Planning your visit to stunning Valley of the Gods in Utah

Not as well known, and unfairly eclipsed in reputation by nearby Monument Valley to the south, Valley of the Gods is a real treasure waiting for you to discover

Buttes in the morning sunlight in Valley of the Gods

Being overshadowed by Monument Valley has some real benefits to the independent traveler in search of something special and not overrun by crowds.

Why Valley of the Gods is better than Monument Valley

The Valley of the Gods is on Utah BLM land, not an Indian reservation, so access is free.
It is open 24 hours a day. You can enter prior to sunrise and be in position for breathtaking sunrise photography or stay late after sunset and capture those amazing colors in the sky after sunset, or do night astrophotography of the Milkyway to your heart’s content.
There is no commercialization of the area, it is still pure and natural, there are no hotels inside, or Indians paid to sit on a horse so you can take a picture of them or any of the other Disney-like experiences you will find in Monument Valley.
You are free to roam. You don’t have to hire a Navajo guide or take a tour, you are not limited to only accessing a few areas.
Less crowded and less touristy. A lot less people know about Valley of the Gods, it isn’t over-run by tourists, you will have many places just to yourself.\
Just as amazing and stunning scenery. There are actually more formations in Valley of the Gods to see, they are just as stunning.

De Gaulle and his troops on the right

Hours

Daily, 24 hours

Cost

Free

Note

Dogs okay

Getting there

The west entrance ( 37.264219, -109.932510 )is at the foot of the Mokey Dugway on UT-261.
The southeast entrance is on US-163 at ( 37.235004, -109.814339 ).
The route is a 17-mile dirt road that connects Highway 163 and Highway 261.
You can drive it with any car.

Photo advice for Valley of the Gods

This is a photographer’s dream location, the rock formations and stunning and you have free access to roam around to create stunning compositions.
In the later afternoon to sunset, the scenery is best from the western entrance.
From sunrise to early morning, the scenery is best from the eastern entrance.
The majority of the best images can be made right from the road, or stopping and climbing a nearby hill
The same features change depending on which direction you are driving the road

Valley of the Gods provides plenty of opportunity for creative photography — Valley of the Gods provides plenty of opportunities for creative photography

Rock formations and buttes in the early morning light in this stunning Utah landscape

Battleship Rock on the right

Lady in the Bathtub

Explore Nearby...

Hikes...

Arch Canyon and Walnut Knob

Arch Canyon has ruins and three arches, explore Walnut Knob to see amazing petroglyphs of hunting parties and game

House on Fire Ruins in Mule Canyon South Fork

There are many ruins in the canyon, but House on Fire ruin is the most famous of them, getting its name from the effects that the sunlight has on the sandstone cliff of the overhang that it is built under

Fallen Roof Ruin in Road Canyon

Road Canyon contains many ruins, granaries, and kivas. “Fallen Roof Ruin” derives its name from the elaborate pattern created by the missing sandstone slabs of rock that fell out of the roof of the alcove in front of it.

Butler Wash Ruins

Choose to view the ruins from an overlook or hike up the wash and explore the ruins close up

Lower Butler Wash Road - Hikes

Lower Butler Wash Road is a unique area of Comb Ridge, home to a dozen unmarked trailheads not published by the BLM or marked with signs. All are short hikes (1-3 miles round trip) that lead to amazing ancestral sites, caves and alcoves with 800-year-old ruins, petroglyphs, pottery shards and more.

Pedestal Rock Ruins

A large intact ruin on top of a 400-foot rock pedestal with views out over Comb Ridge

Monarch Cave

Hidden up a side canyon of Comb Ridge is an impressive ruin complex with petroglyphs, pottery sherds, corn cobs, sharpening grooves, and grinding metates.

Wolfman Panel

Hike to see multiple rock art panels with one with a unique wolfman like figure, across the canyon are ruins you can continue to

Butler Wash Dinosaur Tracksite

See two sets of Allosaurus dinosaur tracks from 160 million years ago

Fishmouth Cave

A short easy hike to a large cave with handprints and metates, there are a number of smaller ruins to see along the trail.

Split Level Ruin

The hike to a ruin split over two ledges is filled with hundreds of pictographs, large rocks covered in metates, sharpening marks, pottery shards, and painted handprints

Goosenecks State Park ...

How to photograph the San Juan River’s double Goosenecks at Utah’s Goosenecks State Park

The park’s viewpoint overlooks the meander of two giant bends (goosenecks) of the San Juan River. Geologists consider this part of the river to be one of the finest examples of “entrenched meanders” anywhere in the world.

Scenic Drives...

Arch Canyon Overlook

Sit 400 feet above Arch Canyon and enjoy a great sunset

Recapture Pocket

This is a little visited but interesting location full of goblins and hoodoos contained in three main groups of formations relatively close to each other

Petroglyphs along highway 162

On Highway 162, stretching for 3 miles east from Bluff there are multiple rock art sites sitting right next to the highway.