Petrified Forest National park, Phoenix to Albuquerque

Saturday, April 25

Day 18

We woke up early in Phoenix and were on the road by a little after 8. We wanted to take the scenic route but even on the freeway it will take all day, so we are headed up 17 toward Flagstaff and then east on I40 to Albuquerque. We do plan to make a quick stop in The Petrified Forest/Painted Desert National Park. We entered the park and went to the visitor center and watched a movie about the area and how petrified wood came to be. It is hard to believe that Arizona used to sit where current.Panama is and therefore was a tropical climate. 

 We drove a small loop and looked over the Painted Desert which looks a lot like the Badlands of South Dakota. We then came to the Painted Desert Inn which is listed on the National Historic Register. It is a beautiful adobe building and somehow I didn't take a photo on the outside. The inside has the restored inn as it was including beautiful murals by Hopi artist, Fred Kabotie .

Mural by Hopi artist Fred Kaboti

 There was a woman sitting with pottery at a table. She was using a pestle and we started talking about her work. Eileen Yatsattie was her name and she is a member of the Zuni Pueblo Tribe in western NM. Her great grandmother and grandmother were Zuni Potters using the traditional methods and she started making pottery at age 13. She uses hematite (iron mineral mixed with yucca fruit resin for her dark brown/black paint. She was mixing this with her pestle while we were talking.

Eileen Yatsatti

Pestle and carved out stone to mix potter's natural paints

Natural ingredients used to paint the clay

Yellow-ochre clay is used to make the reddish/orange color. Koalin is used for the white color. She explained that this koalin is also used in traditional medicine to stop diaherra and was the active ingredient in kaopectate. If you use the koalin, you only use a tiny amount, smaller than a pea. She uses a kiln and traditional firing with sheep manure. She said most of the young potters do not mix their paint from natural ingredients but buy paint instead. She used to teach people her traditional techniques until her mother became ill . We bought a small piece of her work. She explained some of the paintings. She showed the clouds, rain and lightning symbols upon all life depends. She showed the symbols of plants and crops and lastly the animals. Depicted in her works were deer, dragonflies and lady bugs. Human forms are never depicted as it is considered a bad omen that could result in a stillbirth or disability. No closed circles appear in her work as this is the life line from birth until death. The Zuni believe in reincarnation to clouds which bring the ran, essential to all life. She has been featured in several publications and she has traveled throughout the US to study and research collections of Zuni pottery. What a treat to have met her and have her take the time to explain her work to us. It is an honor and a privilege to meet people who keep old traditions and history alive in their work. Continued on our journey on I40.

We got into Albuquerque. After contacting our ATC hosts, we went to Costco for gas and decided to check out the food. We do get tired of eating in restaurants. We found a wonderful spinach salad with all the fixings. Jack used the Costco freezer to chill a bottle of wine while we browsed the book section. The cashier chuckled at his ingenuity. Frugal traveling, Jack and Jodi style. We arrived at Patricia and John's house in the NE foothills of Albuquerque. Their home is like an art museum and a beautifully designed pueblo style home. Simply stunning. We conversed for about an hour and called it a night. John is quite the sports expert and enthusiast, expressing interest in our trip. Patricia is a talented quilter and knitter, both retired. We had the best night sleep in a long time. We are happy to report we now have 6 sponsors. Mallory's boyfriend decided to sponsor Kenny Roger from the Phillipines. 6 parks and 6 sponsors!