Monument Valley

"White streaks amidst the rocks"

Monument Valley, a place so spiritual, that you will feel as if you have been baptisted by Spirit Nature, on you way back.......

If you come from a crowded place in the Old World, as me, you will find your spirit renewed just by driving from any given point to another, on this magnificent land, particularly, the SouthWest.

And if you find yourself driving on scenic road US-163, then wow! you will suddenly become the main character of a movie, your own movie, in a place where everything you knew about time and space, is challenged.

As you approach Monument Valley from the West, the rock formations will slowly start unfolding in the distance, taking shape as you get closer, silent witness of a more advanced civilization, now faded....., it seems as if you will never really reach them, distances here are disproportionate, but this is part of the deal.

Eventually, you reach Monument Valley. Conveniently located, there is a Trading Post, (souvenir shop, in European language), that, however, offers more than just souvenirs.

This could be the first opportunity you have to get an impression, up close and personal, of the beautiful Navajo people, if you have not stopped on some of the small trading posts along the road. They all wear genuine big smiles, and no, it is not just the prospect of a few dollars growing their pockets, you know when someone is genuinely smiling at you, or I hope you do, anyway.

There is a restaurant adjacent to the shop, where they serve the most amazing tribal food around.... (granted, there are not a lot of choices around to eat...), but the food there is amazing, I had a Navajo taco that could have fed a family of four! absolutely delicious and very healthy!, it is simply a corn tortilla, the size of a full moon in November, filled with salad and vegetables, very nice indeed.

If you can manage to move after you are done eating, (the prices are very reasonable as well), get back to the Valley to start discovering what the, not so distant now, rock formations, have to tell you.

Spirit Place

The entry fee is only $5, for what you get in return, my god, this is nothing! again, money is only symbolic if you really think about it.... but not now, now you are entering a sacred place, there is no room here for anything related to material things, ego, past, future, thoughts, worries,.....here, everything is spirit, here, everything is the Now, if you know what I mean.... I hope you do...

Bet you never seen a dead volcano before.... this is along the road as we approached the Valley

One of a kind road trip

There are 11 monument rock formations to see, on a 17 mile tour. You will be given a guide included on your $5 entrance fee. All the stop points are clearly indicated, with the name of each rock formation. You might find some small rocks arranged on the ground, left there by visitors before you, I suppose it has some significance, I just never found out.....

By now you would have found out that a 4 wheel drive is recommended for this tour.

You will not be allowed to wander around off the limits of the designated viewing points, this land is sacred to the Navajo nation, (and to some of us as well!), and, for our western point of view, admiring the landscape from a distance is simply sufficient.

Peace here is not only present, it will impose itself and permeate every cell of your body as you try to absorbe the magnificent scenery laid out just in front of your eyes...., you suddenly understand why this soil is sacred......

The Wave, Arizona, US

How immensely fortunate we were to be granted a permit the very same day we showed up at the Visitor Center in Kanab, Utah, to enter this most magnificent geological jewel, my God how lucky! I really hope you are given the opportunity also, should you be planning to visit.

For details on how to prepare and plan your visit, go here:

thewaveinfo

So, no, it's not as easy as showing up, for one, you will not, in a thousand years, be able to locate the place on your own, for two, you need a permit, by law, that way the amount of visitors is limited; as much of a good of an intention we human beings might have, c'mon, let's admit it, we are a destructive race, and even if it's just the impact of the un-natural rubber soles of your shoes, if not limited by the authorities, our impact would not take long to take a toll in the short term.
So, yes, we were the last ones showing up at the Visitor Center in Kanab that morning, and, Voila! (is that how you say it?.....), our names were drawn the last ones, along with other 8 lucky souls in the room.
So, with a big smile and a tiny vague map that the nice ranger ladies gave us, off we went, like little kids with new shoes, the whole crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, the jet lag, the economic impact in our pockets (money suddenly becomes just a symbolic asset when presented with opportunities like this!), all worth it now!

The hike begins at the Wire Pass Trail head, a place so remotely located in the middle of this vast and magnificent Land, that it would take a spiritual consultation and guidance from Higher Beings, to locate it, should it not have been facilitated by the kind rangers.
And even with precise directions and a map, we managed to get lost.

It all starts here

So you get there, park your 4 by 4, (you need a four wheel drive to get there), sign the sheet you are supposed to before leaving the parking lot, in case you get lost, so that it makes it easier for the rangers to locate you, I guess....?, you smile thinking that such a travesty would never ever happen to you, after all, it does not seem to be so complicated or difficult......... the hike begins.....

On the way

So far so good, you follow the sand wash, resting in the knowledge that the advise on the roughness of the terrain and conditions of the hike were simply exaggerations to add spice to this whole thing.... then you get lost. It is sooooooo easy to get lost on the way to the Wave, the little map provided by the rangers back at the Visitor Center only shows a few vague pictures of reference points that sometimes you see on the horizon, and sometimes you don't, depending on whether you have moved a fraction of a degree on the wrong direction, or not.

Once you get lost here, the whole adventure - freedom - one - with - nature feelings vanish as soon and as surely as the day turns into night.

The rangers advise to take pictures on the way, looking back, so that you have references on the way back, they did not mention what to do if you get lost on the way in, then again, they might not have imagined anybody getting lost on the way to The Wave, they clearly over estimate people.....
They do advise to stick into groups, but everyone else got a head start, as they did not get lost finding the trail head, we did..... and then we did again once we located the trail......

Getting closer now...

Luckily, we came across a couple that were already on their way back and pointed us to the right direction, God bless them whenever they are.

The entrance to The Wave

So taking as a reference the shadow of a massive crack between two even more massive rock formations on the horizon, we made our way to the bottom of where the mythic Wave abides. To climb up there was an epic endeavor of massive proportions. With already broken knees, mushed feet, twisted ankles, and every single bone hurting, we were yet to climb an almost complete vertical hill, covered on desert sand, the one where your feet sink to the level of your ankles, just for extra fun…… I do not know how I made it up there, for one up there, just when you think you can finally catch your breath and begin to enjoy the anticipation of the imminent presence of that jewel called the Wave, there is more to climb! And this time is not semi friendly desert sand, that could soften your fall, if that were to happen, this time is pure hard rock, with edges sharp as knives, and that you have to climb as if you were an expert in the art of rock climbing. I honestly will never understand how those folks that won the lottery with us that day, all of them averaging an age older than us, could have made it, I guess I under estimate people sometimes!

So with the final screams, similar to what I can only imagine is giving birth, I made my way to the top of that rock, to be greeted by the most spectacular geological formation I have ever had the privilege to visit, up close and personal. The Wave opened up right in front of our eyes, making us understand that all the effort and struggle to get up there, was worth it.

The Wave

It is hard to describe objectively, the sensations that one go under, once confronted with this majestic formation. I felt as if walking on those fragile eroded lines could break them, I felt guilty of walking over such beauty, I hope that the respect we observed on our short stay on the Wave, made our human impact minimum, and no trace of our physical presence remained in such sacred place, for only Spirit can earn the right to be part of it.

The strong wind announced the time to depart, back to more earthly settings, where we belong. For that brief moment in time, the few minutes that we remained up there, has forever marked me, and if there was ever a glitch of doubt over the existence of God, it has now been vanished forever.

Only God’s inspiration can create such magnificence.

Finally there!

Amazing colors

Worth a thousand pictures

Heading back...

Have you been there? Tell me about it below

Thanks!

Desfiladero de los Gaitanes, El Chorro, Malaga

Late October and the temperature inside the car's cabin did not make it below the C 28, ( F 82 ), mark, so it was a long and hot drive up to "El Chorro", where the cliffs are located.

The highlight of this place is a dangerous path called "El Caminito del Rey", a suspended platform adjacent to the cliff, built back in the 1900's, and that it took four years to complete.

The original purpose for this path was to allow workers to carry on with the construction of a water canal, making use of the special geographical configuration of the place. The project was inaugurated by King Alfonso XIII, and that is the reason behind the name..... I guess they run out of ideas on that particular day and thought: "heck, the King's way, there you go, named.", and then moved on with their lives as if nothing happened..... , anyway, this path is no longer accesible as there have been a few casualties lately, so the authorities have decided to close it. 

If you try to venture it and make it in one piece, you can be fined for  thousands of Euros.

So just don't. Be a good citizen and see it from the ground, like the rest of us, normal, and no so normal people.

Desfiladero de los Gaitanes

Now the trip:

We took the exit from Marbella towards Ojen and followed the A-355, now, roads down here that start with an A, followed by a number, are usually roads designed by machiavellian artists whose hidden purpose seem to be depopulation, I mean, when the only thing separating you and the abyss, is a rail the height of a gnome, it makes you think.... but so it is, most roads that take you inland down here will lead you to the mountains, and you will surely find yourself being elevated at more or less speed, depending on the engine size of the car you drive.

Back to the trip..... we have now established the devilish nature of roads that begin with the letter A in this part of the world, however, there are exceptions, as in this one. The A-355 from Marbella to Coin is a rather nice drive, and very picturesque for the passangers, not for the driver, that will hopefully be paying attention to the road.

All the way to Ojen you are even granted a lane just for you, for slow moving vehicles, (that would be mine, thank you very much). There are two beautiful lookout stops on the way, make sure you stop on the first one, as the composition for a picture is better.

2nd lookout stop off the road, Ojen in the background

The landscape, as you drive off once you pass Ojen, turns somewhat ugly, with groups of houses here and there, lacking the usual charm that southern spanish mountain roads have, but be prepared for some really nice shots once you approach Alora, with its Castle on top of the hill, and the village in the valley, a really nice sight from the bottom, no so much so once you cross the town, that seems to dissipate as you drive pass on your way to El Chorro, and suddenly, Alora is gone!, so ye, take your shots before you drive up the road that will take you to the village, there are some spots right at the roundabout where the direction signs are located, see the picture below:

Your destination will be very close once you pass Alora, the road will narrow a bit, but the lack of traffic ensures an easy drive, (one of the positive sides of high gas prices.... the road is yours!).

Once you reach "El Chorro" it can be confusing as to where to go to, don't turn right, this will take you into the village which consists in three or four streets, and three hundred camping sites... (ok, maybe a few less than that.. ehem...), so ye, just keep going as you did not drive all the way up there to see three or four streets and 300 hundred camping sites, you want to see the cliff, and you will in 4 or 5 kilometers onwards.

There is a mini parking lot where you will be able to leave the car, if you are lucky, if not, I suppose you can leave it to the side of the road, it is narrow but very quiet, with only the ocasional lost tourist passing by.

You will take the best pictures walking up the road a bit, as nothing will be in the way between the Desfiladero and your camera.

That will pretty much be it. 

We did not keep driving up that road, but there are some ruins on the other side, if you have been, please, leave your comments below and let me know if it was worth the drive.

Sign at the entrance of the Village of "El Chorro"

The train runs over that bridge, imagine the views from there!