Has anyone ever gone to four corners?

[in_the_gloaming]

I came close to Four Corners a couple of years ago when I moved my brother from Yuma Az. to S. E. Oklahoma and I drove from Blanding Utah south on U. S. 160, which is a nice drive thru Hillillea ( not sure about the spelling), Tuba City, and Flagstaff. Its Indian Country..., lots of unusual scenery worth seeing.

[steve22]

Originally Posted by Lovehound

I've been there and like everybody else I agree there's not much there. It's an artificial place inadvertently created by map makers and legislators when they decided where the state boundaries would be. It's nothing more than a patch of desolate desert chosen more or less at random. Other than a parking lot and a memorial marker there isn't ANYTHING there.

You pay a few dollars to get in (probably benefiting the Native Americans), you park, you go over and look at the marker. It's not unusual for somebody to stand right on the "X" and place one hand and one foot in each of the four states (AZ, UT, NM, CO) and have somebody snap a souvenir picture. "Look at me!!!" It's the only place in the US you can stand in four states. Wow.

You might stand around a bit and look at some of the Native Americans selling silver and turquoise jewelry, maybe one of the NAs is selling fry bread. Then you realize that in the space of 15 minutes you have TOTALLY exhausted all the recreational opportunities of the monument, and as you gaze out to the horizon in every direction you realize that you've exhausted all the recreational opportunities of everything within 10,000 square miles!

You hop back in your car and continue on your journey, and you'll likely never be back unless dragged there by family or friends who haven't seen it yet. Folks, DO NOT waste your time going to Four Corners Monument unless you are already planning on passing by anyway, like you're going to/from Mesa Verde, Canyon de Chelle, Monument Valley, Glenn Canyon. Don't go hundreds of miles out of your way to visit Four Corners, but if you're passing by it's a painless 15 minutes of fun. Okay, maybe 10 minutes.

I live pretty close to the 4 corners (Durango), and drove right past it on my way to moving here from PHX. While I will agree that there's not much right there to see or do- it's basically just a small landmark in the middle of desolate high desert- to say that there aren't any recreational opportunities within 10,000 square miles isn't true at all. If you're an avid mountain biker, you're pretty close to some amazing terrain. Canyons of the Ancients is spectacular, and there's some pretty phenomenal singletrack around the Cortez area as well. Actually, if you're into the outdoors at all, within 10,000 square miles there's tons to do. Maybe not within the immediate vicinity of the monument itself, but within a few hours, for sure.

[LRUA]

I've been twice, first time was about 20 years ago in January just before sunset, no one around so I didn't have to pay ...it's not a place you want to go out of your way to see ...it is kinda neat to stand in four states ...it was cold so I didn't stay long, I ended up staying the nite at a motel in Mexican Hat,Utah

There are alot of cool places in the general area:

SE Utah ....there is the Goosenecks Park (near Mexican Hat)

NW Arizona ....Canyon de Chelly National Monument

NE New Mexico ....Shiprock and Chaco Canyon

SW Colorado .....Mesa Verde and the San Juan Mtns

And last but not least ....Monument Valley which straddles the Utah-AZ state line just south of Mexican Hat

Monument Valley is awesome ....think John Wayne / John Ford westerns

[Lovehound]

Originally Posted by LRUA

I've been twice, first time was about 20 years ago in January just before sunset, no one around so I didn't have to pay ...it's not a place you want to go out of your way to see ...it is kinda neat to stand in four states ...it was cold so I didn't stay long, I ended up staying the nite at a motel in Mexican Hat,Utah

There are alot of cool places in the general area:

SE Utah ....there is the Goosenecks Park (near Mexican Hat)

NW Arizona ....Canyon de Chelly National Monument

NE New Mexico ....Shiprock and Chaco Canyon

SW Colorado .....Mesa Verde and the San Juan Mtns

And last but not least ....Monument Valley which straddles the Utah-AZ state line just south of Mexican Hat

Monument Valley is awesome ....think John Wayne / John Ford westerns

We are in PERFECT agreement. You're my kind of camping people!

And yes, it's common to get to for-fee Indian stuff and nobody's there and you get in for free. They'll get you next time.

Monument Valley!!! It should be like Mecca for the Muslims, that every American should see Monument Valley at least once in their life, and not in a John Wayne movie. And the same for Grand Canyon.

[collected_eve]

It's till fun, though.
I've been there twice between the ages of 10~14.
I got a kick out of being in all states at once, yes a picture was taken on all fours with my butt in the air!! Makes a good memory!
There are lots of knick-knack stuff to buy, too. Pottery, tshirts & whatnot. Both times I went there was an Indian with his pretty horse, I think he was there to take pics. with. He went galloping off into the desert & I watched until I couldn't see him anymore.
I wouldn't go far out of my way to get there, but if it's roughly along the path, it's worth stopping at.

[Leana76]

Originally Posted by sfw1979

Where the 4 states meet? It looks like something neat to do. I bet my kids would get a kick out if standing in 4 states at once. Is there anything else to do around there?
Thanks!

I have, once, when I was 9 years old. It was my first time to come out to the southwest (my first time out of Texas). That was a great place. My mom has the pictures of us being there. I'm going to try to get copies from her.

[Rrprinze]

Yeah, we passed through it, it was cool! You should plan a trip and include the corners in it! Have fun!!!

One!

[jdavid93225]

Well, I think everyone ahead of me summed it up pretty well, but I will add that there is a lot to do in any of the four states within a two-hour drive of four corners. The state most worth mentioning is probably Colorado, as Durango and Mesa Verde are both very close. When you drive east over the Continental Divide, you go through some gorgeous scenery before arriving in Alamosa, which is only a short distance from Great Sand Dunes National Park and the Sangre De Cristo mountains.

Utah is neat, too, since the Escalante-Grand Staircase National Monument is close, as are Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. There are also numerous state parks and monuments nearby, and Monument Valley, which has already been mentioned. If I remember correctly, there is river rafting on the San Juan River near Mexican Hat, too. Utah also has Zion, Bryce Canyon, and Capitol Reef National Parks that are within a few hours drive time, and some other areas offering spectacular scenery.

A couple hours southwest of Four Corners on US 160 will get you to US 89 and the South Rim of the Grand Canyon if you head south on US 89, or you can head north on US 89/89A to reach the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. The drive into the North Rim takes you through some spectacular scenery. Petrified Forest National Park is a short drive south of Four Corners, and Meteor Crater is not far from there. The White Mountains of eastern Arizona are beautiful, and only a couple hours further south.

I haven't traveled much through the northwest corner of New Mexico, but there is the Cumbres and Toltec railroad that goes from New Mexico into Colorado that I believe is worth seeing. There are some beautiful areas around Albuquerque and Santa Fe, and on up I-25 into Colorado.

Overall, the area around Four Corners has some of the most beautiful scenery I've seen, and offers something to see in every direction. While the Four Corners monument by itself may not offer much to see, it is worth seeing as part of a trip to the region when you take in some of the other sights in the area. I would recommend anyone that loves the outdoors take a trip to this region and spend some time traveling around. While you're at it, spend the 15 minutes or so that it takes to see Four Corners. I think you'll be pleased with everything there is to see in the area.

[Dan Mcconnell]

If I remember correctly It's a parking lot in the middle of a vast open area. Ship Rock was more exciting. Mt $.02