Day 33, traversing the Navajo Reservation

This is where I slept last night. Great spot - completely hidden from the road and I was so tired that I didn't even need earplugs to silence the noise from the traffic. Not that there was much traffic.

Arrows in GIMP are difficult.

I stopped at a little trading post about 3 miles north to grab some coffee. The woman at the register suggested I take Route 20 through the reservation to Page, AZ - rather than stay on Highway 89.

Best advice ever.

The road is beautiful; nearly brand new pavement and barely any traffic. And it is completely desolate. 41 miles of nothing but road.

Just about the only sign of civilization after 3 hours of riding, a couple smokestacks. Or steam things. Whatever they are.

Just as I pulled into Page, Arizona, I spotted the telltale sign of a cycle tourist: the bike. I met Joseph, from Washington, traveling from Salt Lake City to San Diego. We have nearly the same route, except opposite. He inquired about the road to the Grand Canyon and I about getting through Utah.

Once again, he is another person that says you cannot miss Zion and Bryce Canyon. Those are the next stops - I just have to figure out what to do when the weather report says it will snow in three days... in Zion & Bryce Canyon.

Joseph had an awesome bell on his bike: a hamburger from a second hand bike shop. New goal: find an equally cool bell.

Joseph & I wished each other save travels and I rode over to the Walmart to grab a few groceries and saw this amazing camper van (if you can even call it a van). I've seen a lot of camper vehicles on the road, and this, by far, is the best.

It is a Fuso FG4x4 (Mitsubishi, I guess), with a custom camper option. It looks like it can handle just about any terrain.

And a side view

Originally, I thought that I would stay in Page, but the day was still young and I had energy left. Might as well pedal to Utah. I crossed the bridge over Lake Powell and behold, another dam!

Not nearly as cool as Hoover Dam, but still impressive.

And, just a few miles down the road, I crossed the border into Utah!

Utah is spectacular - the scenery is a stark change from the desert in Arizona

Joe