Monument Valley, Utah
TRAVEL ROUTE: Cameron, AZ - US 89 - US 160 - Kayenta, AZ - US 163 - Monument Valley
The morning of September 22nd was not at all what I had in mind. We woke up to a cool, gray, low-contrast day that threatened rain and even carried the possibility of a snow shower in the higher elevations, and my hopes for a great photo day in Monument Valley were flagging. We left Cameron about 8:30 AM with me in very low spirits. My wife isn't a photographer and didn't much care what the weather was as long as it didn't interfere with driving. To get to Monument Valley, we had to drive through the Painted Desert (a crescent-shaped arc of desert about 10 miles wide in the Cameron area, which starts about 30 miles north and extends for 160 miles to the south) and I was hoping for sunshine to make the geometric shapes and banded colors of the badland hills POP! It was not to be.
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We drove north through a light mist on US 89 and turned to the northeast on US 160 near Tuba City. 30-ish miles along, we noticed on our map a red square indicating a point of interest that would be coming up on the left with the legend, "Elephant Feet." What manner of marvel was this to be, we wondered? We soon saw two, sawed-off columns of rock in the distinct shape of elephant feet, and knew, immediately, the reason for the name. We still don't know what the Elephant Feet used to be, but they were a nice visual treat and diverted our attention, for a few minutes, from the ever-worsening weather.
The highlight of the day, maybe of the trip and maybe of our traveling lives was to be Monument Valley. We'd seen the "monuments" in movies and on TV for years and they had become, in our minds, at least, symbols of the entire American West. We wanted to see the huge, flat-topped mesas, the enormous buttes and the impossibly slender pinnacles of rock in person, but not like this, not in these conditions. We wanted radiant sunshine, deep blue skies, warm temperatures and puffy clouds. Yes, I'm not ashamed to say, for our first visit, here, we wanted a pure, postcard kind of day. What we had, on the other hand, was an increasingly gloomy day. We had just turned north on US 163 near Kayenta, the 'capital' or administrative center of Navajoland, and were only about 20 miles south of Monument Valley. If we were going to get a weather miracle, and we did need one, it had to hurry.
The first indication that the miracle might, indeed, happen was a patch of less-gloomy sky to the west of our direction of travel. Although it didn't appear to me to be moving, it did seem to be increasing in size. As we came within sight of the park, the clouds took on more definition and I thought that even if they didn't break up, at least they might add some visual interest to the photos.
The entrance to Monument Valley is just on the Utah side of the Arizona-Utah state line. The approach road to the visitor center is 4 miles long and crosses back into Arizona, where most of the monuments are located. Monument Valley, contrary to popular belief, is not a National Park. Neither is it a National Monument (a National Park-in-waiting). In fact, the US government has nothing whatsoever to do with it. It is owned and operated by the Navajo people and is officially called, Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, or "Tse' Bii' Ndzisgaii" in the Navajo language.
A fee of $10 per vehicle allows access to Valley Drive, the 17-mile main park road, that winds past the most famous rock formations and the visitor is free to go wherever he likes, so long as he doesn't depart from that road. Additional fees ($10 or $15), paid to ever-present Navajo guides, gain access to the rest of the park areas that are otherwise forbidden. Had we known this beforehand, we would've gladly paid the additional money, but we now know the park has much more to offer than what one sees from Valley Drive. Sounds to me like a perfect excuse for a return visit.
By the way, we did get our miracle. The clouds parted and, as can be seen from the photographs taken in the afternoon, the day turned into the 'postcard' we'd hoped for.
Next Stop: Agathla Peak and Wahweap Marina on Lake Powell
Travel to One of These Other Fascinating Locations:
Sedona, AZ
Grand Canyon, AZ
Monument Valley, UT
Lake Powell, AZ
Zion NP, UT
Rhyolite, NV
And, Coming Very Soon...
Death Valley NP, CA
US 395 & Owens Valley, CA
Mono Lake, CA
Bodie, CA
Yosemite NP, CA
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