After spending a wonderful day at the Grand Canyon, on Day 5 we got an early start and drove east along Desert View Drive. We stopped at the Desert View Visitor Center where got some breakfast, and then said goodbye to the Grand Canyon, and then headed east into the Navajo Nations. When we were planning our trip, this was the day I was most excited about. If you’ve ever spent time that area, you will probably have a sense of how magical the area is. There is the Little Colorado Gorge, Monument Valley, the San Juan river, and the sky there can be epic.

After leaving the Grand Canyon, we first stopped at the Little Colorado Gorge. It turned out to be not very wheelchair friendly so I didn’t get any photos, but it was cool to see again. We then continued east on Hwy. 160, stopped for lunch in Kayenta for lunch, then turned north on Hwy. 163 towards Monument Valley. On all my previous trips through that area, I had never taken the time to go through Monument Valley, so I was very excited to be going there. We still had quite a ways to drive that day so we weren’t able to spend too much time at Monument Valley, but we enjoyed the time we were there, and I was able to make a few photos that I really like.

We left Monument Valley around 7:00 PM, and headed for our final destination of the day, Cortez, Colorado. We had hoped to stop at Four Corners (only spot in the US where four states meet) but when we finally reached the turnoff, the park had closed a few hours earlier. I think it was nearly 10:00 PM when we finally pulled in to Cortez. We checked into our hotel, ate a very late dinner at a 24hr Denny’s, and finally to sleep so we could be ready for another day of adventure.

Here are some photos from the day,



Grand Canyon from Desert View

Zenza Bronica ETRSi w 135W back

Zenzanon MC 40/4

B+W Circular Polarizer

Kodak Ektar 100



Agathla Peak

Zenza Bronica ETRSi

Zenzanon EII 75/2.8

Kodak Ektar 100



Somewhere Near Kayenta

Zenza Bronica ETRSi

Zenzanon EII 75/2.8

Kodak Ektar 100



Monument Valley

Pacemaker Speed Graphic 4×5

Kodak Ektar 127/4.7

Kodak Ektar 100

Monument Valley #2

Zenza Bronica ETRSi w 135W back

Zenzanon EII 75/2.8

Kodak Ektar 100



Monument Valley #3

Zenza Bronica ETRSi

Zenzanon MC 150/4

Kodak Ektar 100



Monument Valley #4

Rolleiflex 2.8C

Carl Zeiss Planar 80/2.8

Kodak Ektachrome 64X

Leaving Monument Valley

Zenza Bronica ETRSi w 135W back

Zenzanon EII 75/2.8

Kodak Ektar 100