Round Trip Distance: 17 miles
Difficulty: Easy
Elevation: 5121 - 5565 feet
Cellphone: 0-3 bars
Time: 2 hrs. 30 mins.
Trailhead: Visitor Center
Fee: $8/person
Attractions: scenic views, petroglyphs
Straddling the Utah/Arizona border north of Kayenta, Arizona the Monument Valley needs little introduction. Everyone might not be aware though that there are both guided and self-guided tours available for getting the most out of your visit. The most popular tour is the 17 mile Scenic Loop Drive. For those with at least a medium clearance 4WD vehicle this can be a self-guided tour. All others can purchase a ride on one of the many guided tours.
A popular stop on the way to Monument Valley when coming from the direction of Mexican Hat, Utah is what is now known at Forest Gump Hill since the famous scene in that Tom Hanks movie.
Tickets for the Scenic Drive can be purchased either at the Navajo Welcome Center or at the ticket booth near the beginning of the drive. They only except credit cards as a means of payment. Guided tours can be arranged from vendors near the Welcome Center and at Goulding's Trading Post.
Near the beginning of the Scenic Drive there is a cone shaped Male Hogan and and a round shaped Female Hogan that are worth exploring.
The road surface is very washboardy and has a speed limit of 15 mph. In places it is sandy and in others it is rocky and uneven. We saw someone in a car give it a try but they didn't make it beyond the very first hill before, with some difficulty, turning around.
Signed pullouts provide convenient places to stop out of the way for taking photos. It's nice that each pullout has a sign letting you know the names of the buttes. Here, from left to right, they are West Mitten, East Mitten, and Merrick.
These are the Three Sisters.
Those with a little extra time will find that horseback rides are available at the start of the loop near the Three Sisters. A horseback ride on an Indian pony on Navajo Tribal Land with a Navajo guide in one of the most iconic desert landscapes in the world might be something tempting to consider.
Near the middle of the loop there are views of a monolith named 'Totem Pole'.
A few petroglyphs can be found near a side road at Sands Spring.
Here amongst a lot of Navajo graffiti there are 2 hand petroglyphs.
On another boulder nearby there is a very stylish kokopelli flute player petroglyph.
For those that like Navajo jewelry and trinkets there are vendors all along the Scenic Drive. We ended up with a nice necklace, a bracelet, and an arrowhead knacked out of turquoise.
For those that like Navajo jewelry and trinkets there are vendors all along the Scenic Drive. We ended up with a nice necklace, a bracelet, and an arrowhead knacked out of turquoise.
Guided tours into the backcountry are also available where you can be shown natural arches, ruins, and rock art, that can't be seen in any other way.
If you would like to see Monument Valley for yourself then all you have to do is 'Take a hike'.
If you would like to see Monument Valley for yourself then all you have to do is 'Take a hike'.
