That was a short night; it seemed that no sooner had I gone to bed than Leslie was turning on the lights in the room at the View Hotel. At first I wanted to rebel; but sunrises over Monument Valley are the reason for booking a room there so I did drag myself out of bed. After a quick shower and getting dressed in some warmer clothes (in the 40's) we went out on the balcony and watched as the sky got lighter and lighter, with colors from the rainbow shimmering around the outlines of West and East Mittens and Merrick Butte. It was cold but well worth the early hour and shivering on the balcony. Note: Room 230 at the View has an outstanding view; the balcony is extra long and extends out from under the 3rd floor giving you 270 degree views of the surroundings. And with nothing above you there is a clear view of the sky and the stars.
We stayed outside watching, taking pictures, and videoing until the sun came out from behind the East Mitten (the right one from the View). Once the sun was out the sky hazed up and the colors all went away, except for the red of the rocks and cliffs. That signaled to us that it was time for breakfast; the breakfast buffet at the hotel was very good; they got their spices just right. We then got packed, checked out, and waited in the lobby for Miesha from Navajo Spirit Tours to show up. Larsen showed up first and chatted with us while we waited and then helped us get loaded up in the truck. It was a brown pickup with benches welded in the back and open to the sides. A nice way to view the valley. Down the road from the hotel, with stops at a couple of vantage points until we were climbing the hill up to John Ford Point. Hmm, that smells like radiator fluid.
We had a extra long stop at the Point while a replacement vehicle could be arranged; that gave us the opportunity to talk more with Miesha and take pictures of the kids on the horse. Once the new vehicle had arrived we found another guide with a better truck and switched and then it was back on the tour. We went out past Thunderbird Mesa, saw the petroglyphs and pottery shards way out around the back, saw the Eye, the Ear, and the Hogan, the Totem Pole, heard Miesha play the flute and sing at the Hogan (wow), saw Navajo families having picnics in their park, saw tourists driving around the allowed roads and finally, after about 4 and 1/2 hours ended up back at the Hotel/Trading Post.
Both Devyn and I got sunburned; I cannot forget to put lotion on my legs! We ate a good lunch around 1600 at Gouldings and Leslie got to do some Native American jewelry shopping at the Navajo Market at the junction. Since it had gotten so late we decided to forgo out side trip to 4 corners and headed straight to Blanding; we didn't get in until 1900 anyway. After some burgers and fries at the Patio Drive-In we retired to the room where the kids got some baths (if you roll in the red-dirt at the Monument, what do you expect?) and we got ready for our last day - the drive home via Natural Bridges and Hanksville. ZZZZzzzzzzzz.
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