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Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
The big hike from the previous day, and getting to sleep much later than planned (thanks to the five hour shuttle ride back to my car) was taking its toll, and I didn't really get an early start. Consequently, getting nice sunrise shots at Grand Canyon were out of question. As such, I didn't even try, and instead chose to spend the next few hours in the car, driving east to Canyon de Chelly National Monument. Last time I visited that place, I still had my old two megapixel digital, so I wanted to get some new shots with a decent camera.
After over 4 hours in the car, I reached Canyon de Chelly at around 1:45pm. My first stop was at Tunnel Canyon Overlook. I got out and stretched my legs. Walking was a bit painful, and I wasn't sure what was the cause - hiking so many miles the day before, or driving 235 miles non-stop that morning...
With the interior of Canyon de Chelly being off limits to visitors (most trails require hiring a guide), I was limited to the viewpoints. Next up, I stopped at Tsegi Overlook, then drove to White House Overlook. Here, my large lens came in useful; and at least I hadn't made the same mistake of a few days prior and only brought a wide-angle. Next up was the less spectacular Sliding House Overlook, and then I drove to Spider Rock Overlook. Already, the shadows from the canyon wall had begun creeping up on Spider Rock, so after some inner debate I decided not to wait around for what I thought would not be that great a sunset. I guess I was a little burned-out.
So I got back in the car, and decided that Holbrook, AZ would be a good destination for the night, since it was guaranteed to have cheap motels and would put me close to Petrified Forest National Park. In Holbrook, I succumbed to the bland mediocrity of a Motel6 - I could probably have found a place to stay that was cheaper or with more charm, but the Motel6 had one thing going for it: it was as far away from the train tracks as possible, and the idea of not getting woken up in the middle of the night by a huge train with multiple loud diesel engines and blaring horns was quite appealing.
I checked in, then drove to the nearest Burger King for a Double Whopper with double cheese, medium fries and medium drink. I brought the food back to my room and watched part of the Vice Presidential Debate.
Miles driven: 410mi (660km)
Accommodation: Motel6 (Holbrook, AZ): $44.41
Written 21/Feb/2011 in Esch-Alzette. Added some content 22/Feb/2011 as I was digging through receipts and remembered a few more details.