March 2019 – What with triple-towing and having a new Polaris RZR side-by-side these days, we had decided not to travel long distances in 2019. But when I got an email announcing that a photographer we admire, Ian Plant, was hosting a four day workshop in southeastern Utah, we decided to make a run for it and take our RV on a nearly 500 mile adventure ride past stunning scenery between Phoenix, Arizona, and the tiny village of Hanksville, Utah.
Monument Valley framed by a Navajo Jewelry stand.
After a crazy cold winter in the Arizona deserts, the temps had just started to warm up in the Phoenix area. But we we hightailed it north for Utah’s higher elevation (and colder) red rock and snowy mountain scenery anyway. Brrr!
What were we thinking?
Just as we crossed through the Navajo Nation into Monument Valley on the border of Utah, the navigation screen on our truck began to flash a Severe Winter Storm Warning for the area!
Monument Valley skyline
Despite (or because of) the incoming storm, the towering rock formations that form the gateway to Monument Valley stretched across the horizon in dramatic fashion, and we just had to get out and hike down one of the dirt roads to get a better look at them.
It was time to stretch our legs — whether we had four to stretch or just two.
The clouds intensified as we walked. Every once in a while the sun swept across the vast landscape with the dark storm clouds in hot pursuit. Um… in cold pursuit!! Over on the other horizon a row of red rock cliffs lit up as the sun brightened.
In another direction a line of red rock cliffs glowed for a brief moment in the distance.
Turning back towards the monuments we noticed a cool cloud had formed above them in the sky.
An unusual cloud drifts by in the sky.
We hopped back in our truck for another twenty miles or so and were pelted with rain. But when we turned the corner at Mexican Hat the rain abated just long enough for us to get out again and have a look around.
The Mexican Hat rock formation is very easy to spot!
There’s no doubt how the town of Mexican Hat got its name!
Just south of Blanding, Utah, we turned west onto US-95, also known as the Bicentennial Highway, and plunged down lots of 8% to 10% switchbacks to the desert floor far below. This is a fantastic scenic drive that leaves our jaws agape every time we drive it. Even this time in the rain and fog — and snow in the mountains we were passing! — it was still a glorious drive.
How funny, though, in the middle of all that majestic scenery to see an old dilapidated Winnebago sitting in the middle of nowhere. Mark hit the brakes so he could run back for a shot!
It might be a little drafty sleeping in there!
Some of the best views on this drive are when it descends into Glen Canyon. I fondly remember how the first time we drove it I was so excited by the beauty that I sat in the window of the passenger’s seat snapping pics as Mark drove!
This time we were driving in rain and mist, but as we pulled into the Hite Scenic Overlook the sun made a valiant effort to push its way out from behind the heavy blankets of clouds.
The Hite Scenic Overlook is well worth a stop.
The view from the overlook was out of this world.
What a view. That is Lake Powell down there!
What a spot for photography!
Mark sets up a shot of the valley (he’s on the far left side with Buddy!)
We hung around for several hours taking photos. We were standing on a peninsula with views in every direction, and the views went on forever.
The massive stone towers on the desert floor below us looked like they had strayed from Monument Valley.
And how amusing it was to look back at a blog post I wrote about this same area seven years ago and find that I took almost the exact same photo (in sunshine) when we were there!
I took almost this exact same photo 7 years ago!
The tiny ribbon of US-95 snaked around in front of the enormous stone towers.
Dazzling scenery, even in mist and fog.
Even Buddy seemed to appreciate the view. He was very cautious looking down over the edge too, holding his weight back as he craned his neck forward to look down at the flat land below.
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Behind us a row of red rocks that stood cheek-by-jowel like city buildings overlapped snowcapped mountains in the distance.
No wonder we were in jackets and hats — there were snowy mountains right there!
The skies finally began to clear and the last miles of the Bicentennial Highway were flanked with red rock cliffs as we approached the village of Hanksville.
Once the rain cleared I got a few pics of the gorgeous winding road that is US-95
The Bicentennial Highway.
At Hanksville, the Bicentennial Highway joins up with Scenic Highway 24 which heads west into Capitol Reef National Park and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument.
All of the land in the lower half of Utah is spectacular beyond words.
Views on the Bicentennial Highway (US-95).
Hanksville is home to about 250 people, and its two gas stations, restaurants and motels are all clustered around the intersection of US-24 and US-95. Most of the back streets in town are dirt. We went exploring and came across the ruins of an old stone homestead. We learned later that this is part of the Giles Ghost Town.
Someone put some care into building this solid home.
Those stone walls were pretty thick!
This is part of the Giles Ghost Town
All around the area there were lots of exotic rock formations. Some formed beautiful patterns…
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And others made recognizable shapes!
Pinocchio!
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We’ll be in this area for another week, improving our photography by day and fending off sub-freezing temps by night!
First light!
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More info about these places:
- Monument Valley
- Mexican Hat – Home to about 50 people
- Hite in Glen Canyon
- Map of the highlights on our drive
Other blog posts from Southeastern Utah:
- Arches National Park Utah – A Playground of Soaring Red Rock Bridges! 04/21/16
- Canyon Country Highlights – Lake Powell, Horseshoe Bend & More! 02/01/19
- Canyonlands National Park UT – Island in the Sky (and Night Skies!) 04/28/16
- Canyonlands National Park Utah – Hiking in the Needles District! 04/12/16
- Dead Horse Point State Park, Utah – Magical Sunrises! 04/23/16
- Goblin Valley State Park Utah – One Gigantic Playground! 04/20/18
- Goblin Valley, UT – Where the Ghosts Are 10/16/07
- Heavenly Theatrics in Utah’s Red Rocks 10/04/19
- Mexican Hat, Utah – A Special Hoodoo in the Red Rocks 04/05/19
- Moab Utah – Red Rocks and Snowcapped Mountains 04/14/16
- Natural Bridges National Monument & Utah’s Bicentennial Highway 06/15/12
- Newspaper Rock Utah – Petroglyphs and Rock Art from the Ancients 04/06/16
- Paria Rimrocks “Toadstools” Hike to A Hidden Canyon! 05/25/14
- San Rafael Swell, UT – Pictographs & Dinosaur Prints 10/12/07
- SE Utah – A Mars Colony, Wide-Angle Photography & Snowy Mountains! 03/22/19
- Traces of Antiquity and the Not-So-Ancient in Utah! 03/29/19
- Utah Scenic Byway 24 RV Trip – Capitol Reef National Park 04/16/18
- Valley of the Gods & Goosenecks State Park, Utah – Beautiful! 04/04/16
- Wire Pass Trail – Slot Canyon Hiking! 05/22/14
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Having the freedom and flexibility to take advantage of opportunities which may be hundreds of miles away is such a blessing and can lead to many memorable road trips. (I took a look at Ian Plant’s photography and it’s stunning. I would have driven 500 miles to see him, too.) In this case, it’s apparent that the trip itself provided you with your own workshop – I particularly liked the photos framed by the jewelry stand and the window of the old stone house. Utah is one of those states that prompts the near constant pressing of a shutter button.
You are so right, Mary. We are extremely blessed to have the freedom to follow our whims on a whim! Even though it can be a crazy life — we woke up to 35 degrees in our rig this morning because for various reasons we don’t run the heat at night — each and every day is a thrill. Utah is filled with jaw dropping scenery at every turn, and our shutter buttons never get a rest. That beautiful photo of Monument Valley framed by the Navajo jewelry stand is Mark’s — so inventive! — and the stone window is mine. We want to go back to that area now that we know it’s a ghost town and there’s more to see there! We’ll be meeting Ian tomorrow night and we are really excited to try to learn to see the way he sees, if that’s possible!
Emily,
What a beautiful area. Likely hard to take a bad photo of any scene here. Hard to imagine getting bored with the view, even over a lifetime. Puppy Chow looks like he’s in his element. 🙂
Bob
This area is truly stunning, Bob, and Puppy Chow is absolutely loving life these days. This morning he ran and ran and ran, so happy and excited to be free in such a beautiful area!
Very nice. I especially like your “First Light” shot and the shot of Buddy stretching his legs. Enjoy the next week there and say hello to Pinocchio!
We’re looking for other spots to catch those mountains when they are pink at dawn! They are so pretty. The locals here say they haven’t had that much snow in quite a few years. Buddy’s stretched out for a nap right now and may be dreaming of Jiminy Cricket!
The dash to take the photo workshop passed through some really spectacular landscape…and you caught it – on the run ! Look forward to the results of Ian’s workshops….
This part of the country is sooooo amazing!!! Hopefully our cameras do it justice!