Monument Valley

John Wayne is introduced to moviegoers as 'The Ringo Kid' in John Ford's 1939 Western Stagecoach. Note the distinctive landscape.



I'm fortunate to have traveled to places very different from the cities where I've lived. One place especially unearthly and surprisingly dreamlike was Monument Valley. Being there, just standing there on that desolate, red soil with the 'mitten' buttes in the distance and nothing else for miles and miles was astonishing.

I thought having seen the valley in so many photos and movies would give it a sense of familiarity, but the views, the sheer scope can't be captured on film. I wanted so much to go horseback riding but drove around the valley with a Navajo guide instead. It was a very cold day in February and he refused to wear a coat.