Monument Valley

What do Thelma & Louise, Forrest Gump, Back to the Future and old westerns such as Stagecoach and My Darling Clementine have in common? Well, they all used the backdrop and mystic vast openness of the Monument Valley area of southern Utah and northern Arizona in their movies. And when you drive through this area, over 45 miles from the nearest town, you expect to see the Duke himself riding his horse across the rugged red dirt terrain.

Many people think Monument Valley is a national park but it is actually part of the Navajo Nation reservation, so owned by the Navajo’s and formally called Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park. The “monuments” are actually a vast display of towering mesa’s, buttes and spires throughout the park. These formations all have spiritual value to the Navajo’s and their unique shapes are represented appropriated with names such as Mitten, Thumb, Three Sisters and Camel Butte to name a few.

The history of the area is interesting and revolves around the Navajo indians and a gentlemen by the name of Harry Goulding who settled here with his young bride, Mike in 1924. Harry and Mike made friends with the Navajo’s and were instrumental in bringing awareness to the area and ultimately establishing this as a Navajo Tribal Park. The Gouldings set up a trading post and a lodge so travelers could visit the area. The Goulding’s original house is now a small museum and the lodge, albeit redone, still exists and operates today including a restaurant. There are also many casitas and houses on the property for visitors, but don’t expect a lot more. A gas station, car wash and small grocery store are the only other conveniences there.

Although guided tours are said to take you a bit deeper into the park, you are able to do a self guided tour along the 15 mile unpaved road. There are many pull-outs along the way to get a better view and take those pics. We started our day hiking the Wildcat Trail around West Mitten Butte before we ventured down the park road. Take your time driving through the park and enjoy these unique formations, they really are fascinating. We found John Ford’s Point is a great place to get out and wonder a little bit, or shop for some authentic Navajo jewelry.

TIP: although the guided tours take you to most of the same parts that you can reach on your own, the road is rough so if you don’t want to subject your vehicle to this or just want a little bit more first hand history, then the guided tour may be a good option for you. If you’re staying at the Goulding lodge or campground, you can take a tour directly from there.

So what else is there to do in this vast openness? Well, breath for one, but actually there are several other very interesting things to experience, and it’s a shame that most folks are just in and out of here in a day or two. In fact, just about thirty minutes or so up the road is another amazing area.

Taking 163 (the only road) north from Monument Valley takes you across some beautiful terrain that we will get to in a minute, but when you turn off on 261, about 25 miles up the road, the first place you will encounter is Goosenecks State Park. It’s actually more of a parking area, short walking trail and some dry camping, but my goodness it is beautiful! The park overlooks the San Juan River wiggling through dark rock canyons with more of a liking to lava rock opposed to the traditional sandstone and granite we’re used to.

When you’re done with the breathtaking views of Goosenecks State Park, get back on 261 for the ride of your life. The road traverses 1,200 feet up the mesa for 2 miles through switchbacks and an 11% grade to a viewpoint called Moki Dugway. This narrow gravel road, originally constructed as a shortcut for transporting mined materials from Fry Canyon to a processing mill in Mexican Hat, Utah, is literally carved into the face of the cliff. Take your time and be careful and you can make it fine but leave the trailers and RV’s behind.

Since you’ve made it to the top of Moki Dugway, let’s now venture a little further to Muley Point. Turn left on the dirt road just past the Moki Dugway sign on to another dirt road to an incredible vista 2,000 feet above the San Juan river. 4WD is not necessary if it hasn’t been raining so most vehicles can make this drive. There’s plenty of area at two separate viewpoints to get out and explore the views below. Didn’t get enough of Moki Dugway? Well its time to backtrack back down 1,200 feet to our next stop.

You might have noticed the turnoff to Valley of the Gods before beginning the vertical climb to Moki Dugway. This is another area similar, just maybe not quite as substantial, as Monument Valley. It’s BLM land through the 17 mile road, so free access for all. You will see many unique formations in this area, especially around the midpoint of the route. It’s a peaceful way (on level ground) to end a great day. However,… there is one other opportunity in this neck of the woods.

As you were peering over the edge at Muley Point, you may have noticed another road below. Maybe it’s a Jeep thing, but when I see a dirt road my wheels (literally and figuratively) start turning. Well, this would be the John’s Canyon Trail aka BLM 244, accessed just after the turnoff to Goosenecks State Park. It’s rated as a 3/4 difficulty trail but I totally disagree. Honestly it’s no more difficult then the aforementioned roads to Moki Dugway and Muley Point. This 14 mile road provides a few twists and turns and ledges along the canyon and also some petroglyphs to see along the way. It’s a really cool drive with the canyon walls 1,000 feet above you and the San Juan River 1,000 feet below you. The road formally ends at a small spring and traveling further will require 4WD.

Now let’s backtrack and talk about two points of interest that we passed on 163. Does this line ring a bell: “I’m pretty tired, I think I will go home now“? Yep, from the movie Forest Gump and I’m sure the scene is in your head now. That point where Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks), and his entourage following him, decided to finally turnaround was shot on this section of 163, now identified as Forrest Gump Hill. Get out and take your pictures but be careful it is a real road with real cars.

A little further up the road is a small town called Mexican Hat, along with its namesake rock formation. Well, I bet you guessed that the rock formation resembles a mexican hat, or sombrero, and you’re right. I’ve been told you can climb up the rocks but frankly it looked a little too rugged for us, so instead we just drove along the perimeter. However, there is one other spot here that should not be missed. As you come up to the Mexican Hat Rock, instead of taking the split to the right, take it to the left. This will take you down to the river with its palette of lime green trees and into a canyon area at the end of the road. Honestly, it was a top 10 beautiful and peaceful spot for us.

Twenty-five miles north of Mexican Hat is a small town called Bluff, Utah which is a great place to soak in some local history. Bluff Fort is a historical site and original settlement of Mormon pioneers, who settled there is 1879 after partaking in a harrowing journey through an extremely rugged terrain, now known as the Hole-in-the-Rock Trail. The site is a magnificent display of the original and redone structures of their village. The volunteers there are very helpful with explaining the history, and a very informative short movie is well worth the time. I won’t spoil it for you but be sure to learn the meaning of the phrase Stickie ta Tudy.

On our journey out of Monument Valley to Capital Reef National Park we stopped at Natural Bridges National Monument. Since this park is centrally located in the middle of nowhere it’s easier to visit as a stop along the way but after visiting it, we wish we could spend more time there adventuring. There is a nine-mile loop road that goes through the park with many pull-outs and parking areas to access trails and overlooks to view the three arches (bridges). While there, we took two short hikes – to some ruins and to the Owachomo Bridge. It was a worthy stop, and we were glad we took the time to do so.

If you’re looking for a unique destination and want to get away from the crowds, Monument Valley should be on your list of places to visit. We were there over Memorial Day weekend it is was absent of the typical crowds that you would encounter in most places. Check out our pictures of the area and see you down the road a piece.