Saturday, March 24, 2012

A Monumental Saturday Snapshot

Saturday Snapshot is a meme hosted by Alyce on her blog, At Home With Books. Here are the ground rules:

To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme post a photo that you (or a friend or family member) have taken then leave a direct link to your post in the Mister Linky on At Home With Books. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don’t post random photos that you find online.

A few years ago, as a birthday/anniversary gift, Denis treated me to three days up in Monument Valley-- complete with an all-day guided tour. The tour not only went through the parts that have become famous the world over, but also took us through Mystery Canyon, the part of Monument Valley that can only be seen if you're accompanied by a Navajo guide. Mystery Canyon is filled with ancient ruins and is every bit as glorious as Monument Valley itself. Click on any of the photos to view them in larger sizes.


One of the ancient ruins in Mystery Canyon

John Ford Point, Monument Valley

Male and female hogans, Monument Valley

I will never tire of Monument Valley!

54 comments:

  1. Oh, Cathy, these are remarkable 'photos!!! Wow! What a wonderful birthday gift! And thanks for sharing.

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    1. Since my wedding anniversary and my birthday are on the same day, Denis tends to do some very special things. The first year, he took me up in a hot air balloon!

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  2. MAGNIFICENT shots!! Wow - what a great trip. You did some really good photography too. I am glad that I got to see these this morning :)

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  3. That looks like a fantastic place to visit! I would never get tired of it either :)

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    1. So much of the landscape changes color throughout the day, depending upon the sunlight.

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  4. I've never been there. Your photos make the place look so intriguing. I especially like that last photo.

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    1. It is intriguing, and its history is fascinating.

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  5. That tour sounds fantastic! Did you go on horseback?

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    1. I would've been willing to give it a go, but I'm not sure how Denis would've felt about it! No, we traveled in a large 4WD truck.

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    1. There is something "monumental" about the place, isn't there? :-)

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  7. Wow, your photos are wonderful. I've never been there but would love to see it!

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    1. Once you see it for yourself, you never forget it, Beth.

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  8. Wonderful birthday present for you! I would love to see these places in person. The scope of it all would make a person feel very small I think.

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    1. I never feel small when I'm up there. I feel connected to all things. It's difficult to explain.

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  9. That looks like an amazing place to visit. And I love wandering around in ancient ruins. I want to go! It's been too many years since I last traveled out west.

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  10. I have never been there, but now I want to go...beautiful shots! Thanks for sharing; and here's MY SATURDAY SNAPSHOT

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  11. What great photos. I've just seen the more well known parts of Monument Valley, I have to go back and see Mystery Canyon too.
    Thanks for sharing.

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    1. You'd never believe Mystery Canyon exists as you travel down the highway that goes right past it!

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  12. Beautiful!!! I would love to visit there!
    What a good husband you have to plan that trip for you!

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  13. Gorgeous photos. I love the one with the horse and rider. I can see why you'd never get tired of Monument Valley.

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    1. There's always something new to see there, Mary.

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  14. I love the photo with the horse--the scale is just breathtaking!

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    1. The sky is huge, the rock formations are huge. Humans aren't meant to feel All Important there.

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  15. I've never been there, but I think photos of Monument valley are awesome and I have a few as backgrounds on my computer.

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    1. I use some of my photos taken there as wallpapers for my computer, too. :-)

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  16. That looks amazing! I would so want to go there!

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  17. Absolutely stunning photos! Looks like I'll have to make an addition to my bucket list.

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    1. It's an excellent bucket list item, Eugenia!

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  18. What a fantastic trip..great photos..

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  19. Monument Valley. AMAZING! What an incredibly gift. These pictures are so great.

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    1. Monument Valley can make anyone feel like a photographer. I've shared many more photos through Wordless Wednesday. :-)

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  20. That looks like an incredible trip! What a wonderful gift in beautiful surroundings! I really need to travel more. I've never been anywhere that's even similar to that. Thanks for sharing your photos! :)

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  21. Gorgeous photos. I can see why you never tire of it- the landscape is astonishing and I imagine that the colours of the rocks change with the changing light too.

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    1. Yes, they do. One evening, the butte near our hotel room was shades of bright pink and rose... breathtaking!

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  22. I particularly love the pic of John Ford Point with the rider enjoying the scenery too - epic photography!

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    1. I think one reason why that photo is a favorite is because it truly shows a sense of the scale of the place.

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  23. These are all such great pics but wow, that first one. Such an incredible example of erosion.

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    1. There are many ojos de dios in Mystery Canyon, too. Many of them were used for sacred ceremonies.

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  24. Magnificent pictures! I am always humbled by the powerful beauty of nature.

    :)

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  25. Wow!!! Great pictures! Monument Valley looks so great. Thx for sharing!

    Thx for hoppin' by my Saturday! :-D

    I'd like to upload some of your pix on my Pinterest board - they'll link back to your website. http://pinterest.com/burgandyice/favorite-places-spaces/

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  26. Some nice places to take a camera here, aren't there? ;-)

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