4 Corners

A few years ago the guilt from spending almost every waking weekend moment with James and from taking him all over creation to race finally got to me.  I told Christopher he could pick anywhere in the US and just the two of us would go.  Without hesitation he chose The Alamo.  (And, I just realized I never posted about that - something for you all to look forward to.)  When we got to San Antonio (in July) Christopher realized we wouldn't be staying for the entire week.  He immediately told me we had to go somewhere else for the rest of "his week."

The choice was 4 Corners.  Christopher is keeping a map of the U.S. with push pins for the states he's been to.  You can see where this is going.  By going to 4 Corners, he was able to add four states at one time.  So, to 4 Corners we headed.  His dad wanted to go with us, but it was pretty clear that this was supposed to just be Mommy and Christopher.

With my kazillions of Delta miles, we went first class.  The flight to Albuquerque was so much better up front.  From Albuquerque, which sits in the shadow of the Sandia Mountains, we drove northwest toward 4 Corners Monument.  (For anyone who knows the  Jonathan Park series, these are THE Sandia Mountains.  If you don't know JP and you have children, let me know.  It's a great audio series.) 

Our first stop was at the Coronado State Park.  They had some partial recreations of pueblos, the first of what seemed like hundreds we came across.  It was also right beside the Rio Grande.  I left hoping the wind would die down and that it would warm up.

We went through hours of dry, windy nothingness.  This rock caught our attention.  It was really flat and you could see this jutting up for hours and hours of drive time.  We ultimately determined it was Shiprock.  There's a small town by that name.  Since we've been back, I've seen a couple of references to it.

We finally made it to 4 Corners.  I just thought it was windy close to the state park.  We picked up a bit of altitude and the wind was more than brisk.

We did what we came do to.  Christopher was in Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico all at the same time.  Four more pins.  We weren't done, though.  We had lots more to see.

Our first stop was in Flagstaff.  Elevation was 6,000 feet or so.  Hiking made me quite winded, but CBT was still wanting to hike.  You can see a quick clip of him here.

Our first stop on our second day of sightseeing was at Sunset Crater.  It was kind of neat because Keith visited there years ago when he was in college.  

From Sunset Crater to Wutapki National Monument....an another series of pueblos.  I couldn't imagine living out there, but somehow they did.

Then....there it was.  The Grand Canyon.  I remember thinking when I saw it before that I just didn't feel like I really understood have vast and magnificent it is.  I just stood there and looked.  So amazing.

Christopher and I found that we have something in common.  A fear of heights.  The Grand Canyon could only hold our interest for so long.  The racing heart and having to get up the courage to face your fear can only happen so many times in a short period time.

Christopher did a little better with getting close to the edge than I did.  He is always so diligent to try to face his fears.  So proud of him.

The morning we got an early start.  First stop was Walnut Canyon.  Not nearly as massive as the Grand Canyon, but steep drop offs just the same.  I think it was about 4,000 feet deep....definitely enough that I only felt secure with handrails.

The second stop was at Meteor Crater.  It's the largest crater from a meteor that has been preserved.  Its depth is about the same as a 60-story building.  20 football ball fields would fit across the bottom.  Another case of my mind just not being able to take it in.  The one thing my mind did take in was that it was crazy cold and windy.  I really wasn't prepared for the really cold mornings.

Another place Keith stopped on his trip was Winslow, AZ.  For any of you that are Eagles fan, this is the corner in Winslow, but we didn't see a flatboard truck.  It was kind of fun to make this detour.

Last official stop was the Petrified Forest and the Painted Desert.  Pictures nor words can really do them just so I won't try.  We just enjoyed spending the day together.  Toward the end of the day, Christopher was ready to be home.  Three to four days is about all he really enjoys away from home.

It was a great trip - 1,100 miles in three days - and lots of good memories!