Seligman to Kingman (138 km)

Early morning just out of Seligman 

Route 66 the whole day and most of the day, it was exclusively ours. Very little trafic, desert as wide as you can see. The entire day we had to bike with little breaks, because we had a nasty and steadily increasing headwind that at the end had us completely exhausted.



A gas station along the way



with many antics

Easy job for the postman

The last 30 km were one straight line with a very rough shoulder. That and the hard headwind slowed us down to 15 km/h. So for two hours we saw Kingman, but it approached painfully slow. And, of course, driving on these shoulders easy gets biker in trouble because of all the debris and busted tires on it. Frank started losing air on his back tire. But we had god luck. Luckily we quickly found a piece of tire steel wire sticking in the tire. We could pull it out and at a nearby gas station we could pump the tube up again. We were curious, whether the liquid in the tube seals it as promised. It worked, we did not have to disassemble everything. After a short break, we could continue, with great relieve.

Tusayan to Seligman (152 km)

The Grand Canyon accompanied us a long time, slowly fading in away in the past, while we were driving direction Williams. From time to time we stopped, looked back and still saw the North Rim in the shining sunlight. We felt a bit sad to leave this World Wonder (it is one of the 8 Natural World Wonders).

In Williams, we hit again the old historic Route 66 and we saw the first sign, indicating the distance to Los Angeles. That made us feel proud and at the same time, it becomes obvouis that the journey soon will be over. 

Soon after Williams we took the old Route 66 again, which meant peaceful driving, almost nobody drives on it anymore, because the freeway is so close. At one little gas station we stopped, talked a bit with three guys working there (but at the moment there was no work). They told us, that in spring many pass here on bicycle, while in summer and fall when it is too hot, mainly the bikers on motorbikes from Europe are thundering through.



Seligman in the evening



After a long run, we made it to Seligman, a little funny 66 town, still living in that tradition. The steakhouse here in town has the slogan: You kill it,we grill it. That means, whatever you run over by car, bring it in, they will prepare it as a meal! We has dinner at Lilo´s Cafe, an old German lady who somehow landed here. The highlight of the evening was a enourmous piece of Schwarzwälder cake, tasting like the real thing.

   

Our hotelsign

Descending into the Grand Canyon

Sunrise over the Grand Canýon

Today we got up early, saw the sunrise and then we hiked down the Grand Canyon on the Bright Angel Trail. Not all the way down, but 1000 meters in altitude down. The track went from snow covered step slopes to the Indian Gardens, a little oasis in the dessert with tall trees and a little creek. Further we went to Plateau Point, which offers a breathtaking view of the rivergorge where the Colorado River runs another 400 further down.

The gorge with the Colorado River

Hiking in the Grand Canyon is very different to mountain hiking, because first it goes down and it is very important to have enough reserves of water, food and strengh to get back up again. Our hike was finally 20 km long, it took us 7 hours and at the end, we were glad to be up again. Only by walking or hiking through the canyon it becomes possible to feel the size of this place. We also read, that every year several people die here, mainly because they carry not enough water and underestimate the distances. In summertime it gets extremly hot in the canyon, almost no shade to hide and then it becomes a question of life and dead to be well prepared. Today the heat was not a problem, but still it was arduous undertaking. 

But, other people do even more! We met a couple who had just hiked and camped 6 days in the Canyon. And, they we going toward 70 years of age!    

The National Parks are really one of the best things the US have. The parks are well organized and very good information is given. Especially we admired the guys looking after the path going into the Canyon. That is tough work, at some places they have to ride two hours on mules to get to their working place.

Way down on Plateau Point

In the evening we drove back to Tusayan and found again a descent hotel there.

Indian Garden



Restday in Grand Canyon

From Tusayan we drove back to Grand Canyon Village where we spent one night. Wonderful evening with a colourful sunset. Walked along the rim and Katrin took thousands of pictures.

We stayed overnight in the Bright Angel Lodge. Horrible rip off! The room was very, very basic, you could hear every word, snor and more from the neighbouring rooms. No breakfast included. Just a place that only exists because it is at such a marvelous place. We had wanted to stay two nights, but after one night we had enough!

It´s hard to believe, that apparently no one really cares much to make the hotels here more of an good experience. So many hotels and motels we sleep in are ok., but we you almost never feel a personal touch. Staff often is badly informed and not very attentive. But at the same time, we always find very nice staff, but those are not the rule.
What is really striking is, that although we are in the dessert, saving water is not a issue, for example in the shower it is in general only possible to choose hot or cold, but not how much water to flow; at most places an awful lotz of water flows. This in the 21 century! Doors never look tight, neither do windows. So noises are a common nuisance here in the hotels.

Cameron to Tusayan (Grand Canyon) 101 km

Early morning in the dessert

The Grand Canyon south rim rises about 2250 meter above sea level, the Colorado River runing through it lies 1500 meters down. For us that meant a heavy climb, we had to gain 1000 meters in altitude. As it was always going up and then down agaoin, we estimated, that we did about 2000 meters, sometimes with headwind. It was a tough ride, starting early morning in the dessert, then climbing over about 55 km. But very interesting! At one point we drove over a little mountain range and all of a sudden, the dessert was gone and forest had taken its place. First with small, twisted ceddar trees, but the gratualy became taller and taller with pine trees mixed in. The air got again icy, in the forest we saw snow patches. After 55 km the entrance to the Grand Canyon National Park. It costs 12 dollars per bicycle to get in. A few minutes later, the first outlook to this natural wonder, the Grand Canyon.

The first trees

We stood there, looking down with emotions and happiness. To reach the canyon by our own force had been one off the goals we definitly wanted to reach.

From the first glinpse into the canyon, the road follows the rim for about 40 km, through wonderful smelling forest, from time to time an outlook comes, where one can see the ever changing canyon below. We saw deer on the road, not at all afraid of bikers and over the canyon condors circling. 



The first view of the canyon

 As it was weekend, all hotels in Grand Canyon village were full. So we had to drive another 10 km south to the next village, Tusayan, were there are many hotels. This evening our criteria for the hotel was, does it have a Jaccuzzi or not. We found one with and had a wondeful relaxing bath, todays tour had been very exhausting and it was nice to just sit in the warm water and relax.    

Tuba City to Cameron (105 km)

We had read in the internet, that close to Tuba City is a very hidden and beautiful canyon, Coal Mine Canyon. It was a detour of 60 km but well worth it. The canyon was kind of difficult to find, we were out in nowhere, but no canyon in sight. So Katrin bravely stoped a car and the very helpful Native American driver told us where to find the canyon. There, we were the only 2 living humans on earth, no traces of civilisation, no noise but the wind blowing. The colours went from black to red and yellow, a hidden treasure.

Katrin´s foot next to millions of years old dino footprint 

40 Kilometers further, we passed a place with dinosaurer footprints on the ground. Very impressiv! It must have been a wet place, where the dinos came to drink here, left traces on the ground which then somehow survived until today. They had big feet and claws and it sends you back thousands of years looking at those traces. 

This region is in a Indian Reservation and it surprises us again and again how few white people we see here. The population is mainly Native American. They still look very "indian", dark brown skin, the women have wonderful long black hair, the men often have a pony tail. Alone in Arizona there are 21 active tribes, together more than 250´000 Native Americans, about 5% of Arizona´s overall population. In the Reservations no sale of alcohol is allowed, probably because alcoholism amongst them is a huge problem. Even in the hotel yesterday, I had to sign, that we will neither smoke nor drink alcohol in the room. Unfortunately, the roadside is heavily littered with bottles, mainly beer and whisky. So somehow, they still get alcohol and drink it.

To us, it is remarkable how very friendly they are, its´a pleasure to be here and see that they try hard to keep there culture alive.
    

Kayenta to Tuba City (116 km)

Biking can also be a bit boring. That was our feeling today, 116 km with nothing in between but dessert like grassland, some distant mountains and straight roads to the horizon.

Once on the way we rested at a gas station and ate our lunch while Katrin was charging her battery. 4 dogs were strollin around the gas station, waitiig for some food. Katrin was very tempted to buy them a bag of dog food, as a kind of Thanksgiving meal for them. But Frank was strictly against it, he just was afraid, that then 4 dogs would follow us. 

The wind was from the side, ok. We would have driven further, but the only next place to stay did not answer the phone, they already were celebrating Thanksgiving. So we took a room in the nice Hopi Hotel in Tuba and enjoyed reading and writing.

For supper we went to the only open place in town, Denny´s. They had a special meal for this holiday, of course with turkey. Cheerfully we ordered it, but a few minutes  a sweeting waitress came back and told us, that the turkey was still frozen, someone has forgotten to get him out of the freezer!

Elephant feet along the road

Monument Valley to Kayenta (51 km)

Ready to leave Monument Valley

A bit sad we left Monument Valley, it is a magic place. We recommend it to anyone, especially the View Hotel, where the view to the valley is unique. Soon after leaving, driving on Highway 163, we entered our next state, Arizona. Tomorrow will be Thanksgiving, which is one of the biggest Holidays celebrated in the USA. It´s the traditional family holiday, on this day families reunite and traditionally eat together a stuffed turkey. This means, it is one of the busiest travel weekends here and we could certainly feel it on the road. Many cars passed us, loaded with bikes and other outdoor gear. The ones with bikes often waved at us, thumbs up!

The road ahead, still with special mountains

We just made a short distance today, because the next hotel is 120 km away. With sidewind and some hills along the route, we didn´t dare to drive the remaining 120 km today, we would have driven right into the night. So we settled early in a hotel and will use the time to wash our laundry. This is an always very important task, we carry few clothes with us so we need to wash often. Most motels have a laundry, it just takes time to wash and dry. 

Last glimpse of Monument Valley, about 25 km away

Restday in the Monument Valley

Monument Valley, the name says it all! Words can not really describe the beauty and magnitude of this place. We booked a tour with a Navajo on his jeep and he drove us to places which are hidden away and have restricted accees. At one point he showed us natural bridges and even sung two Navajo peace songs in an rock ampitheather. That was the only sound we heard, otherwise it was silent, something rather rare here. Later we walked by foot on one of the trails, saw the sunset and took probably hundreds of pictures. We just couldn´t get enough of the view, the colours and the solitude.

But the beauty has also an other side. We talked to a Indian here who said, that the climate has changed. It has become more dry and  the ground doesn´t support anymore the sheep, goats and cattle the Indians have here. This leads to overgrassing and then to serious erosion and to even less fodder for the animals.
Also due to the dryer conditions, water has to be pumped up from sources that are polluted from old uranium mines. Uranium was mined here till 1960. This was a fact which really shocked us. The danger of the nuclear industry starts here, at the very place where uranium is mined. This seems to get forgotten, as we mainly know about the dangers of running nuclear power plant.
And then today we read, that some politicians in Congress seriously want to open National Parks and areas to further exploration of gas, oil and minerals. President Obama had promised so much to improve or further protect the environment, but has not been able to fulfill his promises. And now, with the budget in such bad shape, chances are high that under the name of job creation the environment is the loser and of course the generations to come!

It left us very thoughtfull on a very beautiful day.

       

Bluff to Monument Valley (79 km)

Early morning we took Jim´s Ford truck, loaded Franks bike and Nero (that´s how we named our dog) into the truck and drove to Cortez, where it just had rained. On our way, in Montezuma Creek, we stopped at the very gas station were we first met Nero. Katrin bought him a big bag of food, which she pourred on the ground. Nero jumped on it, hungry as always, and while he was eating, we drove off. He was so busy eating, we think he didn´t realized that we very leaving him. Both of us were sad, Nero was a fine dog and we wished, we could have taken him along with us.
In Cortez, a rather small town is a surprisingly big bikeshop. A new chain was quickly installed and we headed back to Bluff into the sunshine. When we passed the gas station again, we saw Nero laying on the ground, head up and waiting for us to come back! Again, we felt bad and sad.

Up´s and down´s on Route 163

In Bluff the bikes were quickly ready and late, at 1 pm we left, having arround 80 km road ahead. That was tight, as the sun goes down at 5 pm and then it becomes very quick dark and cold. The scenery once again was more than fantastic. But we hadn´t anticipated the hills on the way. They were really an exhausting challenge, combined with some headwind. We arrived at the Monument Valley just when the sun had gone down and in the hotel in complete darkness and a bit frozen. It is amazing, how quick the temperature drops here in the desert. In the afternoon we were driving partly with T-Shirts, at night we had to put on all we have. 

Almost in Monument Valley, last sunshine

    

  

Restday in Bluff

Isn´t it sometimes in life, that the unexpected things turn out to be good. At least for us, the day here in the desert was a gift. We hiked into the bluffs and valleys, discovered the smell of the desert flowers, found hidden water springs, surrounded by trees and grass. The colour were so intense and pure, as the silence in these hidden valleys. On some rocks we found old indian traces, at one place they had chiseled small foodsteps into the rock in order to be able to climb it. Frank tried, but finally did not dare to go up. The whole day we did not encounter anyone outside.

In the evening we found out, that the bike can´t be fixed here. That means tomorrow Frank has to drive back to Cortez (120 km) and have it repaired there. The hotelmanager offered us his car,      "just take it, the key is in the look!" Once again this incredible easy going and great hospitality here.

PS: This morning, when we opened the door of our room, our dog stood there, waiting for us (or breakfast)! It seems, that he has adoped us. But seriously, it leaves us with a problem, because we can´t take him with us, too dangerous on the road for him and us. Together with the owner of the hotel, we decided to take a car and bring him back from where he comes.

Towaoc to Bluff, Utah (106km)

While we had breakfast in the Casino Hotel, the manager came up to us and wanted to know where we are heading. When we explained him our planed route, he showed us an even better one, going through a canyon and with very little traffic.

That was an outstanding advice, the route very scenic, changing from badlands to farmland to dessert, all within 100 km. Driving along that road, all within the Ute Mountain Reservation, we saw a lot of agriculture, first irrigated later very dry and free range. Free range means, the fences are gone and the animals move freely. For us the most uncommen were the free herds of horses, they accompagnied us often, runing on our side, but then losing interest and disappearing again. 


 

At our only stop today, Katrin played arround with two dogs. Because one looked so hungry, she bought some dogfood and fed it to them. That made her an instant new friend, a black labrador dog. When we left the gas station he followed us. To our surprise he did so for the next 22 km, all the way runing behind us. We were really impressed by his condition, although he had seemed so skinny and hungry. Later in our hotel, the manager told us that in this Reservation, there are thousands of dogs belonging to nobody. Katrin felt very sorry for the dog but we could not do more. Later in the evening he disapperared and we were a bit sad and at the same time relieved. It would have been impossible to take him with us. 



Today the chain on Frank´s bike broke, but to our incredible luck, only very short before Bluff. The next dealer is 130 km away in Cortez and closed on Sundays. So tomorrow we might have a day in Bluff, a small community on the river, founded by Mormons in 1880.    



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The dog runing behind Frank





Bloomfield to Towaoc (119 km)

Today we had a difficult decision to make. Either ride 185 km with good wind and have more time in the Monument Valley or stay on a longer but less busy road doing only 119 km, but then needing 2 days to get to Bluff. We decided to ride the shorter daytrip, but have more time to enjoy the scenery. It was well worth it. We rode through that countryside, that we Europeans do so much associate with the fascinating American West. It was breathtaking, we stopped again and again to take pictures. 



On Mars



Somewhere on Mars we had our lunch. The ground was so flat and barren there, we imaginated ourselves on Mars. 

A bit later we left New Mexico, which we will  remember for its beautiful colours and cold mountains.

The route we took let us into Colorado and has only one hotel, the Indian run Ute Mountaind Casino.  When we arrived, the manager made us a special price, 55$ for the night. So we have something left for the games......  

Very often people know ahead that we are coming, not because we have called, but because they have passed us wit their cars. We are like aliens here, bikers at are this time of the year more than rare. We enjoy when someone comes up to us and tells us, that they had seen us, often it leads into a nice chat. And of course, then the people tell us, that they also had once been in Switzerland or Europe. Most liked Switzerland what makes us a bit proud.  

The Casino



Chama to Bloomfield (156 km)

Ready to leave into the cold morning

This morning we had to dress up with all we have, it was -10 degrees Celsius. Because between Chama and Bloomfield is no possibility to sleep which was fitting us, we had to leave very early to make the long way. It was tough! We both had problems with our feed and face, the cold wind from the driving went slowly but steady through the shoes. The water we carry in our bike bottles froze. 

Luckily at about 11 am it had warmed up enough to drive comfortable, but still it reamined a chilly day.

We drove about 7 hours, stopping once to load Katrin´s battery and one more time to eat a picknique. It´s amazing, how much we eat and still feel hungry. During our trip we found out, that for breakfast a muesli with cereales, fruits, nuts and milk lasts the best into the day.

North the Rocky mountains in Colorado

During our first stop, we met an old Apache Indian, prouldly 100% Apache he emphasized  and still speaking his tribal language. He told us that he had been in Vietnam, fighting. But being an Indian, he was badly treated by the other soldiers and often sent on missions with high risk. He survived, but came home full of hatred against America and Vietnam and sick from Agent Orange. The hatred he could leave behind, the sicknes not. He said, because of that he is sitting on death row.

It was very interesting to learn from him, how the Indian live in their Reservations. He said, his tribe is lucky, oil has been found on their ground and every Indian gets 500$ a month. 

We would have liked to stay longer and have a coffe with him, but today, we simply had to drive. he wished us well, shook our hands long and off he was.  

Again, we drove through wonderful landscapes, passed the Continental Divide, from where the water flows west into the Pacific and east into the Atlantic.

Abiquiu to Chama (92 km)

Early morning river view

This was our mountain day! We climbed to 2600 meter above sealevel, where already white snowpatches laid in the forests. It was a cold day, the temperature was mostly arround 0-5 degress, which together with the thinner air made the climbs pretty tough. On the other hand, it was heavenly biking. Almost no traffic, the ever changing colours of the dessert which faded slowly away to give room to the endless cedar and pine forests in the mountains. 

When we reached the lookout at the highest point, we looked down over this vast land and its beauty. And wished, that we humans take more care in our planet and its unique nature.

Later we had a coffee in the Three Ravens coffeeshouse. In a tiny village, Tierra Amarilla we found this little cozy place, with fireplace and cappuchino like in Italy. The owner, Paul and his wife live here since many years. They have renovated the house themselves over the years, just with the money the have, no debts, no other boss that is the way they want to live independent. Paul also builds wooden drums to sit on, he gave us a little concert. He sells them all over the US at fairs. When he comes home from the fairs, the money is used to further build the house. He showed us their colourful house (which after 12 years is still under construction), but it is worth the time, so beautiful it seemed. When we left, he gave us a big cookie as a farewell present. Often we think, the fewer people live in an area, the more interesting and friendly they are.


Katrin almost at the highest point



Santa Fe to Abiquiu (80 km)

After a really good breakfast in our excellent hotel in Santa Fe ( Las Palomas) we left early morning. Driving out of town was stressfull, we had to go on the highway and the shoulder was littered with broken bottle. After having had so many flat tires, we were nervous not to get another flat. Finally we made it savely out of town, the traffic eased and the countryside became more and more fascinating and colourful. 

We entered Indian Nation Homelands, they still have their own laws, while federal laws also apply. Disappointing was it to see that the modern Indians mainly seem to live in large mobile homes and their villages look rather uninviting with trash and broken down cars or other equipment everywhere. An old Indian we met told us, that alcoholism is a huge problem here. Many drink and drive, what explains the countless crosses along the roadside and the broken glass on the shoulder. 

We arrived early at our B&B, a vineyard at 1700 meters above sealevel in the dessert! It was the most beautiful B&B on our entire trip. (http://www.lasparras.com/) Standing alone on the riverfront, surrounded by colourful mountains. They grow grapes for wine here at an altitude of arround 1700 meter above sealevel. The grapes the sell to a winery. Of course we wanted to try their wine, but they could not sell it to us. So we went to a shop about 1 mile away and bought a bottle. When we drank it in the evening, we were surprised by the strong chocolate tasrte the rather sweet wine had. Only then we discovered, that it was written on the bottle, that artificial chocolate taste has been added. Stan told us, since this is added, the wine sells like crazy. Well, we did not finish our bottle, for us wine does not need to taste like hot chocolate.  

We used the rest of th afternoon to climb some mountains and enjoy the dessert. What a rich beauty offers the dessert. In the night we stood under the sky, admired the stars and the Milky way, they seemed as close as never ever seen before. 

We went to sleep with a real woodfire burning in the fireplace. It felt lik heaven!    

Restday in Santa Fe

Typical building in Santa Fe

Peaceful city, lots of Indian and Mexican culture. We enjoyed it, saw Indian Art, had good coffee at the Plaza and admired the architecture. And cocked for ourselves in the evening, drunk wine from New Mexico and just were happy.

Tomorrow we head out north, into the mountains towards the Monument Valley.