| We arrived at Monument
Valley and took an afternoon tour of the valley which is on Navajo land.
This is one of the first features you see and is one of the 'mittens'. |  |
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To the Navajo each formation has a name (and probably a story) but I can't
remember them all. |
| I do know that this is
the other 'mitten'. The finger is at the other end - but from some angles it
looks like a statue of a young woman gazing out across the desert. |  |
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The trouble with the late afternoon is that the sun sinks lower into the
west and the formations become silhouettes. The man on the horse below is an
established 'photo' prop. |
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The sheep are unique to the Navajo and have four horns. They are a very old
breed from Europe. The Spaniards allowed this breed to be taken to the
Americas but not the better merino breeds. |
| The Navajo also have
cattle but not in huge numbers. The water supplies are too limited. |  |
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More formations, this time in full sun. We are now deep into the Navajo part
of the valley where you must have a native guide. |
| A stop is made at a
native hogan where an ancient Navajo woman demonstrates their weaving and
talks a lot. It is rather contrived and touristy. |  |
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These are the tourist tour vehicles of which there are dozens. |
| And our native guide. She
told us she is due to retire soon. She sings with a local group and
'treated' us to a sample of traditional music. |  |
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An important resource is water. It comes from a spring and is fairly shallow
but it keeps the few cattle alive. |
| Pictographs reputed to be
old but who knows.... |  |
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A common construct in the soft sandstone and a stage along the construction
of some of the features. |
| There are many and we
visited four or five of varying sizes. They make good photo opportunities. |  |
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They are often associated with cave type openings and the moisture gives
rise to more plants than are normally around. |
| The sun is beginning to
go down and it is time to start back. We are 17 miles into the valley at
this point. |  |
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The shadows are beginning to lengthen but it will be a while yet to dusk. |
| A forest of towers
marking what will be one of the last stages before they finally crumble to
dust. Not in our lifetime though. |  |
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The sun is really fading now and it will be dark by the time we get back to
the campsite. |
| Even the mittens are
affected. The setting sun really brings out the colours. |  |
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Almost our last view as we leave the valley. |
| We only pass by the man
on the horse on our way out. He is still patiently posing. |  |
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