The New Wave

When we first arrived at Page visitor information centre we asked about the possibility of getting permits to hike to "The Wave".  The Wave is a stunning rock formation, that looks amazing in photographs, but only a limited number of people can visit each day.  10 permits per day are awarded via lottery 6 months in advance, and 10 permits are issued the day before.  Everyone who turns up the day before is entered into a draw for the next day.  

The lady at the visitor centre said that currently 100 people per day are turning up for the draw, and most people spend about a week at Kanab hoping to get in.  This didn't seem to be an efficient use of our time (that and 3 people died last year doing the hike).

The lady then told us about a very short hike, just near our campsite, that her friend had found, and that they had nicknamed "The New Wave".

It would have been crazy not to try this, so after our interloping, Anteloping tour we head off on this adventure.

The trail is not marked, and there was absolutely no-one else there.  We follow our noses and get to a very photogenic spot.  It may not have been exactly the right place, but the photo to effort ratio was excellent, and we didn't die!

At one point a rainbow appears, which is pretty hard to see in my photo, but looked great on the day.  Perhaps if I had had a $52,000 dollar camera it would have been a little clearer!

Today was a fabulous day, and although as a rule we avoid unhealthy confectionery and snacks, we decided that today was special and had two Magnums to celebrate!

and then we celebrate a little bit more!

Lake Powell Flora and fauna

Antelope Canyon or bust

Now that we are at Lake Powell, we have seen a number of pictures of Antelope Canyon and have decided that we absolutely must go on the tour.  Of course it's very popular and all fully booked.  There are however, some professional photography tours that go through the canyon, at the time when the lighting is optimal.  This seems like the tour for us!  We find one with a couple of spaces, but you must be a serious photographer and have a tripod.  

We have a problem, Stuart didn't bring his tripod on holiday and only has his monopod.  We figure we may have a solution, a quick trip to Walmart, and yes they do have cheap and cheerful tripods for sale!  

We book on the trip and hope that one cheap tripod and one serious monopod will allow us in!  Although I love my camera, in all it's Super Vivid glory, I decide to keep it hidden until we are at the point where they can't throw us off the tour.

This is just as well, since Stuart asks one of the other members of the group how much his camera cost and he says $52,000!!  More than 100 x the cost of my camera.  Ah, but does it do Super Vivid?

Anyway, we are in, and although the brochures claim there is peace, spirituality and tranquility in the canyons, they can't have factored in competing photography tours.  It's dog eat dog when it comes to getting the best photos. 

Here are my efforts.

Woof!

Dino Delight

After Monument Valley we decide we need to do so something a bit different to Canyons.  (Although, we have absolutely loved the canyons, it's time for a change).  Looking at the map Lake Powell beckons. 

 So on Wednesday morning it's time for another very early pre-breakfast departure so that we can ensure we can get a camp site when we get to the town of Page.  (Another unplanned, unbooked destination, I must be getting relaxed or something).

We decide to find a picturesque spot for breakfast en route.  It's time to give Gladys a little challenge.  I scroll through the Landmark, Points of Interest section of Gladys' menu and find that Tsegi Point Overlook is just a couple of miles off the main route for the day.  We duly follow Gladys instructions to find ourselves in a one horse town, with absolutely no views whatsoever.  In fact here is the horse.

Gladys is retired for the rest of the day and we make our own way to the town of Page.

We stop at Visitor Information to get campsite details and find out details of the activities in the area.  Guess what, more Canyons!  A must see destination is Antelope Canyon, but all the tours are booked for the next couple of days.   So we have to figure out a way to get onto a tour on the Friday, but in the meantime it makes sense to take the river cruise up to Rainbow Bridge on the Thursday.

After checking into a lovely campsite, with nice views we get ourselves ready for the next day.  

Lake Powell was created when Glen Canyon was flooded with the building of the Glen Canyon dam, and it now generates power for about 24 million people.  It's very much a tourist destination and there are lots of house boats in the marina

It's nearly a full day cruise to Rainbow Bridge. 2 hours sailing up Lake Powell, a couple of hours hiking and viewing Rainbow Bridge and a 3 hour sail back.

The weather is not great, well the light for photos is poor, so although most people jostle on the top deck to get the best photos...

....Stuart and I chill down below deck

We are however first off the boat and route march the mile and a half along a dry canyon to be the first to arrive at Rainbow Bridge.  It's great to be the first tourists of the day and take all the photos we want, without anyone else stepping into shot.

Rainbow bridge is lovely, however there are similarities to Delicate Arch at Arches National

 Park, so although I am very happy to see one of the alleged 7 natural wonders of the world, according to the Lake Powell marketing board (but not according to wiki), I am not blown away by it.

I am however completely blown away by what happens next.  After taking all the photos that I want to I sit on a rock the relax and watch all the other tourists trying to get the shots they want, when the tour guide saunters up to me and says "I see you have found the dinosaur footprint".  I am sitting right next to a fossilized footprint of a dinosaur!  Made about 200 million years ago when the dinosaur stood in some soft clay, and by luck the footprint solidified before it could be washed away and gradually over time turned to stone.  It was a 3 toed creature, whose middle toe was way bigger than my hand.

I've never seen a dinosaur footprint before, so I'm very excited, unfortunately our tour guide couldn't tell us much more about it.  Luckily, as we were leaving a couple of park rangers turned up, who not only knew the name of the dinosaur, Dilophosaurus, but also had a model of the creature (not to scale!)

The Wallowing Pig

The other day I noticed in one of Stuart's emails that he described our camper van as the Wallowing Pig.  I felt that this was a little harsh.  I realize that she is a little on the large side, and I understand a bit of a beast to drive (I haven't driven her yet), but I feel that now is the time to do a blog post to describe life on board the Wallowing Pig, I mean our temporary home.

She is indeed large, 25 feet long, 10 feet wide and 12 feet high, but not as big as some of the other beasts on the road.  The other day we saw a massive Winnebago towing a Hummer behind it.  I can't imagine their fuel consumption.  We think we are getting about 12 miles to the gallon.

Inside the Van

At the front we have the cockpit, Stuart in the driver's seat and me as co-pilot.  I have plenty of maps to assist, but I have now outsourced my responsibilities to Gladys the GPS system, so generally I limit my co-piloting to helpful comments.

Above the driving cabin is space to convert into a bed.  (This van sleeps 5, but that would be very cozy).  We use this space to store luggage.

Behind the driving cabin is the dining area (also converts to a bed).  We've cooked up some pretty tasty meals to share at this table.

Opposite the dining area is the little kitchen area.  A handy gas top stove, plus a microwave.  So far we haven't needed the microwave, so we just store the loo rolls in here.  It's not that we are short of storage space, but this seemed to be a handy way to stop the microwave plate rattling as we drive along.

Behind the kitchen, is the bed which we use.  This is a permenant bed, so no need to faff about with any conversions in the evening and morning.  Above the bed are 3 storage cupboards (mine). Stuart has cupboard space elsewhere in the van, and don't let him tell you he has less storage space than me, he has plenty!

Just next to the bed is the loo and shower, it's not too cramped, so very easy to have a shower every day.  Whether we do or not is between me, Stuart and anyone within a 10 ft radius of us!

Outside the loo is a handy sink and bathroom cabinet, then a useful cupboard and just next to that the fridge and freezer.  The fridge/freezer unit can run on electricity when we are hooked up to a power supply, or uses propane gas when we are primitive camping.  We have to make sure that we camp on level ground or the gas supply won't work (which we found out to our cost early on, fortunately before we had put too much stuff in the freezer).  Most camper vans have plastic chocks to put under their wheels for leveling if required.  We are improvising with firewood.

Finally in the van we have the levels checker.  This shows us if the gas, electric or water supplies are getting too low, or if the grey waste or black waste tanks are getting too full.  (Grey waste = sink/ shower water, black waste = the toilet tank)

Outside the Van

The van has an electric cable to hook up to a power supply if available and a water pipe to connect to a city water supply.  The gas is stored in a propane tank, which needs to be refilled at gas stations or camp sites.  We usually keep well topped up, so that we don't have to camp at the crowded private RV parks, but instead can primitive camp in the lovely State and National Parks

Waste disposal is also a necessary activity, which Stuart usually undertakes.  I do help out on occasion, but have learnt to stand well back when flushing the sewer pipe out with fresh water.  Splash backs are not funny.

Stuart would also like me to mention the handling capabilities of the van

At 40 mph it drives ok, but annoys the other motorists on the highway

At 50 mph you have to hang onto the steering wheel to keep it going in a straight line

At 60 mph conversation becomes impossible, and the whole rig shakes

We are regularly overtaken by trucks, a side wind can blow us towards the barrier and it has the acceleration of a geriatric snail and the aerodynamics of a barn door.

This may be the reason that we have now only completed 1,000 miles in 2 weeks, but less time driving has meant more time seeing the wonderful sites, so all in all not a bad thing!

Monument Valley

We reluctantly depart Goose Neck state park early in the morning, but not before we have seen the sunrise.

We are headed to Monument Valley, and have been told about a tour that starts at 9am.  We have many photo stops along the way..

But despite this, we make it in time for the tour (just).

I'm a bit reluctant to sign up for the tour, being somewhat cynical, and yes there are Navajo jewelry stalls at each stopping point, but no-one hassles you and makes you feel like you should buy something.

We see all the iconic sites, and get all the background details on which locations have been used for which movie, so overall it was well worth doing, and we both enjoyed it very much.

Flora and Fauna at Monument Valley

Go Gladys

When we leave Mesa Verde I realize there are several stops that we want to make, so I program the final destination and all the "via" stops into Gladys.  First Walmart (sorry, there was a reason), then the Four Corners national monument, then Bluff and finally Goose Neck State park.  

Ok, so we had a special reason to go to Walmart.  We have decided that once we hand the camper van back we will hire a car to take us through California.  We have enjoyed the campsites so much that we have decided to try proper camping on the next part of the trip.  So for the price of one night in a hotel we are now fully equipped to go camping in California.  (I am not yet convinced that this is a good idea!)

Next to the Four Corners national monument.  This is the only point in the US where four states meet. We were surprised to find a $5 per person entry fee.  We didn't stay long.

Next to Bluff, where we had been told by one traveller that there was very nice coffee, and then we were told by a friend that there they had the worst coffee ever.  Unsurprisingly when we tried the coffee it was quite average.

Gladys safely delivers us to our final destination with no navigation problems at all.  She is a star! 

We arrive at Goose Neck State park to find that we can choose from any camp spot that we want. 

For quite a while it looks like we are going to be the only residents in the park this night, but eventually a couple of other cars turn up.

We are parked right on the edge of a cliff, and this is the view just beneath our camper.

One of the other camp residents for the night is a Dutch couple who are cycling coast to coast, back to back!  Stuart and I agreed a long time ago that a tandem would not work for us, I like control and he likes to go down hills fast, not an ideal combination.  Even this specialized bicycle would be unlikely to work for us!

We make our second attempt at cooking over a fire pit (but once again, we bring our own special smoke making skills to the fore).  We are attempting to cook jacket potatoes, and the last time I tried this I ended up with ash lumps.  This time however, we lay a number of flat stones at the bottom of the fire pit, put the jacket spuds on top and surround with firewood

Success!  Jacket potatoes with reheated chilli.  Marvellous!

We are in a very remote location, with no ambient light and the skies are cloudless, so we see the most amazing night sky.  It was like being covered with a blanket of stars.