Road Trip USA 2024 Southwest, Part 1

The summer of 2024 was set to be another thrilling adventure as we embarked on a road trip through the breathtaking landscapes of the Southwest USA. Our epic journey would begin in the vibrant city of San Diego, the perfect starting point for our unforgettable journey.

This time, we booked a flight with Air Canada, AC 839, from Frankfurt via Vancouver. The price was unbeatable.

Before diving in, I need to quickly share how thoughtless one can be when booking tickets. Our last name contains an umlaut, and we booked using the version with the umlaut. Everyone except us probably knows that the name is recorded in machine-readable text on the bottom two lines of a passport, unsurprisingly without umlauts.

Well, a remarkably kind and competent lady at Air Canada changed the name on the tickets for me just one day before departure. We noticed the issue because the names on the ETA and ESTA were in the correct spelling, and I couldn’t check in online as the booking system couldn’t find the ETA or ESTA.

(ETA = Electronic Travel Authorization for Canada, similar to the US ESTA, but valid for 5 years—a must-have.)

Vancouver

In 9.5 hours later, the 787 had taken us to Vancouver. For those who have never traveled to the USA via Canada: US immigration takes place in Canada.

Everything went according to plan up to this point.
Unfortunately, our connecting flight’s aircraft was defective. We had to collect our luggage, “re-enter” Canada from the USA, and head to the Air Canada desk.

This is one of the reasons we always try to fly with full-service airlines; we were rebooked on an evening flight to San Diego, our actual destination, instead of being left stranded, as is often the case with budget airlines. Armed with vouchers, we spent six hours killing time at the airport.

Can bad luck get worse? Claudia left her iPad on the plane. We tried our luck with a “lost item file” at Air Canada, but more on that later.

A small plane with just 40 passengers took off with us into the sunset, out over the Pacific. Night fell quickly. The plane didn’t offer the option to track the route on a monitor, so we tried to guess based on the illuminated towns below. The many bright lights to the port side must have been Los Angeles, as it grew much darker afterward—likely Camp Pendleton. Descent began, bright lights on the port side again—La Jolla—and then, to starboard, we had a view of Downtown San Diego and the Coronado Bridge. Two 90° turns to the right, and we were on final approach.

We actually made it to San Diego before midnight, picked up our rental car, and went grocery shopping. By 12:30 AM, after over 30 hours of travel, we were finally at the Casita, the guesthouse with the family.

San Diego, Day 1

After a few hours of sleep, we had another marathon day ahead of us: Tuna Harbor, picking up the kids and grandchild, swapping the rental car, and hosting dinner for 28 people.

Has anyone ever started making potato salad at 5:00 in the morning?

On top of that, we needed fish—though not for the potato salad. San Diego has a fish market on Saturdays from 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM, the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market. It doesn’t get any fresher than this! If you’re into seafood in any shape or form, you’ve got to check it out—it’s amazing.

We got ourselves some Yellowfin Tuna and a generous portion of Mahi Mahi, also known as dolphinfish or dorado. With a cooler in the car and a good amount of ice thrown in for free, the transport was sorted.

I dropped Claudia off at the airport afterward and drove to the Rental Car Center to exchange the car. As expected, the booked car wasn’t available, and we ended up with a massive Chevy Traverse. Claudia was not amused.

The kids and Claudia soon arrived as well, picked up their car, and off we went to La Jolla. After all, we had a dinner to prepare. Our son-in-law, an Italian Chef with a fancy restaurant in Berlin, took the lead with the fish—thank you, Davide. Claudia and Anna took care of the potato salad and the pasta Bolognese. I had the Mahi-Mahi part.

To keep it short: we had a wonderful evening with lots of people, and apart from a bit of potato salad and pasta, there was nothing left of the food.

San Diego, Day 2

Not much is happening today. Morning walk, and afterwards, we’re heading to the Las Americas Outlets at the Mexican border, across from Tijuana.
The food trucks lined up in the large parking lot are highly recommended. We love Mexican food.

On the way back, we’re taking a detour to Coronado for our young folks. This small part of San Diego reflects, for us, the idyllic American world.
A quick stop at Scoops in La Jolla, and then the past days take their toll in the form of an afternoon nap.
The evening promises a beautiful sunset over the Pacific, which we enjoy together at the Glider Port in La Jolla.

An email from Air Canada informs us that Claudia’s iPad has been found. For the “small” sum of CAD $142, we can have it sent to San Diego.

Tomorrow, the road trip begins…

Roadtrip, Day 1

Today’s plan includes the drive from San Diego to Holbrook, Arizona, approximately 560 miles.
At Ralph’s in La Jolla, we stock up for the trip and fill our cooler with ice. It’s going to be a long day.

On Interstate 8, we cross the mountains behind the coast and reach the Imperial Valley, one of the hottest places in August. Traveling along the border with Mexico, the road takes us through Yuma and eventually to a fuel stop in Dateland, where the only shade is provided by the photovoltaic roofs of a Tesla charging station.

In Gila Bend, we leave the I-8 toward Phoenix but take the opportunity to stop at the local museum, knowing it has a decent restroom. There’s not much to say about the traffic in and around Phoenix. If people are already driving 80 mph in a 65 mph zone and causing traffic problems, we wonder where the strict rules of the past have gone.

Soon, we head northeast on Highway 87 into the mountains. The temperatures slowly begin to drop, but truly, only slowly. Over these mountains, we can see the first rain and thunderstorm clouds of the Southwest Monsoon. We’re now in the Tonto National Forest. In Payson, we turn onto Highway 260. Fortunately, the heavy thunderstorms don’t fully catch us, though the lightning show is admittedly impressive.

The vegetation has noticeably shifted from desert to forest. After a long wait in traffic, the car climbs the Mogollon Rim /ˌmoʊ.gəˈyoʊn ˈrɪm/, and we are now in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest. We’ve reached the lower edge of the Colorado Plateau. On Highway 377, we arrive in Holbrook and check into our hotel, GreenTree Inn.

It is to late for a drive to Painted Desert to see it in evening light. The National Park closes it’s gates 30 minutes before sunset.
Anyway, it has been a long, long day. Time to hit the sack.

Roadtrip, Day 2

Holbrook – Chinle

We have completed the long distances for the time being. Today’s first destination is the Petrified Forest National Park. Here, we are buying the Eagle Pass, also called America the Beautiful. It costs $80 and grants access to all National Parks and National Monuments for a full year.

Yesterday was “Back to School” day for Americans. The majority of tourists are gone, and we almost have the Petrified Forest to ourselves.

Unfortunately, the light leaves a lot to be desired. From yesterday’s heavy thunderstorms, a dense cloud cover hangs over us, from which sometimes even a few drops fall.
The park takes its name from fossilized trees that must have stood on the banks of a lake or river about 225 million years ago, in the Triassic period. If these trees fall into the mud or similar and are cut off from the supply of oxygen, they cannot decompose and the biological material is replaced over millions of years by SiO2 from siliceous groundwater. The many different colors of the logs are caused by all kinds of oxides that were contained in the water.

You’ve absolutely got to visit the visitor center and walk the Crystal Forest Trail! The only thing to consider is how much time you have and what the temperature is like.
In this park, you’ll also find traces of Native American inhabitants, the foundations of their houses, and petroglyphs (stone carvings). These petroglyphs accompany us throughout the Colorado Plateau, and most of them are around 500 to 700 years old.

The journey continues to Window Rock. This small town is the capital of the Navajo Nation, the Diné people. It takes its name from a rock with a hole in it, a window.

The town has administrative buildings, a university and, directly in front of Window Rock, the monument to the Navjo code talkers. August 14 is Code Talker Day, when these special naval infantrymen are honored. Based on a linguist’s idea, the US Marine Corps trained and deployed more than 400 Navajo during World War II.

The complex and unwritten language of this people was used to develop a code language that could not be deciphered by the Japanese, which was transmitted by open voice radio and did not have to be time-consuming to encode and decode; 20 seconds versus 30 minutes for 3 lines of text.

We drive on towards Chinle. In retrospect, we are glad we didn’t drive via Fort Defiance and Sawmill as planned. Part of this route would have been unpaved; not a good idea after the rain. On the way, a cow unexpectedly stands in the middle of the road and doesn’t move away despite the horns of oncoming traffic. Always pay attention!

Our destination in Chinle is the Canyon de Chelly. Conveniently, our hotel, the Thunderbird Lodge, is right at its entrance. This resort is highly recommended. It is run by Navajo and is not part of one of the big hotel chains.

In the afternoon, the southern edge of the canyon is the better choice in terms of light. In many places, cul-de-sacs lead to the edge of the canyon. You can only get in on a guided tour, which unfortunately we don’t have time for. The valley floor is privately owned and the Navajo have a great respect for privacy.

The highlight is Spider Rock, two 240 m high rock needles. Legend has it that Spider Woman, who taught the Navajo the art of weaving, lives there.
Before the Navajo, the Anasazi and later the Hopi lived at the bottom of the canyon.

Roadtrip, Day 3

Chinle – Moab

After yesterday’s thunderstorms, the new day greets us with fresh, clean air and plenty of sunshine. We get a coffee at reception and see a car that has come via the Indian Route mentioned yesterday. The pickup truck is completely covered in red mud. The Traverse certainly wouldn’t have managed that.

We want to take a detour today, so 250 mls are on the plan. On our 2019 road trip, we drove past Ship Rock some distance away. This rock, of volcanic origin, stands out prominently in the landscape and has its legend in the Navajo culture.

We continue along the northern edge of Canyon de Chelly to the Lukachukai Mountains. The road follows the undulations of the terrain. Everything is green and wet. Many of the plants are juniper bushes.
We make a short stop at the foot of the mountains. Next to the road, our tires are immediately covered in a thick, wet layer of red soil.

The road soon winds steeply up into the mountains. It is the shortest connection from Chinle to Shiprock and on to Farmington. We have read that it is cleared late in winter after snowfalls and becomes impassable. Drive it and you will know why and please watch out for loose cattle.

Behind the pass we find a viewpoint and have a unique view. The top of Spider Rock peeks out of a thick blanket of mist. One of these “Wow” and open mouth moments.

Ship Rock

The sun has burned the fog away. We have breakfast on the edge of the volcanic ridge that stretches all the way to Ship Rock. The awesome silence is only disturbed by a few passing cars.
Tsé Bitʼaʼí, “rock with wings” is the Navajo name for the mountain. According to legend, the Diné people were brought here from the north on the back of a bird, which then remained on the plain.
The rock is sacred to them. Unfortunately, climbers often try unsuccessfully to reach the summit. As a result, it takes more than just a medicine man to drive away the spirits of the dead.

After breakfast, we drive north on the 13 to the junction with the 491. It takes us through Shiprock NM and then into Colorado. Our next destination is Cortez in Colorado. From there we could reach the San Juan Mountains.

End of part 1

Continue to part 2

Which cameras did we use?
Leica Q (Typ 116), M10 with assorted lenses, Nikon D850 and 24-70mm