Monument Valley, Totem Pole and Clint Eastwood

Above, Totem Pole (center) as seen during my 2016 tour of Monument Valley. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

During his heyday as an action film star, Clint Eastwood often pushed the envelope to deliver the goods for his movies when outdoors doing action scenes.

One such time was in The Eiger Sanction (1975) in which Eastwood plays a college art professor who is also a retired secret agent for a secret government spy agency that specializes in eliminating (called sanctions) enemies. He is called back into service, reluctantly, by the agency head who is a full-fledged albino (played by Thayer David of Dark Shadows fame). 

Above a view of Totem Pole taken last October. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

He is charged to sanction someone connected with an international climbing team of Switzerland's Eiger mountain for murdering a fellow agent who was also a friend. He proceeds to Utah for his pre-climb training under the wing of George Kennedy. Scenes of his training include Zion National Park (Checkerboard Mesa, the Zion Lodge pool (now gone)) and Monument Valley Tribal Park, where Eastwood became the last person to legally climb the 400 foot tall Totem Pole. Scenes of his Totem Pole climb are spectacular, particularly when Eastwood and Kennedy pop open some beer while sitting atop it. While Eastwood climbed the world's tallest spire himself, Kennedy was airlifted onto it by helicopter.

During recent years, I took two tours of Monument Valley with Goulding's Lodge Tours and saw Totem Pole from two distant vantage points. 

"The Eiger Sanction" and the Zion Lodge Pool

Earlier this evening, I sat down and watched the 1975 Clint Eastwood feature, The Eiger Sanction over dinner.

The Eiger Sanction used a couple of locations in the U.S. including Monument Valley in the Navajo Nation and Zion National Park.

This blog post will concentrate on one particular location at Zion that is no longer around, which will be the Zion Lodge swimming pool. Other locations include the footbridge that crossed the Virgin River (a short walk from the swimming pool), the Narrows and Checkerboard Mesa.

The Zion Lodge served as George Kennedy's resort where Clint Eastwood trains for his climb on the Eiger mountain in Switzerland.

The last time I actually remember seeing the Zion Lodge pool was in the mid-1970s. It had since been torn down and removed. My family stayed there in 1980, but I don't remember if the pool was still there or not. [Note: the Zion Lodge pool and bathhouse were demolished in 1976.]

After watching the movie, I checked around online for photos and references to the pool and when it was removed but found none (which I found to be rather odd). So, I got the movie DVD out and made a few screen captures of the pool.

Here they are:

Above, George Kennedy and Clint Eastwood arrive at the pool.

Above, Kennedy and Eastwood walk to the pool.

Above, Eastwood and Kennedy talk at the pool bar.

Above, Eastwood returns to the pool after a running and hiking training workout.

Above, Eastwood looks at Kennedy in the background.

There are other scenes in the movie that used the pool. They featured actor Jack Cassidy (his last movie before he was killed in a fire in his Hollywood apartment).

If anyone reading this can find photos of the Zion Lodge pool, I would be grateful if they would pass them on.

20 National Park Spectacular Lodgings

Above, Zion Lodge in Zion National Park, Utah. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Last night, I watched for the first time in years the Clint Eastwood thriller, The Eiger Sanction (1975).

For me, the movie is notable for some superb locations used, such as Monument Valley and Zion National Park. The scenes at Zion National Park included some at the Zion Lodge swimming pool. The pool had been removed decades ago, but there it was in its nostalgic glory in the movie.

I mention Zion Lodge as it is one of 20 national park lodgings that BobVila.com spotlights as places to stay.

The article begins with:

Planning a trip to Yosemite, Denali, or one of the other 59 national parks in the United States? Instead of holing up at a chain hotel miles away from the action, consider bunking at one of the many accommodations found right inside or nearby a national park.…

Along with park lodges, cabins and campgrounds are also mentioned.

To read more, go here. 

Vanished National Park Lodges

Above, the Zion Lodge today. It no longer has a swimming pool. Photo by Armand Vaquer

National parks have lodging facilities of one kind or another. Some are new and some are historical. Some national parks have none (such as Joshua Tree National Park).

Some of the historical ones have vanished. Some still remain but some of their facilities are now gone.

One of them was the Zion National Park Lodge swimming pool. It used to sit near the Virgin River. But it is no longer around after having been demolished either in the late 1970s or early 1980s. Swimming pool scenes (where "Buns" introduces herself to Jack Cassidy) from the Clint Eastwood movie, The Eiger Sanction (1975) were filmed at the Zion Lodge pool.

National Parks Traveler has a two-part article on national park lodges. The first part details lodges that have vanished.

They wrote (in part):

National park lodges vanish for a number of reasons. Some are destroyed by fire or weather while others close due to financial or maintenance issues. A succession of lodges once welcomed guests in the Norris area of Yellowstone National Park. Now there are none. Only the dining hall/kitchen that currently serves as a camp store remains of Two Medicine Chalet that once welcomed guests in Glacier National Park. 

Here are seven national park lodges that have been lost to visitors since our 1996 road trip. Others have undergone significant changes. For example, impressive new lodge buildings replaced many of the old cabins in the Canyon area of Yellowstone. All of the old cabins at Cedar Pass Lodge in Badlands National Park have been replaced with much nicer cabins. Likewise, much of lodging at Maswik South in the Grand Canyon is now utilized for employee housing. We plan to discuss new lodges and lodging that has undergone major changes in the next article. 

To read more, go here. 

American Experience: Reagan

Some shopping was done today at the local Target store. One of the things I picked up was a George Foreman grill to replace the grill that kicked the bucket a couple of days ago.

On the way home, I stopped by the CD Trader to see if they had a copy of The Eiger Sanction, starring Clint Eastwood (they didn't). Instead, I bought a copy of The American Experience: Reagan, a PBS documentary on Ronald Reagan that is part of their Presidents series.

It is probably the best of the Reagan documentaries produced. I have it on VHS, but wanted a DVD copy. I had been on the lookout for it for a while. It was new and priced at only $5.99.

Later, I was showing it to Jes, my house guest, and mentioned that I was in it. When it came to that part (at the 1980 GOP National Convention), she was amazed.

The documentary is well-balanced and there's a lot of great footage.

My grade: A.

Duke, Pappy and Clint

Above, the solitary tall, skinny rock spire, called Totem Pole, was 
featured in a Clint Eastwood movie in 1975. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The influence that John Wayne and John Ford on Monument Valley endures today.

Near Goulding's Lodge, visitors can see John Wayne's cabin used for She Wore A Yellow Ribbon (1949). John Wayne movies are screened at the theater near Goulding's Lodge.

At Goulding's Campground store, there are numerous Wayne-oriented merchandise to buy such as coasters, magnets, playing cards, posters, books and other goods. The funniest was a roll of John Wayne Toilet Paper.

At the Monument Valley Welcome Center, John Ford's director's chair is on display (above photo). There's even a spot named John Ford Point.

There is one place that is not John Wayne or John Ford-oriented. It is Totem Pole. It was used in the 1975 Clint Eastwood movie, The Eiger Sanction.

Above, a roll of John Wayne Toilet Paper. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

In The Eiger Sanction, Eastwood's character is in training for his climb of the Eiger mountain. Part of the training involved a climb on a tall, skinny spire rock with George Kennedy. We viewed it from a distance during the tour.

Monument Valley Tour

Above, yours truly bundled up with "The Mittens" in the background.

After getting settled in to my camp and relaxing, I took the 3 1/2 hour tour of Monument Valley by Goulding's. I have to say that the tour was quite interesting and there's a lot more to Monument Valley than one would imagine.

We were picked up by the tour van at the campground office and we were on our way.

Despite the cold temperatures and the wind, it was an enjoyable activity.

Here's some of what we saw today:

Above, "The Mittens". Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the "Three Sisters". Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, a Navajo female hogan. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, inside the female hogan. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, a Navajo male hogan. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, a natural bridge. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, our tour van. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, 700 year old petroglyphs. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the "Sun's Eye". Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, "The Mittens" at dusk. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the "Totem Pole" used in Clint Eastwood's The Eiger Sanction. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

"A Photo Journey Through Zion National Park"

Above, can you spot Darth Vader's helmet on this rocky mountain in Zion National Park? Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It is fitting to post this as today is Memorial Day.

One of my late parents' favorite places to vacation at was Zion National Park in Utah. It is also one of mine as well.

Zion is a day's drive from Los Angeles on a route that will take you though Las Vegas and Mesquite, Nevada, a tip of Arizona, the Virgin River Gorge and St. George, Utah.

The World Is A Book website has posted an article, "A Photo Journey Through Zion National Park" that will provide the reader with great photographs and informative text.

It begins with:

We have many attractions we’ve visited largely in need of a “do-over” due to lack of time or weather. In honor of National Parks Week here in the US, this is our re-visit to Zion National Park in Utah. Our trip last month was a stark contrast to our visit a few years ago when it was covered with snow and we practically had the park to ourselves. Zion is popular among hikers and outdoor enthusiasts and a natural spectacle of canyons and cliffs. 

It was designated as a National Park in 1919. Zion is Utah’s oldest and most visited park.The Mormon pioneers who settled in the area in the late 1800s called the canyon “Zion” which was a Hebrew word for refuge or sanctuary. We entered the park this time through the East Gate along Mt. Carmel Highway after our trip from Lake Powell and the Lower Antelope Canyon in Arizona. Our last trip was through the South Gate and the town of Springdale. The reddish-brown paved road was a welcome sight. It almost seemed natural and blended in nicely with the surrounding red rocks.

Some trivia: Some scenes of The Eiger Sanction that starred Clint Eastwood were filmed in Zion National Park. One of the scenes at Zion was the swimming pool bar scene with the late Jack Cassidy meeting a bikini-clad girl named "Buns." The swimming pool was at the Zion Lodge, but was removed in the late 1970s.

To read the full article, go here.