Monument Valley

In October we took a Johnson family trip down to Monument Valley. Levi's family had an Indian exchange brother named Erik who was from down there. He died several years ago, and so the Johnsons try to get down every few years to visit his grave. This was mine and Walter's first time!

We stopped half-way down at Goblin Valley and met up with the Stampers and Andersons. Levi had never been before, so it was fun to run around and explore.

Walter using his "binoculars" to see around

Hills to climb

Caves to explore

Looks like a monkey

Looks like another monkey

We got lost/stuck in a bunch of the formations. If it had been just Levi and I, we could have easily climbed our way out, but with Walter we had to do a lot of back tracking so we didn't take him somewhere too difficult. It wasn't too hot, so it was a lot of fun.

We then went and did another little hike. Benson was nice enough to let a very tired Walter use his carrier. 

Walter and Benson throwing rocks and playing soccer. 

After our hike, we headed on our way to Mexican Hat. This rock formation is why the little town's called that.

Walter showing his cousins The Squirrel Game

Exploring around the motel

Breakfast crew!

The four Johnson siblings that were able to make it

We went to Monument Valley and got a tour of the valley. It was actually a bit chilly! 

It was really cool. Our tour guide was a missionary at the reservation when Erik died. Erik's mom and sisters basically adopted him into their family and he spends several months every year back at the reservation giving tours and hanging out with his second family.

The mesas formed a "W" for "Walter"

This was where Erik had wanted to build his house, so he was buried here. Miriam and Donny played the bagpipes at his grave. This wall contributed to some awesome acoustics.

This was our tour guide's dog. I'm teaching Walter about dog safety, so he was careful to avoid getting in the dog's face or upsetting it. She was such a sweet dog though. Fun fact: I was wondering where all the wild life was. I hadn't seen any. Then out of nowhere came a kangaroo mouse. "Look Walter!" I was so excited. It came running past me...followed by the dog who proceeded to maul and kill it. Right next to me. Absolutely horrible experience. 

Walter kept taking his shoes off and I'd give him a hard time about keeping them on. Then I thought, Why? Why do I care? He's out in nature, let him experience it. I'd keep an eye out, but there wasn't any glass or dangerous objects out in the middle of nowhere. Life is better barefooted, anyway.

At the place where Erik was struck by lightning, there's a really sweet memorial. It's also were a lot of the shops are. I got a book mark, and Levi and Walter got matching turtle necklaces. 

There was a big hike that some of us wanted to go on. It was getting later in the day and I knew Walter and I wouldn't make it the whole way, but we decided to go anyways. I didn't want to wait back at the shops (because I knew they'd be at least a couple hours. Time is different when you're in nature. Nothing is rushed) and I also love a good adventure. We drove down this super sketchy road which wasn't actually a road, it was a dried up riverbed. It was a good 30 minute drive, with our guide having to constantly get out and move large rocks out of the way.

About 50 yards past the car, Walter was asleep in my arms...with only uphill to go. We made it to a good resting point and then Walter and I sat down to enjoy some solitude. Levi was worried about leaving us, but I assured him that we'd be fine. I love alone time when I'm in nature.

Walter woke up and snuggled me for a little bit while we looked out. It's amazing how heavy the silence was. I loved it. We sang some songs, because the echos were fun, and watched a light rain storm roll in. We probably sat there for about an hour before we decided to start heading down. by the time we got to the bottom, everyone else had caught up with us.

The rest of the hike had been really cool. It led them to an old mine shaft and then to the very top of a mesa where they could look out in all directions. Our guide said that he and Erik and his companion used to run the trail a couple times a week. 

Back at the motel playing games. The bald guy was our guide.

Erik's sisters

The whole group

The tour was a really cool experience. The next day, we had some breakfast, packed up, and headed to arches. I wish we'd had our own carrier/more time/more energy/more water, because there were several hikes that I had wanted to do, but we only did the Delicate Arch.

Benson was, once again, an angel and let Walter use his carrier. 

As we were leaving arches, we noticed a sandy hill where tons of kids were playing. 

We saw Roosevelt and a bull at a rest stop

 For someone who hates long drives, I absolutely loved our trip. It was a lot of fun!