The Arizona–Utah Border

Bright red mountains, bright red dirt. This is Ed Abbey's territory — sunbaked, windswept, harsh, and unforgiving. Have you read about it in his Desert Solitaire ? Or The Monkey Wrench Gang ?

At a small, desolate Utah state park campground, as we were taking a morning walk across the sand and scrub brush, Menominee suddenly leaped and caught a lizard — her first! She's a Minnesota cat, and didn't grow up learning about lizards, but somehow her hunting skills include lizard-catching, subduing, and playing. The legend of the Great Hunter lives on.

Continuing east, we came to Four Corners Monument, where Arizona, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico all meet at one point, at right angles. You can walk right up to the very point, stand on top of it, with parts of your body in different states, and pose for pictures. Nearby, friendly Navajo Indians sell jewelry, pottery, and made-to-order Indian Fry Bread.

Cartographic trivia: The monument's location was set by an early survey which determined the state boundaries. Decades later, the survey was found to be in error. What to do? The Supreme Court ruled that the incorrect survey results would continue as the legal boundaries between the states!

We checked the weather forecast and found that Colorado was too cold and snowy for our taste, so we continued east across New Mexico.