Day Six - Monument Valley and on to Colorado

We left Williams, ready for another kind of long-haul - through the Navajo Reservation, to Monument Valley, which loops through Utah. We planned to stop at the Four Corners Monument on our way to Cortez, Colorado - the closest town to Mesa Verde National Park.

As we made our way onto the res, we encountered the first of many roadside jewelry stands. The folks at the tables were so nice and welcoming. I bought a couple of pair of earrings, and they gave me a list that explains the properties of the stones in them. Rune found a beautiful necklace that he just knows his mom will love, and Lars started jonesing for a ring. The rings were pretty amazing, and the woman could name the individual artisans...but they were veeery expensive, and he didn't get anything here.

Through the res.

I had heard about this little restaurant called the Amigo Cafe in Kayenta, AZ, and when we got there, we were starved.

We ordered the house specialties: a Navajo Taco, a Navajo Burger, and a bowl of red chile posole. 

That Navajo Taco was huuuuuuuuge. Indian fry-bread, covered with beans, cheese, lettuce, & tomato, with rice and a little pitcher of green chile sauce on the side.

Rune's face belies the excitement this burger inspired. Two patties, on half a round of fry bread. Jeez.

All of us freaked out for this posole. Rich red chile stew, with shredded pork and hominy corn. Hart said it tasted like tamale soup, and that wasn't far off. Absolutely amazingly delicious. And, more fry bread. JEEZ!

Um....we did a good job.

Great food, indeed. This was a memorable meal. The customers, cooks, and servers all appeared to be locals, and the food was downright soulful. Loved it.

And on through Monument Valley. This is an epic, gorgeous drive. The pictures don't do it justice.

Ok - so, we entered the town of Mexican Hat, Utah. Basically a wide spot in the red-rock lined road. There was a "trading post" that advertised jewelry, and we pulled over.

The view next to the trading post.

Lars and I went into the store, where they had a bunch of really cool, really beautiful rings. Lars zeroed in right away on one that was calling his name. We asked the woman behind the counter if we could see it, and how much it was. In one zen moment, he slipped the ring on and it fit perfectly as she said "Thirty-six dollars."

Yeah, we'll take it. The best part is that there is a maker's mark inside - this ring was made by Delbert Gordon, whose work is well-known, incredible, and much more expensive, generally. We got a serious deal here - Gordon makes each ring individually, with no sketch or template. Every one is an individual work of art.

Mexican Hat Rock!

These were wild horses - they ran across the road, and hung out in the field. Apparently, there is quite a feral horse problem on the res.

Glitch 1: On we went to the Four Corners Monument, only to find it closed. Darn internets. Oh well, it was only 40 minutes to Cortez, where we shared a supermarket veggie tray for dinner to make up for the hedonism of the Amigo Cafe.

Glitch 2: In Cortez, I learned that Mesa Verde National Park has closed off the main preserved cliff dwelling. You can see it from the visitor center, but the coolest thing about MV is getting to walk through and explore the preserved pueblo.

Oh well, the Glitch Patrol figured out that we could get up close and personal with some pueblo ruins at the Anasazi Heritage Center and Canyons of the Ancients National Park - we will hit the Four Corners on our way out of Cortez.

The boys were too tired to make their V-log entry today, and anyway, we are wifi-challenged still. Tomorrow we will explore 900+ year old Pueblo Indian ruins and see whatever other delights Cortez has to offer.