Even the drive here is impressive, with many a stunning rock formation during our long drive up from Route 66 (see below), but MV itself tops them. Basically, you can drive yourself around the valley or pay to take a tour, and when your car rental agency has forced an all-inclusive insurance premium on you, what could be more fun than driving around rocky dirt roads?
Before you descend into the valley, there's also a good overview from the entrance. You can also get a horseride, as Lilly did - complete with brief gallop, occasional jump and 3-day bruising - or buy jewellery from the natives. Highly enjoyable.
The entrance to MV is in Utah, although most of the valley is in Arizona. Shortly afterwards we left Arizona for good, which reminded me: no cacti! The traditional tall cactus with two 'arms' is on all the signs in AZ, it's on the souvenirs, but we haven't seen a single one. Boo.
The road to Monument Valley
(Dull postscript: fun with timezones. California is on Pacific time. Arizona is on Mountain time, an hour ahead, except Arizona doesn't use daylight saving time, so it's actually the same as California; apart from Indian territory, including MV and surrounds, which does use daylight savings. All of which means that when you think you're turning up late in the evening to a small town on what you belatedly realised was a bank holiday weekend without a hotel reservation, it's actually *very* late in the evening. Got away with it due to a cancellation.)
Don't move... this is a hold-up
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