In September 2008, Bryan and I rented an Excursion and took a road trip out west starting in Colorado National Monument Valley driving through Utah and Arizona ending up in Vegas.
We spent many nights in various Holiday Inn hotels watching as the world was first introduced to Sarah Palin at the RNC convention happening in Minnesota and we felt worlds away in the western states.
I have to admit that I am not a landscape photographer and I was pretty happy to get to Vegas but one of my favorite stops was Monument Valley to photograph the desert scenery.
We stayed at the world-famous Goulding’s Lodge at Monument Valley where John Wayne stayed while filming his westerns.
The lodge is not fancy but it is one of my favorite hotels because of its private cabin rooms and Hollywood history.
This photo shows a gorgeous day at Artist’s Point where you can see shadows moving across the butte structures.
It is important when traveling to Monument Valley to research the time of day you should travel to the various monument locations to ensure that you have the proper light.
Lighting can be too harsh to photograph if you show up at the wrong time of day.