Walnut Canyon National Monument

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Walnut Canyon National Monument in Flagstaff, Arizona

Drove up north and then east of Flagstaff for a visit to Walnut Canyon National Monument. The cliff dwellings were once inhabited by the Sinagua people, but that was about 1000 years ago. Today, they lay in ruin in the cliff walls. The nearby Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot National Monuments are also considered early Sinagua locations.

Caroline Wise and John Wise at Walnut Canyon National Monument in Flagstaff, Arizona

The Arizona Black Walnut tree makes a home here on the floor of the canyon about 350 feet below the rim above. In all, there are more than 380 species of plants in the canyon. Unfortunately, the trails here are on the rim and down to the ruins; as far as we can find, there are no trails that venture into the canyon adjacent to the dwellings for us to familiarize ourselves with the local flora.

Walnut Canyon National Monument in Flagstaff, Arizona

And then I learned why there are no other trails: it’s because there are other cliff dwellings nearby that are off-limits to tourist-type visitors, which makes sense as, even though the percentage is low, visitors tend to also travel with an element intent of destroying or leaving their mark on native treasures and artifacts.

Walnut Canyon National Monument in Flagstaff, Arizona

A microcosm of the Grand Canyon is on display here, with the rim made up of Kaibab Limestone; below that is the Toroweap Formation, and Coconino Sandstone is the bottom layer. If you know what to look for, all three layers are visible here.

Stoneman Lake in Coconino County, Arizona

Stoneman Lake in Coconino County is one of just a few natural lakes in Arizona, although it’s not a large lake in any sense of the word. This is how we spent our Sunday.

Native American Lands – Day 1

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Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, Arizona

Our lives should have stories; while this one is cheesier, it was ours. While many places along Route 66 are simply gone, there are a couple of stretches where images of an era gone by are clinging to life, such as in Seligman, Winslow, and here in Holbrook. Someday, this place too may join the fate of many of the other original Wigwam locations and be bulldozed, but we’ll know firsthand what it was like to sleep in a concrete Tee Pee on one of America’s most famous old highways.

Holbrook, Arizona

Fitting in with our nostalgic overnight we just had to stop in a cafe for breakfast, and a great breakfast it was.

Native American Lands

Heading into the lands of Native America.

Native American Lands

The landscape is beautiful, but it’s also obvious that it gets little rainfall. Along the way, we stopped at the Hubbell Trading Post listed as a National Historic Site.

Native American Lands

After this dust storm blew across the landscape, we were offered a bit of rain, but just a little.

Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado

Over in the southwest corner of Colorado, not far from the Four Corners region where Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico all share a common border spot is the Mesa Verde National Park. For almost 10,000 years, the native people of North America have inhabited this area. Today, there are over 4,300 archaeological sites in this park, though only a few are easily visited.

Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado

These cliff dwellings are probably the largest draw for visitors to Mesa Verde.

Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado

Our time here is too brief as it is in so many of our travels while we are out here trying to get oriented to the lands of America.

A Passing

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Lara, Dion Terry, Caroline Wise, and John Wise in Windowrock, Arizona

Maybe it’s a reflex to smile when the camera is pointing at you, but these are the most bewildering smiles as we are here in Window Rock, Arizona on the Navajo Reservation to lay Dion’s father, Wilson, to rest. This should be a solemn day, but on the other hand, we are here to celebrate that Wilson Terry was enjoying the company of friends and family near the time of passing.

Dion Terry with his niece Amanda and her sister (name forgotten)

After the church ceremony in St. Michaels, we had to pick up a couple of Dion’s nieces Amanda and Monica who were traveling with us to Wide Ruin, where Dion’s grandmother lived. Dion’s mom, Charity, was traveling with other family members. This was an honor that will never be forgotten.

Native Lands in AZ, NM, CO – Day 3

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Southwest Colorado

The beautiful San Juan mountains are just astonishing, and on a calm morning, seeing these colors reflected in still waters was a kind of eye candy that only out of the perfection of nature can such a scene be realized.

Southwest Colorado

Funny how just as quickly as we reach our ultimate destination, we are already heading back the other way, not that it won’t be loaded with detours such as this particular view along the Million Dollar Highway in southwest Colorado.

Southwest Colorado

Beaver dams are incredible works of engineering that blow my mind that a furry little 40-pound semi-aquatic mammal can construct a dam that holds back so much water and radically alters our landscape building new ecosystems along the way. It’s truly a shame that we hunted them nearly to extinction in Europe and carelessly took all we wanted here in America for fashion when beaver pelt hats were all the rage. I’m yet to see one of these elusive animals in the wild, but it’s not for lack of trying.

Southwest Colorado

As gorgeous as the landscape is, I can’t help but ponder how people of European descent got to claim these lush lands while the original Native American settlers of North America have been pushed to the most inhospitable lands the country has to offer. While I love the sights of the Navajo Nation and Hopi Reservations, they are very arid places that make everything about living there difficult.

Shiprock, New Mexico

We are back in New Mexico, passing through Shiprock, named after this inselberg or monadnock in the distance. A monadnock is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain. To the Navajo, it is known as Tsé Bitʼaʼí, meaning “rock with wings” or “winged rock,” and is a sacred site.

Navajo Reservation, Arizona

These landscapes carve out a place in our senses as deep as they stand out in our vision. Our good fortune of being able to place ourselves in such dramatically beautiful locations is a bit of luck that it seems many cannot appreciate. I can only say this due to how many times we are asked how we endure the monotony of the open road, as though sights like this don’t leave indelible impressions.

Native Lands in AZ, NM, CO – Day 1

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66 Motel in Holbrook, Arizona

I’m finally going to teach Caroline a lesson, as she’s been pestering me to stay at one of these old-timey Route 66 joints. I had warned her multiple times about the poor condition and run-down nature of these cheapo motels, but she persisted. Then last night, on our way down Interstate 40 in Holbrook, Arizona, I spotted a place that was super cheap at $19.95 a night, and I figured super bad. Matter of fact it was so bad the person at the desk let us have the room for our late check-in for only $16.95. My smug attitude was singing, “Well, this will teach her!” The thing is, I was the one taught the lesson when I realized that this place wasn’t half bad and that we were saving so much money was great too, in that it allowed Caroline to add to her souvenir budget, not that I’d be any more willing to stop at gift shops.

Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock, Arizona

Wow, I never thought I’d go to a Native American parade, but here I am on the Navajo Reservation by Window Rock for the annual Navajo Nation Fair. There are more pickup trucks here per capita than maybe anywhere else in America, including Texas. There is also an abundance of roadside food vendors cooking up mutton and offering roasted pine nuts.

Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock, Arizona

Small-town parades are the best. While the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day and Rose parades are ones of grandeur and spectacle, these parades out in the middle of our country are hometown affairs featuring local talent and simple pride.

Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock, Arizona

Yei Bi Chei (Yébîchai) dancers perform the “Night Chant” in the healing ceremony of the Diné. The word “Diné” translates to “The People” among those we call the Navajo.

Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock, Arizona

There is so much we do not understand, such as how to interpret the various motifs and symbolic elements that represent important aspects of the Diné and their culture. Cultural imperialism is a tragedy that shows no end; if the dominant culture cannot crush a people, it can simply push it to the margin ignoring its existence and thus removing it from our group consciousness.

Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock, Arizona

An incredible burst of color and spirit while the pow-wow drums keep time and the nation of the Navajo comes out to celebrate their heritage. How can this be shared with others who could help make events such as this part of the mainstream where people would travel the world to be here on such momentous days?

Arches to Canyonlands – Day 4

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Calf Canyon Bed & Breakfast in Bluff, Utah

We loved staying here with Duke and Sarah Hayduk, who own and operate the Calf Canyon Bed & Breakfast. Dinner last night was at the Cow Canyon Trading Post. We’ve been so impressed that we put this on a future itinerary to bring Caroline’s mom back to both of these locations.

Northern Arizona on the Hopi Reservation

Back in Arizona, I believe this is the Hopi Reservation though it could be the Navajo as the two are neighbors.

Northern Arizona on the Hopi Reservation

One of my all-time favorite photos as it captures the openness of this Native American land in the most beautiful way to my eyes. I believe this, too, was on Hopi Lands, but again it might just be the Navajo Nation.

Painted Desert in Northern Arizona

The area is called the Painted Desert. When I was about six or seven years old, my Uncle Woody and Aunt Ann drove across America with my Aunt Lillian and sister Shari as Woody and Ann were moving to Santa Barbara, California. I was in the big moving van with my uncle at the wheel, and my sister was with my two aunts in a Cadillac. This is one of the first big memories I kept from that trip. The other standout memory was the cheap motel with the sound of the freight train passing by as though it were coming through our front door.

Caroline Wise on the Mogollon Rim in Northern Arizona

We used to drive a giant gas hog of a vehicle. This is up on the Mogollon Rim on our way home to Phoenix, Arizona.

Arizona sunset

Another freakishly beautiful sunset over Arizona.