August 31, Monument Valley, UT

Heading into Monument Valley - hints of what was about to come.

As we drive on, the sights become even more intriguing.

We get to Goulding's Campground and start our exploration.

Everything here is red like the color of Georgia clay; that's because of all the sandstone. The campground looked deserted, but by 5 or 6PM it was almost full. Every part of the built environment here blends in with the landscape and creates a unified, unspoiled, natural environment. Joe's shirt even blends in with the background!

They have cabins here too. My brother, Larry would love this.

Soon a thunder storm rolls in and we retreat to our RV.

This waterfall was not there 10 minutes ago! These storms are usually short-lived, so we still had time to go over to the Gouldings Lodge. A shuttle takes us from the campground to the Lodge area. There are several buildings on the Gouldings property.

There is the John Wayne Cabin. That's not him going inside, that's Cowboy Joe! If you didn't already know, John Ford produced many western movies out here, starring John Wayne. This cabin was the set for the movie "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon". Inside it was very dark and the mud floor was wet from the rain, but it was just what an old 1800's cabin might look like.

Although it is now a museum, this is where Harry Goulding and his wife Leone (nicknamed Mike) lived in 1928. Initially, they used tents for the trading post, prior to building the present one. They had a unique relationship with the Navajo to the benefit of both. Goulding traded food, household necessities and livestock in exchange for rugs, pottery and jewelry.

This old gas pump was actually used to fuel the vehicles in the valley.
This was a shelter used for gatherings outside the trading post.
There's just no stopping Joe; he walked right up, hand on hip and said "Howdy partner".

There were several old stagecoaches.

The man on the left with the red shirt and cowboy hat is Jonah. He was our shuttle driver and was just brimming with information and legends of the Navajo. The fellow in the black shirt and cowboy hat told us his grandfather was in some of the movies filmed here.

We also watched two films in the theatre. The first one was a poetic, musical and graphic tribute to the land of Monument Valley and the other was the story of Harry and Leone Goulding.

As the sun set in the west, we rode back home to prepare for our grand tour of the Valley the next day. We love this place already!