A blessed seventh day, as it should be

Today was my lucky day. Surprises, decisions, guesses turned out not to be wrong. North of Espanola, I cross the Rio Grande, then the road starts to climb.

I am in the mountains, what a change from yesterday!! Few miles ahead I found myself in the middle of some light rain, I know the weather would change with such wind as these days. And I thought I had not had rain yet during this journey, so it is fine. Patches of snow started to appear. Looks who's here, I did not think I would have met snow again. I cross the Navajo river, I need to take a picture.

Today, for me, should be about two or three things, my adolescential readings of Native American literature, such as I buried my hearth at Wounded Knee; the reminescences of Italian comic book saga hero, Tex Willer -who is also a Navajo chief- and finally the scenery of John Ford's classic westerns such as The Searchers or Stagecoach.
As I enter Colorado the snow starts to become more consistent and the rain mixes with snow. Temperature must be quite low because the rain freezes on the margin of the windshield and on the wipers. The landscape has become alpine, or at least prealpine.

The entire landscape now is covered in snow, as it was in Farmington when I arrived at the beginning of February, and it continue to snow. I look at the road for ice, there are hardly any other car and there is no connectivity for the mobile phone and at certain points not even a radio station on the entire FM band.

I drive in this condition for about 2 hours and an half. Then I must have changed valley or maybe I have arrived on a high plane because the temperature raises, and the snow disappears altogether.

At two 'o clock I stop to collect a plan for the rest of the day. Of the lunch I have said (look at the previous post), the weather is getting better, monument valley is not too far but I will get there around 5 30. My planned route skirts the Indian reservation and would take me there from the north east to monument valley. Something does not work. I change my route from Cortez and take a route that crosses indian land and then gets me to monument valley from south west, so that I will get the sun -if any- from behind and not in front.

Longer, but what are few dozens of miles by now? It was the right choice. A casino welcomed me in the Navajo reservation. A beautiful deserted red land. As I drive I see their settlements, poor houses, huts one should call them. It is a high plain, between 5000 and 7000 feets high, between 1500 and 2000 metres in altitude. I do not have the heart of stopping at the indian shops where they promise "authentic" artifact, I feel in a very similar way to when I visited a WWII lager, my heart and soul shrunk in desolation, here in contrast with the beauty of the landscape.






Just after a junction, I pass Navajo Springs. Here is my site. I turn back and stop. Not just to take a picture but to collect from land from the Navajo river.

Further up in the road, there is the Four Corners monument. This land in the second half of 19th century, indian and civil wars over, was divided up by geographers among 4 states. That meets up in one point. The site, paradoxically is runned by the Indian community. The lady at the cash is undoubtedly not a caucasian. The land is very red, hardly anything grows, only nomads could have lived here.

Finally I get to the 163, I turn right, northbound, to the monument valley. It is 5 pm. The sun is there and starts to be low, in half an hour I am at the valley. My guesses were correct, I have the valley beautifully lighted by the setting sun behind me. A glorious drive.

and this one at the background of a scene with the cavalry, and the general view of the stagecoach and the cavalry, same movie, a few minutes later

Where to sleep, hitting back to the south? the nearest centre has some national chains Inns, checking in the tourist hotel at the monument valley center, with John Wayne show, runned by the Indians? My heart refuses. I will visit some indian centre tomorrow. I drive on north some 25 miles to the nearest centre, Mexican Hut in Utah. I am lucky there is a Motel right on the other side of San Juan river (that marks the boundary of the Navajo Indian Reservation) A beautiful spot. It is only 6 30, I have time to enjoy the last minutes of light, and then the wireless functions even on the riverfront. There is time to write and then watch a western. Bliss.