
Originally Posted by
CalOldBlue
Day 14: Santa Fe to Monument Valley. Second longest driving day of the trip. Lunch at Twin Rocks Trading Post in Bluff Utah (where we have traded $$ for Navajo artwork in the past). Goosenecks of the San Juan. Arrive in Monument Valley (View Hotel; two nights) in time for shooting sunset shots from hotel balcony (just the lit buttes, not the actual sunset), moonrise from front plaza, Milky Way from side parking lot, then more star/butte shots from hotel balcony. Get up early the next morning to shoot sunrise over Merrick Butte from cabin area. Take all day guided tour. More shots that evening. (371 miles, 6+ hours drive time, 2 1/2 hours lunch/sightseeing.)
Day 16: Monument Valley to Death Valley. Longest driving day of the trip. Covering territory we've been through before, so pretty much drive drive drive. Stop in St. George for lunch and gas. Check in to Furnace Creek Inn for two nights. Shoot Milky Way from valley floor. Get up early next morning to shoot sunrise hitting Zabriskie point. Shoot sand dunes area that evening. Spend some time in the pool/pool bar. (525 miles, 8 1/2 hours driving, one hour lunch stop).
Technical note: those of you into taking pictures, even if only on your cellphone, and want to know when and where the Sun and Moon will be and what they are doing on any given date/time of day/location so you can pre-plan a shot should look into an app such as Photopills (my current favorite) or The Photographer's Emphemeris (which I also like and have used in the past).