A Monumental Stop

Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park was our first real taste of the summer heat in the desert. Driving between Mesa Verde, Colorado and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon in Arizona, we took a detour to check out the iconic Monument Valley.

Stepping out of the car in the Navajo tribal land into the 90+ degree weather, the hottest of our trip so far, we opted for the driven tour of the valley. After checking out the visitor center and overwhelming gift shop, we grabbed a map and hopped in the subaru to head out to the Valley Loop Drive.

The Valley Loop Drive is 17 miles on a sandy dirt road with countless stops and overlooks of the buttes, mesas, and other formations throughout the valley.

The drive provided the perfect experience of Monument Valley in our opinion. With at least 11 different stops and viewpoints, the drive gave us the freedom to explore the valley on our own time and pick and choose what we really wanted to see. Primarily in a rush to get out of the heat, we stopped only at a handful of the stops, drove the entire loop, and took pictures in every direction.

I think Wilson and I would both agree that the most unique and our favorite part of the drive was seeing the Mittens. Seen both from the visitor center and the beginning and end of the Valley Loop Drive, the West Mitten Butte and East Mitten Butte stand alone, with no other buttes to obstruct the view of the Mittens.

Monument Valley is such a unique area of the four corners region. Driving between Mesa Verde and the Grand Canyon, the landscapes that we saw were constantly changing. From snow capped mountains and flat straight roads, to tumbleweeds, red rocks, and canyons, the diversity was astonishing. As we neared Monument Valley, I was wondering how these towering buttes were even possible, after seeing flat, straight, and rolling hills. The sandstone buttes literally rise out of nowhere. Towering over the relatively flat desert and all its visitors.