The light at the end of the tunnel
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It's a little less colorful as we leave the San Juan Mountains behind us.
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Leaving Cortez to cross the res, and end up in some little town called Page for the night. There seem to be many motels there, and surely there will be no problem finding a room. Famous last words.
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These may be the rocks they were warning us about, way back when.
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Tourist trap? But I don't see the log, rope, nor coyote.
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Things just feel different on the res.
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A minor detour onto freshly paved roads. Someone doesn't like the stop sign. And one wonders about data service out here.
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This turned out to be a wrong turn.
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This, also was a wrong turn. Yes, there was bickering. I am the fallable navigator in this case.
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Leaving the wrong turns behind, getting back on track.
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On the right track, and better rocks. Do cows count as wildlife?
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Stopped for gas on the reservation at the Red Mesa Trading Post
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As the sun got low in the west, straight ahead of us, we saw many school buses on the reservation.
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Pedestrians keep to the left
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Checking out the scenery in my bifocal sunglasses. It is becoming painful to look ahead.
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Interesting rocks
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Road signs near Shiprock
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Blowing Dust Area
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Glowing wires
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On impulse, we did a ten mile spur into Navajo National Monument
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Panorama at Navajo National Monument featuring Dan and Karen shadows.
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Red plants among less red rocks
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Visitor Center Closed at Navajo National Monument
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So we leave via the exhbit of how people used to live back when the steam age immigrants came through and took the land.
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As the sun get lower, we see this odd bridge over the road. It turns out to be...
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... a big conveyor belt from an elevator. Possibly coal? Grain?
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The sun was getting too painful to drive into. So I found a place to pull off till it set.
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Se we parked at a pull out to watch the fading light
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... and to admire the moon.
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Layered mountains as the red sun drops through the horizon
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The light became tolerable, and we moved on.
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As dusk fell, we approached the town of Page, NV. Once we were in cell distance, we found there was no room at any Inn. We called several, in increasing price order. Finally pulled into a Days Inn (Only $180/night, had they any vacancies) and finally found that the Lake Powell resort and Marina in Pahweap had a room. Gasp. Karen talked them down to under $300.
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Lake Powell Resort and Marina is the most expensive place we'd ever stayed. It mostly was just like the $70 rooms we'd had a couple of days ago.
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Some amenities were a bit different, like the look of the sink, the water "bottles", the pillow pile, or the trash can (with separated recycling).
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And the cube clock was set correctly, unlike pretty much every other clock we'd arrived to find. Yes, I would set the time on each.
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