Santa Fe, NM & Chinle, AZ

Greetings! It’s been awhile since we’ve had time to update the blog - it’s been a whirlwind the last few weeks. After our overnight in Amarillo, we made our way to Santa Fe, NM – including a little off-roading along the way. It seems that “road construction” in the state of New Mexico literally means they are constructing a road…and you drive on gravel while they are working on putting in the pavement. After waiting in a long line of stopped cars for twenty minutes or so (and meeting a great couple from Iowa in the process), we proceeded to follow the cars in front of us through a maze of cones, trucks, and heavy equipment. We got a little nervous when the sign said “pavement ends”, but Rich did a great job four-wheeling us through the construction zone.

We were very excited to get to Santa Fe because our dear friends Tim and Michelle and their three children flew in to spend a few days with us. We spent one night at Bishop’s Lodge where the girls got to hang out with horses. We took a beautiful hike in the mountains, ate at a great little organic restaurant called The Treehouse, and wandered around Old Town admiring the Navajo art and jewelry. Michelle’s parents met up with us and we had a blast entertaining eleven people for dinner in the RV for four glorious days.

After Santa Fe, we all hit the road and drove to Chinle, AZ, to see Canyon De Chelly (pronounced Du Shay) which is in the northeast corner of Arizona on the Navajo Nation Indian Reservation. As we pulled into the campground praying for site long enough for our RV, our prayers were answered. However, in our excitement, we turned too quickly and hit a big rock that tore off part of a plastic grate that protects the radiator. Rich was not a happy camper. Fortunately, Michelle’s dad checked everything out and said it all looked fine. It really could have been a lot worse. Damaging the radiator would have been the worst case scenario, but we could have also easily ripped off the sewage pipe which would have really stunk :-) I’ll tell you about the van later…

Horseback riding is mandatory when you have three horse-crazy girls, so Michelle, Tim, I, and the girls, set out on an adventure of a lifetime exploring the canyon with our Navajo guide, John. He did an excellent job showing us around this beautiful land and sharing stories of his people and their connection to the canyon. It was an amazing blessing to be a guest in a place so rich in history and natural beauty. Words are completely inadequate, so I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

We are continually blessed us as we travel through each unique corner of creation. God’s handiwork is nothing short of spectacular and the variety of people He created in His image is magnificent . The earth is truly filled with His glory!