The dramatic eroded landscapes of Monument Valley have been immortalized — largely because of John Wayne. You read that correctly, actor John Wayne. It was in this valley that director John Ford filmed the young movie star in a series of Westerns, the drama and action framed against Monument Valley, scenes that for many people around the world defined what the American West was like.
Monument Valley is fairly high altitude, around a mile above sea level (1500-1800 m). It’s landscapes are characterized by colorful sandstone buttes, banded and eroded. Monument Valley is close to the Four Corners region and is a park within the Navajo Nation.
I’ve only been to Monument Valley once, and that was on a gray drizzly day. I’d really like to visit it when a thunderstorm is moving through. I think the drama of the storm set against these beautiful landscapes would be incredibly memorable.
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