Come to Monument Valley!
What is Monument Valley and Where is it located?
Monument Valley is a region of the Colorado Plateau that is characterized by a cluster of vast sandstone buttes. The largest butte reaches 1,000 feet above the valley floor. Monument Valley is located on the Arizona-Utah state line. The valley lies within the range of the Navajo Nation Reservation and is easy access from U.S. Highway 163.
How was it formed?
Sandstone layers covered the region and erosion made the valley a wide flat plain that is interrupted by formations that rise high into the air. The iron oxide in the weathered siltstone gives the valley its red color. The blue-gray rocks in the valley contain manganese oxide.
What is the Monument Valley composed of?
It is composed of sandstone, the floor is composed of river-deposited sand, the buttes of the Monument Valley are composed of siltstone. Organ rock shales are Permian deposits found in the Culter red beds, layers of siltstones and shales found extensively on the Colorado Plateau. The layers are deposited by streams carrying sediments from the ancestral Rockies.
Why come to the Monument Valley?
The Monument Valley is nice and warm in the summertime reaching temperature's of 90 degrees. The Valley is great for hiking and a nice place to get a tan! The Valley is great for camping as well! In the winter it can be cold and snowy because of the mile high elevation, with the monthly lows in the 20's. During the winter, bring your snowboards and snow gear and have a great time!