More dodgy roads.

Just the small matter of 170 miles to get to the South Rim of the Canyon. First stop was Kayenta - nearest town to Monument Valley - fill up & get essentials. Missed turn for shops - slight detour, major speed bumps - car not happy. Pushed on retracing steps for a little while more. Signs warning of rough road surface caused concern - could the car cope with anything more. As it happens it was nothing more than uneven & bumpy. By now the roads were straight & the surroundings dull & monotonous. Last resort to relieve boredom - American radio - miraculously something was found - a live concert. That helped. A scenic viewpoint came & went confusing signage dictated a huffy retreat - so unlike me. Tried the next one & unsurprisingly the roads down were abysmal. Just parked up & the rain began. Stubbornly insisted on seeing this gorge & it was quite impressive. In pretty much any other country it would celebrated as a wonder. It is however next door to the Grand Canyon. Eventually made it to the park gate & on entering cars were being ushered to the first sight of the Canyon. Needless to say most did. Very busy. Seems drier on this side. Nice clear view of the river. Quick look & headed to the lodge. It became clear that it wasn't just the canyon that was big on this side. Our lodge was split into 2 wings, each with 6 buildings. Massive. A world away from the North Rim. Unpacked & headed down to the rim & there was a really nice walk along the edge of the canyon for a mile or so. Had geological pointers, some great viewpoints & best of all was pretty quiet. A New York family were about the same pace as us - the dad offered to take our photo - appreciated. Handed the phone to his son to sort out - great delegation. Made it to the Village centre but it seems really to be just a collection of hotels with access to some stunning views. Back for tea - order was taken by a machine - no tipping issues.Read more