I’m getting a little behind in posting entries because I haven’t had time and been too knackered in the morning and evening. On average, we’ve been getting up about 7:30 in the morning and getting to a motel around 11 at night, which has made for long days. Thursday, we left Albuquerque, New Mexico for Flagstaff, Arizona. One of the most interesting things about driving across the country is that you get to see the land change gradually: from lush, green, forested hills in the east; to flat, brown-green plains in the midwest; and now to a land of flat brown dust and rock, dotted with small, dull green bushes, and vividly intersected by towering red outcroppings of rock. I’d carry on describing the land and such, but we’re in a hurry to get out the door and go see the Grand Canyon. Here are some photos from Thursday; I’ll try and post photos from yesterday tonight.

Our main stop along the way to Flagstaff was the Petrified Forest/Painted Desert national park. Arizona really has such stunning land and vistas. Photos do it poor service, of course, but at least you can get an idea of what I was looking at. Visibility out here was about a hundred miles. They said on a good day you could see a set of peaks 120 miles away.

Dad, the consummate photographer, capturing the dramatic view.

Another gorgeous thing about Arizona is the beautiful sky. The air is dry and clear, so sun is bright, the sky is a vivid blue, and the clouds look like paintings.

A tumble of petrified logs. The petrified wood isn’t that impressive at first glance, because it looks quite like normal wood from a distance. On closer inspection, though, it’s remarkable how the giant pieces of wood have completely turned to stone. Unfortunately, a lot of the most colorful crystals were stolen in the late 19th and early 20th century by tourists and people selling gems. They even blasted apart a number of the logs in order to get at the best crystals inside.

A closer view of some petrified wood. This area is called the Crystal Forest, but much of the color that gave it its name has been stolen.

Finally, a gorgeous sunset to end the day well:

These were only one-thirtieth of the photos I took that day, incidentally.