Sunrise at Yaki PointFunny how a trip plan sometimes morphs into something totally different from whence you started. Originally my itinerary included Saguaro National Park, White Sands National Monument, Santa Fe, and Taos, but then Herb saw photos of the Bisti Badlands in the northwest corner of New Mexico, putting us much further north than our original intent.

So, I found some great stepping stones across northern Arizona and New Mexico, and all of a sudden “Voila,”we had a totally different trip.

Much of our trip was spent on the Colorado Plateau in the Navajo Nation, which made for some interesting Native American history and cultural exposure in addition to areas of incredible natural beauty.

I was quite pleased where the itinerary finally settled into place - Grand Canyon South Rim, Monument Valley, Goosenecks, Canyon de Chelly, Shiprock, Bisti Badlands, and Chaco Canyon.