Natural Bridges to Monument Valley: Beautiful rocks

When I left Blanding, UT this morning, I found it had rained recently...my car was wet.  As I drove a short distance to Natural Bridges National Monument, it drizzled a little.  But, by the time I reached the park, the sun was out and the rain clouds had moved on.  This park consists of three natural bridges, which were formed by water eroding the sandstone walls of switchbacks.  I planned to hike down to two of them.  The trails are rated strenuous, but after doing the Devil's Garden primitive trail at Arches, I thought I could handle them.

First, I set out on the trail to Sipapu Bridge.  At the viewpoint, I got a nice photo of the bridge and surrounding area.

Things were going pretty good until I came upon a wooden ladder.  The height and the ladder's proximity to the edge of the cliff scared me, and I chickened out.

Defeated, I walked back to the top and decided to see if I could do better with the next bridge, Kachina.  This trail also had stone stairs, and I noticed I wasn't the only one using it.  A deer had very recently walked the same path.

The view from the upper trail was awesome.  I was feeling a little more confident with this one...until I reached the steep flight of stairs next to the cliff.  I don't have a problem with heights, but it just seemed like an unnecessary risk, especially considering the constant descending steep slick rock was starting to take a toll on my old knees.

I reluctantly hiked back up and drove to the last bridge in the park, Owachomo.  In a previous visit, I had walked down the trail to this bridge, so I didn't really feel like doing it again.  I took a quick pic from the viewpoint, ate my lunch, then left for my afternoon destination.

I took State Hwy 261, which has a very challenging section known as Moki (or Mokee) Dugway.  This 3 mile section of unpaved, gravel and dirt road consists of switchbacks descending 1100 feet from Cedar Mesa.  Before descending the steep grade, I stopped at a turnout to admire the view.

I took it slow and made it to the bottom without a problem.  I connected to US 163, and as I approached Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, I came across an interesting scene.  Cars pulled off the road to take photos of the straight away leading to the park.  This image was made famous in the movie Forrest Gump, where Forrest was running and running and running...then finally stopped.

This was not my first visit to Monument Valley, but I wanted to experience it again with my Outback.  My previous Blazer handled the rough dirt roads well, and I was confident my Subaru would excel.  When I got to the visitor center, I stood at the overlook which gave you an excellent view of the valley.  Here are the most famous rock formations, West Mittens, East Mittens and Merrick Butte.

I think I got a better picture this time around than my last visit.  Next, I proceeded down into the valley via the Valley Road.  For some strange reason, some horses were walking down the same road...to where?

As I drove along the scenic loop road, I came across many other interesting rock formations, all with names.  Three Sisters adjoining Mitchell Mesa and Yei Bi Chei adjacent to Totem Pole.  It was an inspirational and rewarding visit to a truly unique park.  Oh, and my Outback handled the roads great.  The symmetrical AWD really does well off road. 

Tomorrow, the rock concert continues.  I'll be doing the north rim of the Grand Canyon for the first time.  Looking forward to it!