Zoning Out in Arizona

From Jody, more on the day we rode into Bluff, UT (Wed, Sept 19):

The time zones here are confusing.

New Mexico and Utah are in the Mountain Time Zone, as is Arizona. But Arizona doesn't observe Daylight Savings Time while the others do. And oh yes, Kayenta, AZ, while in the State of Arizona, is in the Navaho Nation, which DOES observe Daylight Savings Time. Get it? Yeah, thought so.

Anyway, I got up late. I had intended to start on the day's route at 6:30, after breakfast and brief discussions with Janie and Joe. However, we didn't get out of the hotel room until about 6:20. We found Joe in the lobby, a bit bleary eyed. He slept in The Little Darkness unbeknownst to us as the other hotel didn't have his reservation. And of course he didn't call us. He's a pro and a cool, uncomfortable night in a small car left him none the worse for wear.

Good thing I didn't leave early - I had forgotten to bring in my helmet and water bottles. Those items are essential for any bike ride. We ate, loaded the car and off I went, at 7:30, about fifteen minutes after sunrise. Kayenta's morning rush hour was maybe twenty vehicles in six blocks. And then I was on my way through Monument Valley. What a treat, glad Joe said we could change the route. When Peter built the original routes, he asked about this day in particular: would I rather have a shorter, hillier route or a longer, flatter route. I opted for longer and flatter. Glad we changed it after driving back from New Mexico. The hillier route was through Monument Valley (and really isn't any shorter), but the scenery of so many old cowboy movies, from John Wayne to other masterpieces, is worth the grind. Janie and Joe passed me in The Little Darkness about five miles into the route. I would see them down the road again and again.

Joe is vigilant about drinking plenty of fluids and eating enough while on the route. Peter and Nicole had also reminded me constantly about drinking and eating enough, but Joe is adamant. I did tell him about my encounter with a Native American elder, who gave me a new name, Drinks Little Water (at least it's better than Passes Little Water, which is also apt).

In addition to the breathtaking scenery, we also observed more hitchhikers, a common practice in the lands of the Native Americans and nowhere else I've seen in the past twenty plus years. Nope, no room on Jean Luc for passengers.
Plenty of cars, pickups and RVs on the route with only one commercial truck (a trash hauler) as apparently the big rigs are banned from this road and thankfully so. I saw plenty of motorcyclists, including a large group that Joe encountered from France, aboard rented Harleys. I saw the French tricolor (flag) behind one biker. Most drivers were courteous, providing plenty of roadway for me as they passed and occasionally waving or offering a polite horn toot. One pickup driver did come off a curve in the opposite lane, heading towards me, before he decided to return to his proper right hand lane.

I took photo after photo while riding, some actually came out okay. The pictures are fine, but the scenery is simply awesome. Coming down a steep descent, I saw Joe parked just in front of a bridge over the San Juan river in the town of Mexican Hat. He said he'd wait for Janie, who was only a few miles back, and he planned to transport her up the hill. I started across the bridge and up the nasty hill, when I realized that someone was stoking a fire along the riverbank and sending up smoke that would cause trouble for Janie. I doubled back and told Joe he should not wait there for Janie, downwind of the smoke as that would cause fits for Janie and her asthma. Halfway up the hill, they passed me in The Little Darkness. I kept grunting. A few miles later, the town's namesake rock is visible east of the highway.

Entering the town of Bluff, we were greeted by a sign, indicating that the Basketmaker Anasazi civilization of fifteen hundred years ago lived in the area. One local artist, JR Lancaster gave us a tour of his studio and remarked about the influence these early area residents have on his work. He gave us directions to view petroglyphs in situ and also drew us a map on his concrete floor with suggestions for tomorrow's route, which is also the route suggested by Lena last night.

You can see the map on Janie's post titled You've Got to Know When to Hold 'em.

Move out of your comfort zone.  You can only grow if you are wiling to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.
     ~Brian Tracy

And if that doesn't work, move out of your time zone.
     ~Janie Braverman, also confused about what time it is