Four Corners Monument: The only place in America where 4 states meet

 

This is a really interesting area of America. It’s the only place where you can find 4 states that meet.

There are several states where you can find 3 states that meet, but this is the only place in America where you can find 4 states – those being Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah.

Being from Canada, but also an avid road tripper, the first time I learned of this area, it was really fascinating, and we had to check it out. The drive up to 4 Corners Monument is spectacular, and worth a visit, but there isn’t a lot to do in this area once you get there, so it’s definitely an add on stop for an already existing road trip.

 
Getting to 4 Corners Monument

While this area connects 4 states together, there are only 2 states that lead to this monument. You can access 4 Corners Monument from either Colorado vis Highway 160 heading SW, or from Arizona, along highway 160, heading North. Either way, there are some small towns along the drive, with long stretches of empty land. It’s a very peaceful and beautiful drive on a nice sunny day, and I’m happy to have checked this place off my road trip bucket list. 

Things to do in the area

We actually found ourselves here after a road trip to the Grand Canyon. This was during our second trip to the Grand Canyon, after first learning of the 4 Corners Monument, we had to add this stop to our road trip list.

We spent several days at the Grand Canyon, exploring and hiking, before heading up to Page, AZ for an iconic group tour through Antelope Canyon. What an amazing place to see. While there, we learned that the National Geographics drilled holes in the canyon walls to monitor the area during flash flooding, which is what helped carved out the canyon walls of this area. After numerous failed attempts, and losing their cameras during flash flooding, they stopped researching this area. This was something our guide shared with us on the group tour. 

Antelope Canyon is 2.5 hours NE from the Grand Canyon, and is so worth exploring. You can only view the canyon through a guided tour. We used Antelope Canyon Tours to book our trip, it was really easy to book, I loved the ride in their truck to the canyon. While there were several other tours happening at the same time, the tour guides were great at making sure each group got their moment in the canyons without large groups of people crowding them, even making sure each person can get selfies and photographs in certain areas uninterrupted.

Tour info: The tour was just under 2 hours, including the truck ride to the canyon. Cost is $85/person.  

Road trip tip: Arizona does not do Daylight Savings time, be mindful of this when arriving for your tour time. We arrived an hour early, not knowing this information.

Another stop to add to your road trip itinerary while in the area is the Welcome to Colorado sign. One of my road trip goals has been to get a photo with every state welcome sign across the country, and after visiting 49 of those state signs, the Welcome to Colorado sign was one of my favorites. It could be because of the beautiful landscape surrounding a uniquely beautiful welcome sign, or the fact we dropped our road trip buddy in a prickle bush right behind the sign, and then laughed about it for a good hour afterword. Ah, road trip memories!

* None of this is affiliate links, just helpful road trip information.