Pax Arturus

We began our journey shortly after school was released for summer.

Geting our luck Gambling glasses on and heading out the door

We spent the night in Albuquerque before making a late start Thursday morning on the road to sin city. Along the way we had to stop by Petrified Forest and Painted Desert National Park to check out the scenery. As a child nearly every vacation saw my family roaming around one or more national parks, historic areas, forests etc as my mother filled her National Parks Service Passport with stamps recording our visits. Its not surprising that my sister is a park ranger now and that the first thing I thought to do with the man I will spend my life with is to start a passport of our journey together.

Beginning our family together the right way, in the spirit of conservation.

Can you truly be considered a functioning adult until you own your own Passport to YOUR National Parks? You may notice that Andy looks slightly unkempt. This is a trend that is likely to be noted throughout this series of photos. Upon entering the park the rangers reccommend that you never open both doors of the car at once to avoid a wind tunnel of epic proportions, and that you not stand too close to the edge of cliffs (always good advice). This being a stop of romantic impulse neither of us was prepared for the whipping wind that is threatening to blow my skirt clean away in every picture and Andy’s hair away in this one.

We didn't get to trek across this petrified agate bridge like early pioneers because we didn't have the energy to enslave a native to show us the way.

Oh No it's just ice cream!

I can't believe he's still smiling

This flower was blooming so beautifully in the midst of a desert. Coupled with the stone, incomprehensibly ancient, it seems even more transient and vulnerable. A mircicle in the armpit of the organic world.

Walking a path in the park Andy and I began to feel like we were lost in inescapeable ruin in the desert. The dry wind zapped every bit of moisture out of your mouth and eyes and the sun makes everything surreal and wavering.

Andy can't take the stress of the journey any longer, he finds a "soft" spot to rest his head.

Throughout the park you can see the way the trees fell thousands of years before where they lay undisturbed.

The beautiful layers on the cliffs give the painted desert it's name

The National Parks Service deserves your support in preserving places like the petrified forest for both the unique formations of the past but also the living ecosystems of the present. Pick up a passport and begin collecting for yourselves. Mother’s day was a few days away so while we were at the park I picked up a beautiful archival leather-bound National Parks and National Historic and scenic route atlas for my mother to help give my parent’s scenic drives a bit more direction.

This slab of stone is completely disjointed from the rest of the cliff. For hundreds of years it has not plummeted to the ground and I can't figure out why. Although, while I was standing upon it I gave the matter serious consideration.

Although the park delayed us quite a bit we eventually moved on the rest of the way into Vegas. Tune in for Chapter 2: Welcome to fabulous Las Vegas