The Wheels on the Bus go round and round, round and round, round and round. : Goosenecks State Park, Utah

An astonishing view of the great meandering canyon carved by the San Juan River 1,000 feet below. Desert landscape reveals its underlying structure exposing 300-million years of geologic activity.

The water meanders in an immense looping pattern through these canyon walls, forming the “Goosenecks of the San Juan”, where the river flows approximately 12 miles only to achieve about 3 miles of distance overland.

Goosenecks State Park offers primitive camping @ $10.00 a night.
At night the sky is expansive - ideal for stargazing.

Exploring Lime Ridge Road

Another great place to view the Goosenecks.

The Moki Dugway is a famous stretch of Utah Route 261 - the main road bisecting Cedar Mesa from north to south. The Moki Dugway is a 3 mile section of gravel road featuring 10% grades climbing through steep hairpin switchbacks straight up (or down) the more than thousand-foot cliff walls of Cedar Mesa. Needless to say, the Moki Dugway offers incredible views. The road is carved right into the cliff side with sheer drops along the roads edge. The road leading to the Moki Dugway is an paved highway with spectacular views in all directions. As you near the Moki Dugway the dominate feature is the sheer cliffs of Cedar Mesa rising above. Soon you are passing signs cautioning about the changes ahead. As the road begins its steep climb the pavement ends and the road becomes gravel. Climbing up the switchbacks, you quickly gain altitude. The higher you climb the better the views of the Valley of the Gods and off toward Monument Valley. There are a number of pullouts along the road so be sure to take advantage of them for some spectacular sightseeing. One minute you are climbing steeply and the next you are on the mesa top - flat and covered with the Pinyon pine/juniper forest that blankets Cedar Mesa.

The Moki Dugway was constructed in 1958 by Texas Zinc, a mining company, to transport uranium ore from the "Happy Jack" mine in Fry Canyon to the processing mill at Mexican Hat. Although the mine is long abandoned, the Moki Dugway remains an important roadway. It's a really unique and special highway - if you drive it you are sure to remember the experience. It is listed on the most dangerous roads in the US website.

View of the switchbacks

After climbing the Moki Dugway, take the first dirt road to your left to reach Muley Point.

The fantastic vista at Muley Point Overlook provides a panorama of the Goosenecks of the San Juan River, and the vast, sweeping desert valley below. Mark this as a not to be missed attraction.

Panorama of the Goosenecks from the top of Cedar Mesa.

Made it back down. No problem in the jeep. This is the way Google maps would've had us go in the motorhome. There were lots of rental motorhome on it. Not sure if was on purpose or not.

Oddly enough people that we spoke with visiting from China and Belgium both knew about the Moki Dugway and Moley Point and planned to visit them before leaving home.

Valley of the Gods
A hidden gem with scenery similar to that of nearby Monument Valley. Valley of the Gods offers isolated buttes, towering pinnacles and wide open spaces that seem to go on forever