Where we're heading next:
Home Sweet Home
Quote of the Day
Peanut, "Wow, mom, now we can say we've been to all 50 states! What are we gonna do next?"
We each brought about 3 sets of clothes, except Doodle who feels the need to change clothes several times a day even while traveling. We just cycle through, doing a load or two of laundry every few nights. Last night Grandma and I were up so late doing Durango-Silverton Train laundry that it was a real challenge getting out of bed in the morning to leave Colorado.
I'll add that Spray 'n' Wash may be bad for the environment, but it works magic getting the environment out of our clothes. I'd do a commercial for them if only they'd ask. Hey, I did do a commercial once 15 years ago. Well, an infomercial. It was for cheesecake, which I love. Tomcat and I had Amaretto Cheesecake for our wedding and the baker asked me to do a commercial for them. Crazy, right?
A long time ago a friend of mine took me to a great Navajo restaurant in Bluff, Utah. It was in a dark house in the middle of nowhere but the food was amazing and spicy as hell. I was on a mission to find it and savor whatever they put in front of me once again. Off we went, leaving the lush green mountainous Colorado behind. Hello Utah!
On our way we stopped at Four Corners and were shocked to find that it's a real destination now, with an entry fee and everything. We could hear Navajo spoken by the Native Americans selling their wares and we wandered around with snow cones and fry bread. There aren't a lot of places you can buy a snack and say, "Hey, we're in Arizona" then turn and walk a few hundred feet and say, "Hey, now we're in New Mexico" and so on. It's really fun. Actually you have to work hard to make it fun because it's so bloody hot, but we managed to do it.
Bluff, UT isn't exactly a normal sort of place. (I'm taking a leap that your idea of normal is in cahoots with my idea of normal.) Our car really needed gas and up the road we found a slab of concrete with 2 ancient pumps and a barred up station. Surprisingly, it seemed to be working (a taped sign on the pump read: Pay first. 10 gallons = $41.50 and so on), but there was no one around. Directly next door was a building with a little walk-up window. I went over and immediately the window popped open with a panicked face that said, "She's not there, but if you tell me how much, I'll get you the gas." I said, "Oh, well do you take credit cards?" She looked really nervous and I was very curious what was going on behind the window when she said, "Sure. Just tell me how much and she can do it when she gets back. I don't really do the gas or the money."
I told her I'd take 10 gallons at $41.50 and then I asked her about my Navajo restaurant. She goes, "It ain't here anymore. The Sunbonnet. Closed down." DANG! So I asked if there was any place we could eat and she considered for what seemed a long time and finally replied, "Well, there's the place a mile up the road....or here." Stunned, I said, "What's here?" "Well, it's sort of like a cafe." Sure enough the sign on the front of the building read Dairy Cafe and we all slugged our way through the 90+ heat into the cool room, which really was an okay place with a few okay people inside.
The face through the window turned out to be the nervous, very kind daughter of the owner, the above she who apparently "did the gas and money". Mother was quite a specimen: very tall, very thin, around 70 give or take 10 years (smoking and the desert make it tough to judge), gray thinning hair, piercing blue eyes, 6 coats of stage make-up and a deformed hand which she waved around and around our table without one of my kids making a single comment...yay! We ordered ham & cheese sandwiches, drinks and an order of fries. They all showed up in little wax paper pockets, grilled on rye bread with mayo and mustard. The kids wouldn't touch it.
Doodle had to pee so Mother said, "Well, everyone get up! Line up now and I'll unlock the door. I have to come with you." I was certain she had a shotgun slung around her back so we all did as she said, and she marched us outside, around back with the stray dogs to a toilet room. Very strange indeed, but effective. We all peed even though Doodle was the only one that knew she needed to go.
Some other customers came in wanting to see rugs and we realized this cafe was also a Trading Post type of place. She sells native crafts in yet another side room, securely locked. Fumbling through at least 50 keys hanging from her belt, Mother opened the shop for them, mumbling the entire time to herself. "I'd like it better if you'd actually buy a rug." Grandma and I left there thinking these were what Prairie People looked like that went crazy from the wind.
We quite enjoyed the nutty visit, and Mother did send us off with a wonderful nugget of information: see Goosenecks. "It's only 4 miles out of your way and no one goes there." How could I resist? Now, I say to you, "Go there." Pictures don't do it justice. Driving along through miles of colored sand and scrub brush, you'd never know it's out there. What a gem.
Grandma had never been to Monument Valley before and I'd never actually entered the park as the view from the highway is impressive enough. Nothing can prepare you for the sheer grandeur of these monuments. Not books. Not movies. Not my testimony. This is one of those places. You need to watch other people in awe, seeing the same thing you are. The dirt must be tasted so you can verify that it's actually nothing like paprika. And I suspect this valley needs to be seen in winter as well as spring but I can't speak to that.
This was supposed to be a highlight for Peanut and I. We were going to paint the desert at some point and I was sure it'd be Monument Valley. Unfortunately, sweltering in the oppressive 92 degrees, Grandma and I turned around to a whimpering Peanut and found her wearing her fleece of all things! Her fever was back and we'd already committed to the Loop Drive...miles and miles of bumpy, red dirt roads and magnificent views from every possible angle.
Somehow I missed the fact that one should have a res for the Durango to Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway. I had to prepare the kids for the possibility that we might not be able to go, but that the only way to even try was to wake up and get moving early. Lo and behold, Peanut coughed at 5:55am which got everyone rolling to Doodle's tune of, "Hurry Hurry! We won't miss the train, right?" We were at the train station, without breakfast, at 7am sharp, and luckily they were able to get the 5 of us on board in the open-air car. It had 2 benches with assigned seating, all outward facing. Perfect.
Perfect for about 30 minutes until all the soot started flying in our faces. Now we understood why we were supposed to wear dark colors and sunglasses! Can you say covered? I even had the stuff in my bra when we got home. For those of you considering this ride as part of your trip to the Southwest, hear me loud and clear: Leave your 3 year old at home and consider leaving your 5 year old, too.
Life with Doodle became an absolute nightmare after the 1 hour point. She climbed all over us and exercised every opportunity to practice her mighty 3 year old control. Constantly I found myself using full upper arm strength to hold her down. You name it, she attempted it. This little demon was unrecognizable to me for hours on end. And if you think I'm overreacting, keep in mind that it was nearly a 4 hour ride up, with a lunch time stopover in the old mining town of Silverton, followed by a 4 hour return ride back to Durango.
Overall, I'll give it a net positive because there's something very magical about actually hearing, feeling and touching this kind of train. And the scenery, like most of Colorado, was breathtaking. Remember, however, that I'm a die-hard optimist and I have a big threshold for pain.
It was a bit of a let down not to squeeze in one delicious New Mexican breakfast before we left Santa Fe, but the kids aren't really into green chilies on their eggs, or eggs in general for that matter. So, we ate a quickie breakfast at the hotel and off we went toward Durango, Colorado. This was supposed to take us about 3.5 hours.
What an incredible route. In fact, I'm going to say this is my all-time favorite drive ever. The desert changes remarkably in Northern New Mexico. Hills, mountains, mammoth rocks and quirky formations, a menagerie of colors top to bottom. Camel Rock showed up out of nowhere and I'd forgotten all about it!
Grandma's favorite thing to say was, "I just don't see how people can live out here." I couldn't agree more, the urbanite that I am. When I saw the sign for the town of White Rock, Peanut and Little Man in unison screamed, "Hey! I've been there!" It took me a minute to realize they were talking about White Rock, BC where we go in the summer sometimes. Ha! I decided to check out the White Rock view to get a reaction from the kids. Doodle was asleep and missed the entire thing, but the other two were actually in awe and fired-up about the enormity of the canyon. It has an incredible view of the Rio Grande Valley. Added enthusiasm came from the vast numbers of hawks flying over head, and these tiny yellow birds dashing about that we could never get a close enough look to identify. After this visit, I'm rethinking my plan to skip the Grand Canyon. Maybe they actually would notice more than the chipmunks? On our way out of town, we noticed some people in a park preparing for some kind of a Kite Festival but we were too early to enjoy it. A vendor, however, was able to sell us 10 Red Vines and life was good.
Next came Bandalier National Monument and this was a very calculated stop. It was a big decision for me to skip Taos, as I adore it, but I wanted the kids to stay interested and pleasant, and I already knew the heat was against me. The ruins in Taos are too sprawling and too touristy and the town is too pretentious for my little darlings. Having chosen correctly, Bandalier was exciting and manageable (if you call carrying Doodle on your back up a cliff manageable), and sure to be a lasting memory. The kids had just made it down the ladder from a once-a-cliff-dwelling now a hole-in-a-cliff, when Little Man announced to everyone within earshot that he needed to poop. This kid has excellent plumbing so we heeded his need. He barely made it the 1/2 mile back, but the important thing is that he did. (Our family has clearly met it's quota for pooping in inappropriate places on this trip.) They had a great kid-friendly gift shop and a good snack bar, too, so we picnicked outside and hit the road.
The sign said 57 miles to Chama and I was already enthralled with this part of the country. The nutty thing is that I'd driven this route before, more than once, and yet I had absolutely no memory of it's substantial uniqueness and beauty.
Then Abiquiu showed up out of nowhere! My neighbor had just told me about this magical place -- Georgia O'Keefe country -- because Peanut had recently taken a big interest in her art. We've been discussing how artists are "inspired" and here we were in Georgia O'Keefe's own backyard. Just look around and her inspirations are obvious. We hopped into the Abiquiu Inn, bought some last-year mini calendars for $1 which thrilled the kids, and we learned where her house was so we could do a drive-by. I told the kids we were the luckiest people in the world but they already knew that apparently. I was in Southwest Heaven.
On the road again and wouldn't you know, in the distance we saw the most stunning layered rock canyon? I kept pulling over to the side of the road for pictures and Grandma announces, "This has to be the longest hour I've ever driven!" Shocking! This was the most amazing hour I'd ever driven in my life! What a magnificent day we were having! Who cares about Colorado at this point?
Well, these glorious cliffs also had a sign: Echo Rock and I just had to turn in. Grandma grunts, "Ah, you gotta be KIDDING me?!" I drag her out of the car. "Look! The path is paved like you like. Come on!" We were just getting onto the path when she spotted a tiny lizard, and the kids became overjoyed. I knew it was going to be a great detour! Peanut arrived at the natural amphitheater first. Suddenly the canyon shouted at us "Myyyyy Preeeeeciousssss!" Grandma and I burst out laughing and now even she was into it. We were alone here. Lucky again! This place was so intimate yet grandiose and otherworldly, that suddenly I began to ache for the familiar to share it with. I wanted Tomcat to be here with us and I wanted my neighbor Green and her kids, my kids' best friends, to be with us. We all began to shout each of their names and soon the canyon was booming with names that we missed from home. Our hearts needed this.
We got to Durango, CO (after one more teeny-tiny detour to see Chimney Rock) just before sunset, 10.5 hours later.
Colorado Dirt Sample.Cortez, Colorado.
