all packed up–little sleeping pad and mobile kitchen in the trunk!
you can see the pillow where my head would poke out from the trunk
ready for takeoff
you know you’re in rural America when… (saw these at the bathroom stop in PA, the edition on the right was from a few years ago, the “700 days” was the last half of Obama’s term)
view over Virginian Appalachia
ah yes, the traitor
important
Hotel Walmart, a pretty sight to look at before bed
you can see some of the weirder finds up on the walls, like swords and bikes
ruined old Alabama state capitol
seen at a gas station
House of the Rising Sun
view of the gardens
all that jazz
some cajun crawfish
you can see James and Sara working inside (unfortunately didn’t get better pics of anyone here)
the garage wall in progress
garage wall frame done! (still needs to be finished on the outside of course)
one of Nawlin’s majestic cemeteries
bridge over bayou (the Atchafalaya Swamp)
oil refineries outside of Houston. where the black liquid that powers modern life flows through
industrial hellscapes never looked better
The Cathedral of Junk
main entrance
roof walkway
steeple made from crutches
sitting on the Junk Throne
come on Barbie let’s go party
put that thing back from where it came from, or so help me
Fredericksburg, old German town in central
I didn’t get a full picture of the gas station I stopped at to help the stranded older folks, but I did get one of this cat there
sunrise over Big Bend (somehow my phone got this one)
view from top of Chisos Peak
looking from a hill toward the ridge of the Mexican border, with yucca bushes in front of me
shallow part of the Rio Grand beneath the cliffs
dried up ground by the river
the river running through the Santa Elena Canyon! Mexico is on the other side
furthest the path takes you into the gorge
looking back north from the ridge
Terlingua ghost town
some abandoned farming machinery
one of the only decent pictures I could get of the Marfa Lights online (my phone camera couldn’t pick up any of it)
some of the outdoor minimalist art in Marfa
heading west toward El Paso
the Prada in the desert
view from a hill I stopped at en route to El Paso
alright obviously I didn’t take this one, but it’s helpful for getting an idea of what the El Paso-Juarez border looks like. the giant X (Juarez side) is a memorial for all victims of the drug wars over the years
the border crossing from the US side
you know you’re in Latin America when you start seeing Che (of interest too are the words above his head, “deporte si, droga no”–sports yes, drugs no)
Old Spanish church
railroad station in the old city center of Juarez
going back north from Mexican side
mural in Segundo Barrio, an endangered historic area in El Paso. many of the people in it were prominent Jesuit figures
White Sands (really a bunch of dunes of gypsum)
storm coming in
examples of the adobe-style architecture in ABQ
Josephine at the car doctor getting fan belt replaced
monument to Pueblo Indian veterans of US army
first sight of ancient Puebloan pottery
Cultural Crossroads sculpture
The Heisenberg House, with fences to keep out would-be pizza throwers
old missiles from Cold War era
driving west into the Navajo Nation
example of the many neglected roads in Navajo country
sunset while arriving at Chaco Canyon
first sight of ruins
petroglyphs on the rocks of the canyon!
view of Pueblo Bonito, the main building complex in Chaco
I finally remembered that I should have myself in at least some of the photos
window in the pueblo–you can still see the original wood beams up top!
one of the great kivas, used for ceremonies or just any meeting. It would have had a wooden roof hundreds of years ago
Kin Kletso, separate from Pueblo Bonito
first view of the main Cliff Palace
fields of trees destroyed by wildfires in recent years
another cliff dwelling in the distance
excavation of even older sites on the mesa, from over 2,000 years ago
another town further away, on top of the mesa
sipapu carved into brick
evidence of terraces used for farming
view of the valley from top of mesa
old Mormon trading post
entering Valley of the Gods
campsite for the night
I’m turning into one of those guys who always takes pictures of his pickup truck, except for my Subaru
some of the only trees in the valley
I think you can see Monument Valley in the very distance here
the iconic postcard shot (also where Forrest Gump suddenly stopped his running)
Monument Valley, Tsé Biiʼ Ndzisgaii in Navajo (literally just Valley of the Rocks)
shot from further down in the valley, without my hairy face in the way
solidarity from the Navajo to the Standing Rock Sioux
Tuba City/Tó Naneesdizí
Navajo turqoise jewelry
“Save the Peaks” sign, part of the protest again expansion of a ski resort on the nearby San Francisco Peaks, sacred to a dozen other tribes besides the Navajo
first view of Ongtupqa, the Grand Canyon
foundations of ancient homes
don’t worry mom I’m fine
late afternoon over the canyon
a colorful monument to the bright visage of 1950s car culture
little taste of the Mojave Desert before getting to LA