The Painted Desert and Petrified Forest

Worth It?  Yea, it's a really pretty drive. 

We continued our road trip from the Four Corners through the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest.  This is a perfect attraction for a road trip because you can start at one end and drive through to the other end, so this is kind of a multi-entry post.  You get to see many beautiful photo-worthy stops on the way, without going out of your way!  Our drive started on the Painted Desert side.  We went on the "free" weekend - for one weekend each year, all National Parks are free to enter - it's great for a roadtrip weekend!  Unfortunately, though, I can't tell you how much it would normally cost.  Usually the parks are pretty cheap though, so don't let it deter you.  We stopped at the welcome center on the way in and picked up a free map that shows all of the stop-worthy spots.  We just took a leisurely drive through the painted desert, taking pictures along the way and appreciating the way the landscape changed as we moved along.  We even passed over Historic Route 66.  The Petrified Forest was pretty cool as well.  We also saw "Newspaper Rock" which has ancient markings on it.  The pictures will speak louder than my words here, so I'll add a bunch. 

Four Corners, USA

Worth It?  For me, yes.  But it's probably not for everyone.

Adam and I continued our trip from Lake Powell towards the Four Corners.  We crossed over into Colorado and spent the night at a casino.  We had fun there but it was fairly rundown and not much to talk about.  It was out in the middle of nowhere.  So is the Four Corners monument.  It is quite a drive, so you must be committed if you want to see this monument.  The four corners was one of the main reasons for our weekend roadtrip around Arizona.

After spending the night at the casino, we woke up super early and arrived at the Four Corners just as it was opening.  We thought we were arriving an hour after it opened, but the time change is very strange there.  Arizona does not observe daylight savings time, but the Navajos do, so as you weave in and out of Navajo land, your phone goes crazy and keeps switching what time it is.  We weren't sure which land the monument would be on.  It turns out, it is on Arizona time. 

It's my understanding that the monument has recently been redone to reflect where the actual four corners intersect (previously, it was wrong).  I would recommend going to this ONLY if you get there super early.  There are shops all around the monument that were just opening when we got there, but it is clear that this is a tourist trap.  We got to play all around the four states, hopping in and out and acting like dorks, without having anyone else in our pictures.  Just as we were leaving, a bunch of people started showing up.  I think I would have enjoyed this much less if I had to weave in and out of peoples pictures.  Overall, it took us about 10 minutes to see it, walk around the states, and play around.  And then we hopped back in the car to drive for another couple of hours to our next destination.

Lake Powell - Page, AZ

Worth It?  Cool to see, but it would be better with a houseboat. 

Our trip continued to Lake Powell, a man-made lake on the border of Arizona and Utah.  It's really cool to see....it really is like looking at an oasis in a desert.  The water was a pretty blue and provided a stark contrast against the arid background.  If we had the time and could afford it, we would have rented a houseboat.  People are not allowed to build on the lake, so really it's the only way to enjoy it.  Houseboats fill the waters, but for the most part you have to rent them for a week, and they aren't cheap.  If you get a group together though, it might be more affordable.

We had planned to go to one of the few hotels on the lake and catch a tour - they offer boat rides up to Rainbow Bridge as well as dinner cruises and other touristy-type excursions.  I really wanted to do this because the pictures I've seen from friends with boats have been just amazing...much more amazing than what you can see from the shoreline.  Unfortunately, our schedule and budget didn't allow the cruise.  The rainbow bridge tour takes about 6 hours from where we were, and part of it would include some walking for like an hour.  So we chose to find a beach and have some beers instead.

There are beach stop-offs fairly often, so we found one and hung out for awhile.  The water was fairly clean for a lake, and it wasn't too crowded.  It was just a little boring.  We couldn't drink much because we were continuing our trip, and we just wanted to be out on the water exploring all of the coves and landscapes.  Still, it was nice to relax and be out of the car for a bit.  They have changing stations and restrooms, so we got changed and headed back to the hotel bar for a drink and some food before moving on.  I'm glad I got to see it, I wish I could have experienced it from the open water, and I would recommend visiting if you plan to spend a day or two on the water.

Antelope Canyon - Page, AZ

Worth It?  Absolutely!  Everyone should see this sometime in their life.

We continued our road trip up to Page, AZ near Lake Powell to see Antelope Canyon.  The lake is the divider between AZ and Utah, and it is so beautiful (more info. on the lake in a later post).  Antelope Canyon is the most popular of many canyons in this area that have filled up with water and sculpted beautiful walls that mixed with beams of light shining through are a photographer's dream. 

The canyons are located on Navajo land, so you have to schedule a tour and have a navajo guide take you.  There are different canyons and types of tours (including photography tours but those are more expensive), but we did the most touristy of them all - antelope canyon around noon with a group of probably 20 people.  There are different companies that you can go through but they all end up doing about the same thing.  I think we paid just over $30 per person and the total tour lasted about an hour and a half.  Just make sure  you schedule a tour for when the light beams will be shining down.  I think you can just drive up there and get on a jeep for a tour, but it was VERY crowded and looked disorganized and slightly sketchy.  I'd suggest planning ahead and scheduling a tour through a valid company.  If we were to go again, I would go to one of the less well-known canyons because the one we went to ended up being very crowded and it was hard to get pictures without people in them.  Still though, it is an amazing and breathtaking place to be.

They will fill up jeeps or SUVs with tourists, drive you around the corner and then you'll go off-roading for a mile or so until you end up at a very unassuming "crack" in a wall of rock.  Once you go in, you'll see how amazing it is.  I can't describe it as well as the pictures can, so I'll post quite a few.  If you Google Antelope Canyon, you'll see even better professional pictures. 

This place is a must-see if you're in Arizona.  It's amazing, and I hope I can go back one day to explore the less popular ones.

Dinosaur Tracks - near Tuba, AZ

Worth It?  Yea!

Continuing our trip, Adam and I drove a few miles off the highway to visit the Dinosaur Tracks near Tuba, AZ.  It is literally just a stop on the side of the road.  You park, and a Native American unofficial "guide" (aka guy standing there) will come up to you and take you around the tracks.  He'll point out a bunch of dinosaur footprints by spraying water on them.  Not sure we could believe EVERYTHING he said, but they were still really cool to see, and it was awesome to imagine that dinosaurs were walking there so many years ago.  The "tour" lasts about 15 minutes, and at the end he'll ask for $10.  Still, I thought it was totally worth it.  And he gave me a cool rock as a souvenier. 

Sunset Crater - Near Flagstaff, AZ

Worth It?  Yes, on your way to something else.

Adam and I took a weekend trip through Arizona.  We left super early (think 3:30am) from Phoenix on a Friday morning, and spent the weekend traveling up through Northern and Northeastern Arizona.  Fromer's book in hand, we truly experienced a road trip, stopping at all of the side-of-the-road exhibits on the way.  In fact, this trip inspired this blog, so the next few entries will be dedicated to each place we stopped along the way.

The first place we stopped, Sunset Crater, was just outside of Flagstaff.  This place is worth a quick visit if you're on your way to the Grand Canyon or on your way to Page (where we were going).  It's a national park where a volcano erupted a VERY long time ago.  This was actually my second visit here.  My friend Megan came to visit in January, and we stopped on the way to the Grand Canyon.  It was covered in snow at the time, so you really couldn't see anything.  They ask for a $5 donation on the way in, but when I went with Megan, I had an active National Parks Pass ($50 for a year and it gets you and your party - up to 4 people- in to National Parks for free).  If you buy this, do your research to find out if you'll use it first - many parks are state parks and are not free with this pass.  When I went with Adam in August, we went during the once a year Free National Parks weekend, so it was free anyway.  For all of the places we visited on this trip, it was a good weekend to go. 

Anyway, Adam and I stopped just in the inside of the park to take pictures in front of the volcanic rock.  Megan and I had gone further in, but from what we could tell, it was just weird rock and some strange formations.  Again, cool to see, but you probably won't spend more than 10 minutes there.  A lot of people camp out there, but I haven't figured out why yet.  But, it was quiet and the air was cool, and it was a nice place to stretch our legs on the way to our next stop.

The Arizona State Fair - Phoenix, AZ

Worth It?  Yes, if you go on discounted nights

We went to the Arizona State Fair on the first Wednesday of November.   Admission was $10 per person, or you could bring a donated item to get in free before 6pm.  We paid the $10 each as we were running late.  There was a little traffic, but it wasn't too bad.  Don't pay more than $5 for parking...there are plenty of $5 lots, but the first few you see are asking $15- $20.  I was told not to go to the fair after dark because it wasn't in a safe area of Phoenix.  I only like the fair after dark, so we took our chances.  It's not the cleanest, newest area ever, but c'mon - it's downtown, what do you expect?  I never once felt unsafe, though I was walking with my husband.  I might have felt differently by myself. 

Anyway, the only other fairs I have to compare this to is the South Carolina State Fair, and in my opinion, this fair was much better.  It is a good size, and they had many rides I've never seen before.  Montgomery Gentry was playing the night we went, though we didn't go see him.  The best thing about the night?  $1 rides.  Wednesdays are $1 rides and games (for most rides, some are excluded), so it's much more affordable than if you went any other day of the week.  They stay open "until the crowds die down," so there is plenty of time to ride whatever you want.  The lines were very minimal.  The most expensive thing was the beer and fair food - a large beer runs $7.50 domestic, and Adam's "chocolate covered bacon" was $5.75.  I ate before we went...pretty much no healthy options at the fair! 

Some of the games we played included throwing darts at balloons, throwing balls at upside down beer bottles, and shooting a gun onto a piece of paper trying to shoot out the image.  A lot of fun for $1 each!

All in all, I would say the fair is a must.  The weather is perfect in AZ this time of year, and if you go on a weekday, it's not too crowded or too expensive.