United States > The car won't start anymore

United States - Sandcastle on the beach

The weather was better than expected last night. Shortly after we turned off the lights, the wind died down. The rain also stopped. It was chilly, but the extra blanket helped. In the morning, the sunrise over Monument Valley made up for all the gray scenes of yesterday. A beautiful orange glow rose over the stone rock formations. The weather was clear with a few clouds in the sky. We decided to go into Monument Valley once more. We had understood yesterday that it was possible with the same ticket. Without any problems, we entered the park. The rock formations were illuminated by the morning light. Around the tops of some rocks, clouds still lingered, adding an extra touch to the view. At the lookout point where the rain began yesterday, we now had a magnificent panorama. We could see for miles—a perfect spot for breakfast. We brought crackers with cream cheese and some yogurt. After breakfast, we drove out of the park. Today we planned to drive a long stretch through the Rocky Mountains toward Santa Fe, so tomorrow’s journey would be shorter. Along the route, we passed the Four Corners point. Nowhere else in the world do four countries meet, and nowhere else in America do four states converge. Here, the states of Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, and Colorado meet. A plaque marks the spot. When we parked, the car wouldn’t lock. The remote didn’t seem to work. However, after walking away from the car, it locked automatically after a while. Then we couldn’t get back in. It wouldn’t start either, as it couldn’t detect the key. Just our luck. We decided to inspect the Four Corners point separately, leaving the car unattended was not an option. We suspected the remote’s battery was dead. With a bit of renewed battery power, the car started, but soon after, the warning appeared that the key was not in the vehicle. A loud tone sounded. The only solution was to drive to a garage while keeping the engine running. Once moving, the tone stopped. Everything seemed to work as long as we didn’t need to restart. We decided to drive to the car rental office. There’s a branch in Durango, which was also on today’s route.

United States - The beautiful surroundings of Monument Valley

However, the location indicated by the navigation turned out to be wrong. A bystander helped us find it online. We needed to be at the airport, twenty kilometers further. Beth, the rental agent, came to check. She works at the counter and didn’t seem entirely sure either. The car now started fine, and nothing seemed wrong. She didn’t have a spare battery but advised buying one at Walmart. We could get another car, but she didn’t have a 4x4 SUV available. We decided to continue with our own car and buy batteries. For now, it seemed a temporary problem. We drove back to Durango. The historic center looked charming. In the main street, with Western-style facades, we ordered some drinks. When paying, the young man said that our two drinks and a cookie cost $2.37. That seemed very little, so when we offered $20, he said it was fine—we didn’t have to pay. The context escaped us, but we thanked him. From Durango, it’s almost 200 kilometers to Tierra Amarilla, today’s planned overnight stop. Because it’s one hour later in Colorado (and perhaps already in Utah), it was past four o’clock. We set off quickly. The road led through the beautiful Rocky Mountain landscape: hills covered in pine trees and stunning valleys with green fields. On both sides, large farms dotted the landscape. Herds of cattle grazed in the pastures. We passed Pagosa, known for its hot springs. In winter, it’s also a ski area. Through Chama, we finally reached Tierra Amarilla. The town was somewhat disappointing. The center consists of just a few dozen houses, and there’s no hotel to be found. A short distance back, there was a sign for a lodge. We drove down the path, which wound through the forest—a beautiful area. Everywhere, signs warned of high fire risk. Open flames were strictly prohibited. The reception at the Brasil Lodge was closed. The sign, “We’re open when I’m here, closed when I’m not,” was not promising. Another lodge had one cabin left for around 200 euros—we didn’t take it. We drove back to Chama, where several lodges lined up. Soon we entered a nice cabin right on the Rio Chama. On the receptionist’s advice, we went to eat at a restaurant in town—a typical local place with a live band playing Western music. It was fun to eat there. When we parked the car in front of the cabin that evening, it locked normally. Hopefully, the problem was resolved.