Alto convoy of 2 again!
It was hard to say goodbye to our site in Zion this morning, given the beautiful landscape, but there was more in store for this day. Unfortunately for Richard, who had to get some work done while on the road, there was no shortage of nice scenery, as our route took us down around the bottom side of Grand Staircase, Escalante National Monument. Plus, the highlight was that our buddy was waiting for us at the end of the day.
I am making a note to myself that going through the Zion tunnel without a one way pass is perfectly fine. Altos fit in the category of “Undersize Vehicles” which means you can just go through without waiting. There is plenty of room for two way traffic, even if it is nerve wracking. For some reason, it did not bother me at all this time.
Zion never disappoints.
We took a short lunch break at a lookout point for Wahweap, AZ, which is on Lake Powell. We have reservations there later in the summer, but we do wonder if it will be prohibitively hot by then. We started the day at around three thousand feet, climbed up to over six thousand, and descended back to three by the time we got to that lookout. The temperatures varied with the rise and fall in elevation, so it’s a sure bet that the campground/marina right down by the water will be a hot point. The view of Glen Canyon stretching out over the horizon was impressive, as was the sight of the massive dam and bridge spanning the huge canyon.
Gotta get that shot.
We entered Monument Valley from the southwest side. I was expecting to see that iconic “Forest Gump” view and later realized that one appears when you approach from the east. After we got settled in, we went out and drove the 12 miles just to get that view. Richard rode back and met back at the campground. The campground itself is uniquely styled. It is set back into a red rock canyon so you are surrounded by amazing rock formations. It has a lodge, market, and various other services, making it a real mini town out in the middle of mostly landscape.
Beautiful place
Waiting for us at the campground was our courageous BFF, Linda with dogs. She has had more than her fair share of glitches on this trip, what with flaming wheels, and just today a flat tire on her 4Runner. She is a traveling trooper and has dealt with all of these setbacks while making new mechanic and tire repair friends on the way. At the very end of the day she was able to get out to see Goosnecks State Park, which was on her bucket list. We ended the day with one last excursion out to see the sunset play off the monuments. It is a very beautiful place and I would come back to Goulding’s if we were to return.
Dinner that night was a Blue Apron Charred Gochujang Pork Chops with Sour Cherry Soy Sauce and Ginger Honey Carrots. OMG. That was good.
One more sleep before we meet Dory2!
Total miles: 241.6, 16.4 mpg, 6 hours, 26 min. Full hookups. Ok LTE for both but not enough to upload pictures to WordPress.
