Monument Valley is an indescribable place. As soon as I saw the red-sandstone rock formations appear out of nowhere, I knew I wanted to return. A few times in my life, I have visited a place and felt an immediate, inexplicable connection. This perception may be a side effect of my profession; I can imagine a place in the past: the landscapes, the attire, the architecture, or lack thereof. I tell my students that I have difficulty watching period pieces or reading historical fiction because I know what's inaccurate. But, perhaps this knowledge of the past helps me connect to a place.
I first visited Monument Valley in January 2018 on a road trip through the southwest. One sunset and one sunrise were not enough. When a yoga training took me to Tucson for Spring Break, I knew I wanted to return to this enchanting space. But, to visit such a faraway location requires planning.
After taking the earliest flight, amid a snowstorm, from Philly to Phoenix, we rented a car and began the five-hour drive north to the remote Arizona/Utah border. Given that it was late February, I knew that we were cutting it close on arriving by sunset. With no stops after a quick breakfast in Phoenix, we caught golden hour on the buttes. We pulled over on RT 163, approaching the town. The sunset was clear, and the color palette was unique to the desert.
In the Navajo Nation Reservation, there aren't many places to stay. Last time we booked a solar-powered tiny home. This time we stayed in a traditional Navajo Hogan without electricity or running water. A Hogan is an eight-sided, one-room structure, constructed of logs and then covered with mud for insulation. There's a hole in the top of the dome for the stovepipe's chimney, and the one door faces the sunrise. The Navajo woman who owns the property met us upon arrival; she already had the woodstove roaring.
At sunrise, we took a quick drive to the iconic south-facing highway view of the monuments; it's the one everyone knows from films. But the morning was cloudy and grey. We went back to the Hogan, and the lovely owner cooked us traditional frybread (a deep-fried dough bread) for breakfast. Next, we drove to the Navajo Nation's Monument Valley Tribal Park: a 17-mile scenic, dirt-road drive through the formations. On our last trip, we didn't have time for the four-hour drive. The park wasn't crowded at all, so we took our time and hoped that the clouds would burn off.
After several hours in the park, we drove south to Flagstaff. As a part of another revisit, we stayed two nights in the snowy, hippie, mountain town. I choose an Airbnb that was downtown and easy walking distance to breweries and restaurants. The weather forecast wasn't promising; it poured on our only full day in town. But, we managed a clear-enough sunrise at the Lowell Observatory that overlooks the town, and a foggy, imperceptible sunset at the Arizona Snowbowl Ski Resort.
On the way back to Phoenix, we stopped at Arcosanti. I've visited twice before, but I can't seem to resist this architectural, mysterious oasis in the desert. The last time we stayed overnight in one of their Airbnbs. I would have booked it again, but there was no availability. Instead, we made a quick stop for photos. Next, in Phoenix, we stopped at Cosanti Originals, a gallery and store for Paolo Soleri designs, as well as James Turrell's Skyspace, "Air Apparent," on ASU's campus. Visiting Turrell's work at sunrise or sunset is always best. The light progression is more interesting when the sky changes color too. We made it for sunset and had the whole structure to ourselves. Next, for dinner, we had pizza at one of my favorite pizza places in the US: Pizzeria Bianco.
The next morning, I drove from Phoenix to Tucson for a week of yoga training. I hadn't been to Tucson before, but I had a feeling it would be my style. Mountains surround the city, and the grid felt familiar. Every morning I woke up early to drive around at sunrise. I'd travel from east to west, with the sun behind me and pull over wherever to take photos. There were more cloudy mornings than not, but I didn't care. It's always a gift to have the freedom and time to take photos in new places. Once the golden hour was over, I'd stop at Cartel Coffee Lab to do work before the yoga day began.
On the last day, I stopped at a Blake's Lotaburger (a southwest only, fast-food chain with excellent green-chili burgers), DeGrazia Gallery in the Sun, a cactus nursery, lingered in thrift stores, and drove through Saguaro National Park during an overcast sunset. After the drive back to Phoenix, I stopped at Pizzeria Bianco for another pizza. I have an odd propensity to grab an excessive meal before a flight. I can talk myself into "one more" anything if I'm far from home. At this point, when the idea of a restaurant seems so far away, I'm certainly glad I did. Visits and revisits alike are luxuries.
Pentax67, Acros100 / Mayer, AZ
Crown Graphic 4x5, Portra400 / Mexican Hat, UT
Olympus Mju2, Kodak Gold 400 / Tucson, AZ
