A Santa Fe morning
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| Walk to Zia diner |
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| Zia Diner, no visible signage |
We spent some time in the morning cleaning the condo and packing our stuff then took a walk to Zia diner for breakfast. It's a short walk across the railway yard and through a Borders parking lot. The establishment is a little hard to find since it has no large visible sign from the street. I happened to look down a courtyard of several businesses and saw their small sign in the window. Zia diner specializes in New Mexican breakfasts. Where else can you get a delicious Quesadilla omelet served with a nice long green chili pepper?
Santa Fe to Monument Valley
The drive from Santa Fe to Monument Valley is only 336 miles and is pretty scenic with much of the travel through the Navajo reservation. This is some of the most scenic land in the country. We occasionally stop to enjoy the breathtaking views and snap a few pictures. Sedimentary rocks are layered in various colors and stretch for miles. Huge sandstone rock outcroppings rise from the sandy desert floor.
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| Colorful layers of exposed sedimentary rock |
Monument Valley is on the Arizona Utah border and totally within the Navajo Nation. This means National Park passes are not honored here. As we crossed into Utah, the first signs of the monuments start appearing as distant shadows become recognizable.
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| Welcome to Utah. Monument Valley is a distant shadow. |
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| Approaching Monument Valley |
Gouldings Lodge
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In 1924 Harry and Leona Goulding started a trading post where Navajos came to trade their jewelry, weaving's and rugs for food and consumer staples. The original trading post was operated out of a tent until a stone building could be completed. The stone building still survives today as Gouldings Museum. When the depression hit in the 1930's, many of the sources of Harry and Leona's goods went bankrupt and they had a hard time keeping the trading post stocked. With business in decline due to shortages, Harry decided to go to Hollywood to pitch Monument Valley as a movie making venue for Westerns. After some persuasion by Harry, Director John Ford began making John Wayne movies in the Valley. The Gouldings built a lodge to accommodate the movie industry which has thrived to this day.You may have seen Monument Valley many times if you've ever watched an old Western movie, especially if it had John Wayne in it. I personally have not seen too many Western movies but in today's TV world I've recognized Monument Valley in more than one car commercial.
Gouldings Lodge consists of a trading post, campground, grocery store, gas station, restaurant and two motel style buildings with 62 rooms carved into one of the sandstone monuments. The view from the private patio of each motel room is spectacular and encompasses the vast majority of Monument Valley.
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| Gouldings Lodge |
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| View from our private patio |
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| Our patio |
Enjoying the Sunset
Once we were in our room at Gouldings we opened the drapes to the patio and were amazed by the view. We should have known this hotel was built into the side of a sandstone monument and would offer a spectacular view of the valley below but we had no idea it would be this spectacular. We immediately decided to go to the Gouldings supermarket to get a bottle of wine for our balcony. It only took a few minutes to find that the little store did not carry wine so we drove the 20 miles down highway 163 to Kayenta, AZ and found a supermarket in town. After perusing the aisles for a few minutes we went back to the front of the store and asked one of the cashiers who was a Navajo woman if they sold wine. She laughed and said no, you're on the reservation. We were puzzled but the Indian standing behind us set us straight. He said there is no beer or wine on the reservation. The closest town off the reservation is Mexican Hat, about 50 miles away. But they only have beer he said with a smile. I had a feeling his pickup truck made regular runs to Mexican hat. We left disappointed but educated to the fact that there is no alcohol on the Navajo reservation. Later that evening we found the same story at the Stagecoach restaurant at Gouldings. They only had non alcoholic wine. It was amusing to see the expressions on the faces of the tourists around us at dinner. Most of them were European and expected wine at dinner. Lesson learned. We had a nice dinner and later toasted the sunset with water and Nacho chips.
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| The View from Gouldings |
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| Gouldings Trading Post |
Gouldings has a nice Trading Post. It has everything from books and DVD's to Navajo handmade crafts. Of course Gouldings initially got their start almost 100 years ago as a trading post. The tradition continues. Even though they are privately owned, 80% of the employees are Navajo natives.
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| Turquoise and Silver bracelets inside the Trading Post |
