Navajo National Monument - Betataken Cliff Dwelling

Thursday May 23 - Sunday May 26th - Navajo National Monument
Sunset View Campground

On Thursday May 23rd, we checked out of our Jacob Lake Inn room and drove from there past the Vermillion Cliffs, toward the Navajo National Monument, home of the Betataken and Keet Seel Cliff Dwellings. We crossed over the Navajo Bridge and the very muddy, but rushing Colorado River and drove into the Native American reservation area. It was raining and hailing, but periodic glimpses of the sun through the black clouds gave promise of blue sky days to come. A view of Navajo Mountain in the distance followed along with us as we drove.

Crossing the muddy Colorado River

The famous Navajo Bridge

Our new camp spot - a view and warmth from the sun!

The deep canyon where the Betataken and Keet Seel cliff 
dwellings are accessible to hikers.

The Sunset View Campground road in the monument was paved! We were fortunate to avoid that sticky red clay mud! We located a perfect site #13 at the top of the hill, providing maximum sun and a great view and we set up camp there. We were coming into Memorial day weekend, but the campground was not yet crowded - thanks to it being virtually unknown to visitors from outside the area.

Our sunset canyon view

The view of Betataken from the top of the canyon

When we were in our 20's, we had visited the area and loved it and always knew we wanted to return here to hike down into the valley to see the cliff dwellings. This was a bucket list item, especially for me since I now had a new hip and wanted to test it out. The Betataken cliff dwelling was inhabited by the Ancient Puebloans (Anazasi) from approximately 1000 AD for only about 100 years. They raised crops in the valleys and relied on the rivers in the canyons for water. They moved out, most heading toward the Rio Grande river and other sites south, due, likely, to drought and dwindling food supplies. The Navajo, Zuni, and Hopi now living in the 4-corners area are thought to be their descendents.

On Saturday 5/25, we joined 13 other hikers and a National Park Guide on a 5 mile RT hike straight down into the cliff dwelling site and back up. The trek down was on a trail partly carved into the face of the rock on steps created by Navajo Nation members in the 1970's.  It was a little bit dicey for me due to the steep drop down and the slick rock face, but we both made it fine - down and back and I was proud that I had accomplished it. Ernie stuck with me, cheering me on the entire way.  Thank you! One senior hiker did have to get rescued by jeep near the top due to exhaustion, but I made it the whole way!  Yes! We were all fortunate the weather was cool and not in the 100's.

Starting the climb int the canyon

Crimson cactus blooms on the trail

Storage caches for food were discovered at the back.
Corn kernals used for seed can last up to 1000 years.

Massive cliff overhang protected them from sun and storms

Dwellings were carved from rock, bricks made of mud were 
used to build homes and food caches.

They created the bricks from local mud and stacked them using branches.

Groups of families lived together in these small dwellings.

Ready to return to the top

Most of the crowds at the park dispersed after the holiday and the little campground became deserted and quiet once again. This will always be a favorite place for us.

On Monday, 5/27 we will be driving over to Bryce. Since it sits at about 9,000 elevation, we are again expecting snow and rain and we have been watching the dark clouds and weather develop north of us for the past few days. Thank heavens we have had sun and warmth while we were here.

Heading north toward Bryce Canyon 
on our final day

Grand Canyon North Rim or Bust!

Monday May 20 - Wednesday May 22, 2019

We filled up with water (for drinking and trailer use) and  left the Kaibab Paiute RV Park and drove up Hwy 389 to Fredonia, then south on Hwy 89A to Jacob Lake where we stopped at the cafe for some bakery goods (we had heard that they had some great cookies). The clouds were building to the south and snow was just beginning to fall at 7000 ft. We intended to drive on to the Demott Campground just outside the park which sat at 8000+ feet - 40 more miles.  RV after RV topped with snow had passed us on the highway and an individual at the gas station advised us not to proceed since snow was predicted to fall until the weekend. He had just left the North Rim Campground and had 5 inches of snow on his truck and trailer - an Escape. He said the road had been closed that morning and previous evening. He indicated that it was really uncomfortable camping in those conditions.

We verified the road and weather conditions at the Jacob Lake Inn and then decided to have lunch there to discuss our options. We had 7 days reservations at Demott, but camping in 5 inches of snow and the related mud was not appealing to us.

We also checked at the front desk for vacancies and they were able to set us up with accommodations for the next three days (Yes!) We liked the cozy little inn and particularly liked how nicely the people there treated us, so that sounded ideal. Yummy food, a lovely dining room, nice accommodations, a cozy area to sit near a fire and an interesting gift shop, it all worked for us, so we changed our plans and walked over to the Visitor's Center nearby to cancel our camping reservations.

After lunch, we dropped our Casita in the rear parking lot, locked it up, and drove up the hill to the North Rim to see the canyon.  What we saw convinced us that our decision was sound and we were very pleased to have changed our plans.

The Demott Campground area - covered in snow

Viewing the Grand Canyon from the North Rim

Deck lounge chairs at the lodge - empty now with the snow.

The charming Jacob Lake Inn and Cafe

The charming Jacob Lake cafe interior with beautiful Navajo weaving artwork

One night while at the inn, I was fortunate to be able to attend a lecture on the Navajo Spider Woman story and her impact on Navajo weaving art and what makes these weavings so extraordinary. The stories and the culture were fascinating! Imagine weaving a 5 X 8 rug from wool spun from your own sheep (that you raised) and working on this artwork totally by memory without a written design, and finally completing this art piece after 6 long months... Whew!

Our Demott campsite - complete with snow and mud and 34 degree temps.
Check out al the other campers!

The clouds cleared briefly providing a spectacular view of the canyon below

Snowfall continued on our drive back from the lodge

On the second morning at the inn, snowfall covered all of vehicles.

Snow intensified on our second day driving up to the North Rim lodge.

Our  campsite covered in snow - beautiful, but daunting.

This is such a beautiful area, we really want to return sometime when the meadows are green and the sun is shining. We missed several wonderful drives around the canyon rim and missed out on the opportunity to stay at that normally ideal campground. We also missed out on hiking down into the canyon - at least for several hours. The canyon walls are gorgeous and we still want to have that experience again. We will be back!

On our last day there, we treated ourselves to a wonderfully relaxing lunch in the North Rim lodge dining room with its spectacular view over the canyon walls. Perfect!

Our plan for the rest of this week is to head down through Page to camp at the FCFS campground in the Navajo National Monument - formerly known as Betataken, to view the major cliff dwelling communities built within the canyon walls there. This has always been one of our favorite places to visit and because it is not well known, it should be relatively quiet, even over the usually busy Memorial Day holiday. We are also hoping for warmer weather there. We shall soon see!

A peek at what we expect to view tomorrow on our drive toward Betataken Thursday on May 23rd:

The Vermillian Cliffs - and the valley heading toward Page.

Hi there, Ava and Amelia! I will see you in August!

More Vermillian Cliffs

More to come next week on the Navajo National Monument and Betataken.

More Casita Adventures 2019!

Whiskey Flats RV Park just south of Walker Lake, NV

On the Road Again!

Tuesday, May 14, 2019 - Sunday May 20, 2019

We had packed up everything we thought we needed for a trip through our favorite parks in the southwest and the Rockies - far too much food, extra warm layers of coats and fleece for the unexpected snow and rain we knew we'd encounter at 8000+ feet elevation and additional quilts to layer on our bed for those chilly, windy nights. We are lucky, since this tiny egg-like capsule of fiberglass protection is effective at retaining heat and quick and easy to warm up when the temperatures do plummet outside. The winter of 2018 had been long and cold in the Sierra mountains and we were wary that the summer of 2019 would be late, cool and short as well. We brought shorts and  swim suits hoping that we would see some warm days, but after that cold long winter, we had to be realists.

We bid a sad farewell to our lovely family - our two daughters and their partners who live close by and to our two beautiful, cherished granddaughters. We are just going to be gone for three months, but for children of 2 and 5, that can be a lifetime of adventures and growth for us to miss. We hope soon, in the future, as they grow up, we will be able to bring at least one of them along with us each summer.

We began the first week of our trip with short hops between destinations, just to get our feet wet again for this camping and traveling thing.  On these trips, we live daily in such a small space, things as simple as getting ready in the morning must be coordinated and timed like a dance, so that we don't irritate each other constantly. Fortunately, after being married 42 years, adjusting our behavior comes pretty easily.

Our  first day lunch stop - historic Fort Churchill Nevada State Park picnic site

From Dutch Flat we headed out across Nevada toward  the Valley of Fire Nevada State Park. The first RV stop Tuesday evening - Whiskey Flats RV Park, Hawthorne, Nevada, off of Hwy 95 is just east of Death Valley National Park. Hwy 95 is long and desolate - as are many roads in Nevada, but we always enjoy the transition that Nevada brings - that sense of a new adventure and seeing fewer people than we typically see daily in California. We tend to fall in love with places that have low populations, so for us, this constitutes a happy start to our trip.

The RV park worked well - it offered a nice clean restroom with a hot shower and a grassy spot just outside our door, where we could cook dinner and watch the sun go down. The relative quiet at night from the road noise and other campers was an added bonus.

A nice view, clean hot showers and quiet - great way to start the trip!

On Wednesday, May 15th, we drove south along hwy 95 toward Spring Mountain Nevada State Park and the Mc Williams Campground - at 8000 ft. elevation. Because we awoke early, at 6:00 a.m., Ernie treated us to an ol'fashioned Hawthorne El Capitan Casino breakfast  - complete with eggs, bacon and hash browns. Not a healthy breakfast, but a classic way to start the day.

Hwy 95 was easy to follow and after driving through a desert of Joshua trees and gold/silver discovery towns, we arrived at our reserved site in the McWilliams campground in the early afternoon. It was cool and windy (typical of the days to follow), but the site was nice and the snow level remained above us.

Quick stop for gas near the Death Valley intersection offered roses, candy, ice cream, and beer - what else do you need?

McWilliams camping - plenty of hiking options for the future

Mountain top view with ski trails

On Thursday, May 16th, we left early, drove through Las Vegas, turned onto Hwy 15, then headed east and south to the Valley of Fire State Park. We arrived there at 10:00 a.m. and found an ideal camping site - situated up against the water-carved red rock walls, somewhat protected from the wind and above the other sites. It was also close to the shower. Perfect! For the next three days, we explored the numerous trails and sites in the park:

Rainbow Canyon vista

CCC 1930's housing for the original Arrowhead Auto Trail drivers and their families

White Domes stroll

The evening desert landscape

Rainbow sandstone stripes

Twisted rock

Campsite perfection

Cactus exhuberance

Slot canyon hike

Magic water action on sandstone

 More sandstone art.

A paradise for young climbers!

Abundant rain this past winter has encouraged the plants.

Gila Monster chamo matched the sand; they only bite if you try to hold them...not!

Dusk settles quietly on the red rock walls

On Sunday, May 19th, we headed over via Hwy 15 east to the Kaibab Paiute RV Park to spend a night which would position us to visit the North Rim of the Grand Canyon the following week. That night, thunder and lightening hit and we were pummeled by the not-so-subtle pounding of a steady stream of hail and rain on fiberglass. The temperature dropped into the 40's and the weather report indicated a week of rain and snow to follow. Not good, when we would be heading to 9000 feet elevation on the next day. So happy we brought those blankets and extra coats!

This RV park was run by the first nation people of the Kaibab Paiute tribe and it was super clean, well organized and provided excellent services.  We will be back!

On Monday, May 20th, we ventured into the North Rim of the Grand Canyon National Park planning to stay for 7 days at the Demotte USFS campground there. Our plans immediately changed when we discovered that 5 inches of snow had fallen the night before and the campground was buried and muddy. Not our idea of an enjoyable camping experience, so we immediately stopped for lunch and bakery goods at the charming Jacob Lake Cafe and readjusted our plans. Being a cookie monster has its benefits!