Utah Diaries: Canyonlands, Bears Ears, and Monument Valley
Our adventure concludes
This is the final installment in a travel diary series about our road trip through southern Utah. Here’s Part I and Part II. This one’s got a lot of photos so click through to Substack to view the full post!
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Canyonlands: Island in the Sky
The last of the Mighty Five! This park is wild and sprawling, made up of four districts: Island in the Sky (the most popular and accessible), the Needles (a hiker’s paradise full of challenging trails), the Maze (rugged terrain only accessible by 4WD vehicle), and the Rivers (the Colorado and Green Rivers that intersect inside the park).
Kurt and I had two days to spend in Canyonlands, so we started with the scenic drive of the Island in the Sky, a mesa looming 1,000 feet above the canyon floor. Our first hike was the shortie to Mesa Arch, the most recognizable spot in Canyonlands. Most arches frame the view above, but Mesa Arch is unique as it looks down onto the view below. And oof, how far below it is! It was another intensely windy day, and I realized that my fear of heights is intensified by weather; I felt like I might be blown right off a sandstone cliff and plummet screaming to my death. I was not a great hiking partner this day, clinging to the safety rails, or even better, the van’s insides.
Islands in the Sky is mostly a driving park, with some hikes departing from various scenic viewpoints or trailheads along the scenic route. We tried a short hike to the viewing point for Upheaval Dome, but I couldn’t bring myself to approach the end of the trail where there was no railing over the steep drop. I hate when I let my fear get in the way of doing the things I want to do. I’d been able to wrangle my fear into submission enough to do the Scout Lookout and Delicate Arch hikes, but at this point I was tired, craving a shower, and my mental energy was tapped out.
Thankfully, the drive toward the Needle District turned my blue mood around.
Bears Ears National Monument
No road directly connects any of Canyonland’s sprawling four districts, so we set out on the two-hour drive toward the Needles. The route passes through Bears Ears National Monument, which has a tumultuous recent history. Five tribes—the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Navajo Nation, Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah Ouray, Hopi Nation, and Zuni Tribe—united in a proposal seeking federal protections for the sacred lands surrounding the Bears Ears twin buttes. In 2016, President Obama designated the Bears Ears National Monument by executive order. Not even a full year later, President Trump signed his own executive order requesting a review that shrank the Monument by eighty-five percent, in order to expand fossil fuel drilling and cattle grazing. THEN In 2021, President Biden restored Bears Ears National Monument to its original size from 2016.1
Lord knows what will happen to Bears Ears after this November’s presidential election, one more item in a laundry list of things I’m terrified about. In the travel writing world, there is a lot of conversation about whether promoting tourism is irresponsible given the environmental impact. This is a tough topic because I love traveling SO much, but I also see the effects of climate change firsthand. And yet, I believe that seeing places like Bears Ears in person is instrumental in understanding and appreciating why this area is so special and deserves to be fought for.
We spent the night at Creek Pasture, a rustic campground operated by BLM and spearheaded by the climbing community that flocks to this area. Along the way, we passed a ghost town ranch that had once been home to the Home of Truth cult, and Newspaper Rock, one of the largest known collections of petroglyphs. Many of the hands and feet depicted in the petroglyphs have six toes; some anthropologists believe that the Native peoples of this area might have associated polydactyly with a higher social status.
Canyonlands: the Needles District
In our rush to get a parking spot at the Elephant Hill trailhead before the lot filled, we did not have morning coffee, and I fully blame my mental outlook for the rest of the day on this. Nearly all trails in the Needles are rated moderate to challenging, involving lots of climbing up and down rocks, hiking on sand or loose gravel, traversing slickrock faces, and following cairns to keep from getting lost. Kurt wanted to do the Druid Arch Trail, a 10.5-mile strenuous hike ending with a mile-long rock scramble. A second day in a row, my fear was getting to me. The uneven terrain put a dull ache in both my knees and I worried about triggering a hip flare-up. I sat on a rock feeling deflated, debating if I wanted to quit or not.
People often tell me what a badass they think I am, but the reality is that I run into fear and a lack of confidence all the time. The battle is all mental, but at that moment I couldn’t Tony Robbins myself into finishing the hike. So we ditched the Druid Arch trail and continued a little ways toward Chesler Park, far enough to get a view of the Needles rock formations, then turned around.
Looking back, I wish that I had been braver and pushed a little harder. But I also try to give myself some grace; I’m still just under a year out from a painful injury that took me out for four months. Our bodies are ever evolving (especially in our forties!!) and I’d already accomplished quite a lot during this trip.
Just outside the Needles district, we stopped at a private campground and general store called the Needles Outpost where I forked over some cash for a five-minute shower. In my opinion there is no greater return on investment than paying for a coin shower when it’s most desperately needed.
Blanding, Utah
I woke up with clean hair and a fresh mindset, and sat outside blissfully drinking my coffee (hallelujah) while taking in a final view of the Canyonlands. It was one of those moments I wish I could bottle: a perfect sky blue morning, hot coffee in my thermos, birds chirping, Kurt cooking us breakfast, a gratitude for the strength in my muscles and the breath in my lungs. Life is so good!
Our route was taking us to the southern Utah/Arizona border, passing through Blanding, home of the Dinosaur Museum which ended up being a hidden gem. In addition to their displays of dinosaur models and fossils, they also house the world’s biggest collection of monster movie posters, including multiple original Godzilla prints and a brontosaurus model used in the original King Kong. This stop is a must for kaiju fans.
Valley of the Gods & Monument Valley
The 17-mile scenic drive through Valley of the Gods was an unexpected trip highlight. The area received a fraction of the visitors that Monument Valley gets, so we got that “middle of nowhere” feeling impossible to experience in the more crowded parts of Utah. We spent a few hours exploring, and I’d love to come back and camp here someday.
I could write a whole essay about how social media is directly contributing to over-tourism, and how influencers create a visual homogeneity where we all feel like we need to go to that place, wear that item, get that shot for their feeds. I know this, and yet, I had to get a photo of myself running like Forrest Gump with Monument Valley in the background. It’s me, hi, I’m the problem, it’s me! This practice is so common that 1) there’s a location called Forrest Gump Point in Google Maps, and 2) signage surrounding said location warns drivers of multiple people on the highway.
Sure enough, when we arrived per my request (to his credit Kurt was slowly dying during this entire process), we had to wait in line behind a dozen or so twenty-something-year-old international tourists in yoga pants queued up to take their photos in the middle of the road. We waited through each of their photo shoots (peace sign! Staring at the horizon! Sitting cross-legged on the pavement!) until I got my turn. Was it worth it? Honestly yes!
We arrived at the entrance for the View Hotel and Campgrounds, where I’d reserved a site for us for the night. Monument Valley sits on Navajo Nation land, and its iconic formations are sacred and hold spiritual meaning among the people indigenous to this area. We grabbed dinner at the restaurant at the View Hotel, where enormous picture windows looked out over the valley. The restaurant buzzed as a giant military-green airplane skimmed low across the valley, weaving between the rock formations. Was it a training exercise? A chartered tour group? Indiana Jones traveling through time with the Dial of Destiny?
Crowds assembled outside just before sunset to watch the sun disappear, bathing Monument Valley in fiery orange light. I love the way that people gather to watch the sunrise and sunset in scenic places. It turns into a collective experience, everyone taking in the simple yet profound beauty, another day behind us, a fresh day ahead.
Kanab, Utah
To break up our five-hour trip from Monument Valley back to Zion, we spent some time in Kanab, Utah. I wish we’d had enough time to spend a full day at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary (bookmarking for a future trip), but our quick stop at Mocqui Cave was well worth it. In 1951 a local man bought the land and built a bar inside a giant sandstone cave, creating a place where John Wayne and other movie stars knocked back beers after shooting on location. Today, the cave houses a museum full of artifacts of questionable authenticity and a gift shop. Alongside the dinosaur track fossils and wooly mammoth tusks, the displays have a irreverent sense of humor (a pink cross-section of quartz rock is labeled as “sliced ham,” etc.). It has a strong House on the Rock vibe (IYKYK!).
Under Canvas Zion
Our final night in Utah was also our tenth wedding anniversary, the impetus for this trip. I like to book one bougie resort or glamping night on each of our long camping trips, as a little treat. We closed the loop of our road trip by returning to Zion where we reserved a deluxe glamping tent with its own king-sized bed, wood-burning fireplace, and private bathroom. The Under Canvas events manager emailed us in advance and asked if we’d like for them to coordinate a private dinner at one of their exclusive locations, such as the sunset outlook or a helipad, which all sounded like a date on The Bachelor. But honestly just having a sink with a mirror and a flush toilet was all the luxury this dirtbag needed.
We sat outside by one of the firepits with our complimentary s’mores kits and a bottle of wine, watching a final Utah sunset and reflecting back on our trip.
Favorite park?
Impossible to choose!
Favorite hike?
Kurt: Scout Lookout (Zion) and Goblin Valley
Kim: Queen’s Garden to Navajo Trail (Bryce Canyon) and Little Wild Horse Canyon
Which park do you want to revisit first?
Kurt: Capitol Reef or Canyonlands
Kim: Canyonlands (I need redemption!)
Favorite campsite?
Kurt: dispersed camping outside of Capitol Reef
Kim: Creek Pasture in Bears Ears (but next time I hope we can grab a site at Hamburger Rock which looked right out of The Flintstones!)
Two weeks flew by and we got to see plenty of Utah, though of course it was only the tip of the iceberg. Now we’re back at home, settled into the usual daily routine. I use a walking pad with my standing desk to move my body throughout the work day, but man does it feel positively dystopian to get in my steps inside in front of a monitor when we’d been hiking in the sun amidst the junipers and pinyon pines. For now, I’m savoring the memories while daydreaming of the next adventure.
What’s at the top of your travel wish list? Tell me in the comments!
I feel you on trying to figure out what being a good traveler in these days of climate change and fuller understanding of the colonialism that lead to some places getting travelers like me. Because of how human nature works, I know it's a lot easier to get buy in to preserve a place when people are getting something out of it -- Hunters in Wisconsin want to conserve their wild lands as much as environmentalists to keep having access to the land.
I’m never proud of who I am the day on the 2nd to last day of a camping trip. That shower is like a baptism 🚿