On Four Corners
The site we now know as Four Corners was first identified as the intersection of Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico in 1875 by the surveyor Chandler Robbins from the US General Land Office.
Since then, it’s been marked by multiple signs: First a sandstone spire, then a brass marker, next a concrete monument, and finally the granite and aluminum bronze monument that we see today, which includes the state seals and flags of not just Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado, but the flags of the sovereign tribal First Nations whose history goes back in the Four Corners region since time immemorial.
The monument itself has had to be rebuilt twice — first in 1992 and then again in 2010 — and is managed by the Navajo Nation.
While visitors to the monument like to get a picture — it is, after all, the only place where you can be in four states at once — and browse the local Navajo vendors for jewelry and food, there’s so much in the surrounding area to do beyond just the monument itself.
Let’s start with…
Other nearby landmarks
The area surrounding Four Corners has so many other landmarks worth experiencing. These are just a few.
On the Colorado side of Four Corners is the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. This monument has the highest density of archaeological sites in the US, with over 8,500 Ancestral Puebloan sites inspiring the creation of Canyons of the Ancients as a national monument in 2000.
Just over a five minute drive west, straddling the border between Colorado and Utah, is Hovenweep National Monument. Hovenweep — which means “deserted valley” in the Ute language, referring to a combination of the geology and ancient migrations away from the area around 700 years ago — protects six ancient Ancestral Puebloan villages and was designated as a national monument over 100 years ago in 1923.
A bit over two hours south of Hovenweep and an hour and 45 minutes from Four Corners itself is Canyon de Chelly National Monument, which is on the Arizona side. Owned and lying completely within the Navajo Nation, you’ll find cliff dwellings built into the canyon walls, with farmland down below. You’ll also find ancient art throughout the area.
Other than the White House Ruin Trail, you can only get access to the floor of the canyon alongside a park ranger or Navajo guide.
Also on the Navajo Nation (but on the New Mexico side) is Ship Rock. Located an hour southeast of Four Corners, it’s the remnant of an ancient volcanic eruption from around 30 million years ago. A significant figure in Navajo religion and myth, today it’s also popular with photographers and rock climbers.
Lastly is Trail of the Ancients Scenic Byway. This route leads right to Four Corners, and is a web of highways that crosses all four of the states that make up this region. If you’re coming to Four Corners via car, you can’t not take some detours through this drive to see the vast beauty of the Colorado Plateau.
Other than these landmarks, what else is there to do near here?
Hike the Mesa Verde National Park
Located about an hour northeast of the Four Corners Monument in southwestern Colorado, Mesa Verde National Park, there are some great trail offerings here.
You have Petroglyph Point Trail, which is a 2.4-mile long loop and features petroglyph panels of humans, animals, and handprints alongside the ancient footpath of the Pueblo’s ancestral people heading into the Spruce Canyon. It’s considered moderately strenuous. Needless to say, touching petroglyphs is strictly forbidden and it’s critically important for all visitors to respectfully leave all plants, animals, and archaeological sites undisturbed.
Speaking of Spruce Canyon, the Spruce Canyon Trail is another 2.4-mile long trail whose trailhead is right next to Petroglyph Point. It also does a loop, this time along the canyon floor with parts that are more shaded or include wetlands, attracting lots of birds and other wildlife. Like Petroglyph Point, Spruce Canyon Trail is considered moderately difficult.
If you want a longer hike and are willing to drive a little further out, the Prater Ridge Trail is almost twice the length of Spruce Canyon and Petroglyph Point at 5.5 miles, or 7.8 miles if you do both the north and south loops.
It’s generally considered a similar difficulty to those two trails to start, but the greater distance brings more of a challenge. The south loop offers views into the Prater Canyon and its sprawling conifers, while the north loop climbs to views of the Montezuma Valley and San Juan Mountains.
See historical sites including UNESCO World Heritage Sites
Alongside the hikes and the monuments, there are some historical sites that we highly recommend visiting.
This includes the Aztec Ruins National Monument, which is about an hour and a half east of Four Corners and 30 minutes east of Farmington. The visitor center is open from 9-5 every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s, and there’s a paved trail to walk alongside the Animas River nearby.
Further south and also on the New Mexico side of Four Corners is the De-Na-Zin Wilderness, also known as the Bisti Badlands. Formed by an ancient inland sea, De-Na-Zin is a high desert wilderness covering 45,000 acres and featuring uniquely diverse rock formations that you won’t see anywhere else on Earth. Camping is available, and the area is open year-round — it’s so expansive that you can’t see it all in one visit.
Lastly is the UNESCO World Heritage Site at Chaco Culture National Historical Park, which is the deepest into New Mexico of these sites and is defined by its pueblos that were the homes of Ancestral Puebloan people. Hikes here include the Pueblo Bonito Trail, which is a gentle hike of less than a mile and takes you to the ancient city of Pueblo Bonito. For more of a challenge, you can hike the South Mesa Trail at 4.4 miles, which reaches its pinnacle in South Mesa and offers beautiful landscape views.
Visiting Farmington on your way through Four Corners
As the largest community in the Four Corners region, we see lots of visitors come through while in the area to see all this stunning history and natural beauty. With over 100 restaurants, museums, art galleries, year-round events, plenty of family-friendly activities, and, of course, plenty of recreational opportunities in the natural environment surrounding us, it’s a perfect home base for those visitors. And we love welcoming them all to our beautiful home!
Along with local spots exclusive to Farmington like Glade Run Family Retreat, Casa Blanca Inn & Suites, and Kokopelli’s Cave — quite literally a cave bed and breakfast built into the natural landscape — we also have plenty of hotel brands that people the world over have come to know and trust.
There are also RV parks for those who are road tripping through like Homestead and McGee Park RV Parks, or camping options nearby at Angel Peak Scenic Area and Bisti Badlands Camping.
Wherever you’re staying, there are also loads of delicious local eats to fuel up on. Why not start your day with breakfast and coffee at Studio Bake Shoppe, lunch at Spare Rib BBQ Company, and — after a full day of exploring our beautiful surroundings, we’re sure — finish up with dinner at Three Rivers Brewery and Eatery.
For those who are looking to see the majesty of the American west, the region around Four Corners is both exceptionally beautiful and contains so much history. It’s really incomparable to anywhere else in the country, and is a wonderful place to roadtrip through.
We might be biased but we think that, if you’re coming to the Southwest, the Four Corners area is a must-see. Hopefully we’ll see you in Farmington on your way through!