Pat Gallagher's Blog

At the end of our exciting day yesterday, we arrived at the Wren B&B in Bluff, Utah.  We got settled and had a few drinks to settle my nerves on the back porch of the B&B. The B&B was a bit out of the way but after my traumatic day, I wanted something special.  The B&B was in the middle of nowhere, it was like an oasis in the desert.  It sat at the base of one of the Cliffs/ Mesas we just hiked.  I was very glad to be enjoying the view and not having to hike on the ledges.  Then we enjoyed a great dinner at the Cottonwood Steakhouse.  Throughout our trip I have been rating our locations and lodgings,  this was one of the most scenic locations, B&B was very nice, breakfast was great but the bed was made of rocks.  I guess a reminder of my hike!  In all the hubbub of yesterday I forgot to mention Arches National Park.  Another wonder of the USA. It is a 73,234-acre wonderland of eroded sandstone fins, towers, ribs, gargoyles, hoodoos, balanced rocks, and, of course, arches northwest of Moab.  Again if you ever get a chance to visit there, it is fabulous and I didn't have to climb anything.

As we get on the road, today will be a touring day.  We are headed to Fort Bluff, Utah, then Monument Valley, Colorado, ending at Glen Canyon Dam at Lake Powell, AZ. So we will be traveling about 300 miles, 6 hours without stops. Who knows how long with stops at these destinations?  YIKES!!!!!! It is still better than risking my life to see Cliff Dwellers who had the sense eventually move on.

We  arrive at Fort Bluff which is called "Hole in the Wall Trail!  Not sure why?  All we could find out was that it was built by Mormons in 1880's and it was their last stop on a trail they never found!!!!! But we found it and it was pretty cool.  Thanks Mormon men and women for leaving exact replicas of your daily life. 

Then we headed to Monument Valley but before we could get there we had to backtrack about 70 miles because I wanted scenic lodgings that  were totally out of our way.  Oh well!  We get to pass the 4 Corners again.  If you have never visited Monument Valley, you are missing another one of the greatest sights of the USA.  It is a vast scenic landscape in the region of the Colorado Plateau,  it is located on the Arizona and Utah border, near the Four Corners area, that we visited yesterday. The valley lies on the territory of the Navajo Reservation with MANY structures that were made by the effects of wind, water and sand over thousands and thousands of years.  The largest reaching 6,000 ft. above the valley floor.  Everything we are seeing today is by car with a short walk around because the area covers over 20 square miles.  NO Hiking today!  After seeing the iconic vistas of my childhood westerns movies, we head out towards Glenn Canyon Dam.

Glen Canyon Dam is 710 ft high dam, built in 1956 to 1966 and is the little Brother of the Hoover Dam which is 726 ft high and built in 1931-1936.  So we got to see the Glen Canyon Dam, but as Dams go this was pretty big and very impressive.  I am sure no one ever heard of it or really cares!   But we do a tour of the whole Dam and have to cross over the Dam which is a bit more sturdy that the Cliff Dwellers passage, so I am very relieved.  After that we head to our Hotel in Lake Powell.  A  Wydham Hotel overlooking the dam and Lake Powell.  Where have these hotels been????? Dinner and early to bed.  No Art Today!  Tomorrow we head to the Grand Canyon.