Utah 2023 – Four Corners, Valley of the Gods, and Monument Valley across 58 years

Escaping the cold windstorm by moving East, we made a long, shallow loop around Navajo Mountain to Four Corners, then back through the serene Valley of the Gods for a quick afternoon hike before approaching one of my favorite places on Earth: Monument Valley. I have been to this special place many times in my life, and always recall vivid memories of my first visit as an 8 year old. With the help of my brother, Eric (who was not even born at the time of that first visit), we found photographic slides that our Dad, the late Jack S Wilmoth, had taken in 1965, 58 years earlier. While I didn’t have access to his images during this trip, it has been fun to intersperse his shots with my own! You can see how we change much more dramatically than the formations do.

Four Corners Monument

Where the corners of the states of Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado all meet at this one spot.

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Valley of the Gods, Bears Ears National Monument

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Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park

Agathla Peak, at the South entrance to the park.

2023 and 1965

Forrest Gump Hill, at the North entrance to the park.

Monument Valley has featured in many films over the years, and was also a favorite of the animators!

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Three Sisters

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John Ford‘s Point

We sat for coffee and looked out at John Ford‘s Point…

… where long ago I stood with my two sisters.

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The Totem Pole

When I first visited the Totem Pole, we could get much closer than we can now…

We also had a lot more contact with the local people and animals.

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Rocks, and more rocks

Dad liked the rocks, too…

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The iconic Mitten Buttes

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Navajo Homesteads

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A tasty afternoon snack from our balcony at The View Hotel!

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The View Hotel and Visitor Center in 2023

Visitor Center in 1965

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Sun and Moon Action