Going Out of Town

Cow Springs Trading Post with an old Standard Oil Products sign still standing in front of this now disappearing relic on the Navajo Reservation in northeast Arizona

Not much left of the old Cow Springs trading post and gas station here on Highway 160 between Tuba City and Kayenta, Arizona. The condition of things makes one wonder how long they have been closed. Standard Oil was a company founded by John D. Rockefeller in 1870 that was broken up with a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1911. So, it’s possible that this sign has stood there for more than 100 years. Though, I’m probably way off with this summation as Route 66 was still years away from being built, and Ford’s Model-T was just barely a few years into production. Add to this that the breakup of Standard Oil resulted in 34 baby Standards; maybe the sign is only a mere 75-ish years old.

A billboard on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona telling us that uranium workers are eligible for in home nursing at no expense to the person hurt by uranium poisoning

Still on the road out of Arizona, traveling through the Navajo Reservation. Just outside of Kayenta, we passed and then turned around to grab a photo of this billboard. Ya’at’eeh is the Navajo greeting of Hello, but that’s not the most interesting part of the sign. The billboard reads, “Uranium Workers – In-Home Nursing At No Expense To You.” I’d like to say that makes me feel good that people who have dug out the 3.9 million tons of uranium ore and subsequently showed signs of uranium poisoning and increased cancers are now being taken care of. But, it wasn’t until the year 2000 that folks on the Rez were told of the dangers, and then it would be another 11 years before cleanup efforts began. I guess the whole “out of sight, out of mind” thing works great for those who benefited from the nuclear energy and weaponry that gave us convenience and security at the expense of a bunch of Indians who now get some in-home care to deal with their misfortune. But I shouldn’t let this sad story get in the way of enjoying a road trip; time to speed back on down the highway.

El Capitan rock out in the center of the photo. This rock is north of Kayenta on the way to Monument Valley on the Arizona / Utah border

Off in the distance, we spot El Capitan. As one drives north out of Kayenta on the way to Monument Valley, this towering rock is one of the first truly large monuments seen before entering Monument Valley. The small spire on the left of the photo is Owl Rock. We are heading towards Teec Nos Pos, the last town on the way out of Arizona, before passing through Four Corners and entering New Mexico. We’ll only drive 1 mile through New Mexico before the road enters Colorado. After that, we’ll soon be on the Ute Reservation. You know you are in Ute country when you see a mountain range that looks like a face in profile lying on its back – the Sleeping Ute.

Wildflowers north of Vallecito Reservoir about 30 miles northeast of Durango, Colorado

No denying that we have left the desert. We are in the mountain meadows of the Durango, Colorado area. Caroline and I have driven the 478 miles (770km) into the San Juan mountain range for Caroline to attend a workshop over at the Fort Lewis College campus in Durango. We have stayed in Durango plenty of times and taken the train to Silverton our fair share of times, too. For this visit, I decided that we should stay out on a lake, away from the metropolis of the little mountain town down the hill.

The view of Vallecito Reservoir from out cabin on the boat dock at the 5 Branches Camper Park

We are checked in and admiring the view of Vallecito Reservoir from our cabin. The specific location of our small cabin is on the boat dock at Five Branches Camper Park north of Bayfield, Colorado. We’ll be staying five nights, and with any luck, we might find ourselves one of these days out on a kayak exploring the lake. For now, we are thrilled with our location and the tremendous view.

Caroline Wise pulling down our Murphy Bed at Five Branches Camper Park on Vallecito Reservoir in Bayfield, Colorado

A monumental day for Caroline; she is pulling down the Murphy Bed, the first time she has ever slept in one. I would have to characterize her as being “tickled” that she gets to pull our bed out of the wall. Pushing it back up proved funny; she got stuck under the weight of it without the ability to put it back down or push it far enough up – so she yelled for me. The cabin is only $65 a night, but you had better reserve early as this cabin and the park, in general, fill up early for the short season when they are open.

— Update: in 2023, there’s a minimum 1-week stay, and the rate has ballooned to $143 per night.

Dinner on the dock at Five Branches Camper Park on Vallecito Reservoir in Bayfield, Colorado

There is a private corner of the dock that features a BBQ grill and a table with a couple of chairs. The entire dock is closed off after 5:00 p.m. to ensure our privacy. After a lengthy delay in getting some faulty briquettes burning, we finally had a hot grill that let me put Caroline’s veggie burgers on next to my hunk of cow flesh and a couple of ears of corn. After arriving at the cabin, I put some potatoes on to boil for potato salad – no, I do not go the lazy way of buying off-the-grocery-shelf tater salad. Our dinner was all smiles with a gorgeous backdrop to the day. It was yummy, too.

Sunset over Vallecito Reservoir at Five Branches Camper Park in Bayfield, Colorado

The day finished its performance before turning over the lake to evening with a small bit of color floating on the water. We sat on the dock with some of the most polite mosquitoes we have encountered, but only for about 20 minutes before they decided good manners would only be extended so far. Then we were fair game. Sorry guys, but we’ll have to disappoint you and run for the indoors away from your greedy little proboscides.

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