Ashleigh and Elyse start the year with a western trip

January 5-10, 2026

Monument Valley was a major point in the west trip by Ashleigh and Elyse

Ashleigh thought that the horseback tour in Monument Valley was the highlight of the trip.

On their horseback tour they got to see three of the most famous formations in Monument Valley. They are named West Mitten Butte, East Mitten Butte, and Merrick Butte.

Ashleigh had made plans for a western hiking adventure near the first of the year and it turned out that Elyse could get free to accompany her. They flew out to St George, Utah on January 5, rented a car and drove to Zion park that evening. The next morning they hiked two trails in Zion. We had visited Zion in 2011. The next morning they drove to the Navajo nation and drove through Monument Valley in Northeastern Arizona and took a guided horseback riding tour there. On January 7 they drove to Capitol Reef to begin hiking there and were able to hike across the Cassidy arch.

At times they were out in the open with distant views of the massive stone buttes. But at other times they were traveling through the stones on rougher terrain.

Ashleigh and Elyse in Capitol Reef National Park in southern Utah.They traveled there from Monument Valley, which is in the north right edge of the map of Arizona shown at right. They had traveled eastward from Zion to get to Monument Valley.

On January 7 they drove to Capitol Reef to begin hiking there and were able to hike across the Cassidy arch. This photo is dated January 8 at 3:10m. They told us that they visited Antelope Canyon, Monument Valley, and Capitol Reef. I think they traveled to Salt Lake City on January 9 and Elyse flew back because she had to be in Baton Rouge for the students' arrival. Ashleigh flew back the next day.

The lower of the two maps shown shows road routes from St. George, past Zion National Park and across to the red dot which locates Monument Valley. Looks like they would have passed through Page, and we have been there more than once. We also traveled across 89A to Fredonia with beautiful views of the Vermilion Cliffs. All of this route is just north of the Grand Canyon and our trip to Fredonia was on the way to the North Grand Canyon. Since their next destinations were to the north of Monument Valley at Capitol Reef and Hickman Bridge, the route shown to the right seems reasonable.

Ashleigh says that this is Elyse on top of the stone arch. Waiting to hear how she got there. I was guessing that this is Hickman Natural Bridge in Utah but Ashleigh says this is Cassidy Arch. The link verifies it as Cassidy Arch. Ashleigh says the Cassidy Arch was amazing and not too scary to climb although the picture makes it seem like it was.

Photo of Hickman Bridge below.

There is a Google description of how to get to the top of Hickman Bridge:

Hike Info Rating: Moderate
Distance: 1.8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 400 feet
Tips: This hike is hot in the summer in the middle of the day, and there is no shade. Hike early or late to avoid the heat. Take lots of water, and wear hats and sunscreen. Hickman Bridge is a beautiful natural bridge formed by running water long ago. (Arches are formed by wind.) There is no water under the bridge now, but it does span a dry wash. The trail starts out fairly steeply as it climbs up the mountainside. There is a low stone wall for the first tenth of a mile while the trail follows the river, and then the trail turns and climbs the hill.

My best guess about the big rocky dome behind Ashleigh and Elyse is that it is part of Capitol Reef National Park.

Rod and Brenda visited Capitol Reef in November of 2016. We went I-70 west from Denver, then down to Moab and Arches National Park. We approached the Capitol Reef area on Hwy 24. Why Capitol Reef? Early settlers noted that the white domes of Navajo Sandstone resemble the dome of the Capitol building in Washington, DC. Some of those early settlers thought part of it looked like a reef. We then went to Kodachrome Basin State Park and Bryce Canyon before proceeding to Zion.

This is my guess about the route of Ashleigh and Elyse and I'll have to check it out with them. By flying in to St. George and visiting Zion National Park, they then traveled eastward to Monument Valley. From Monument Valley they traveled to Capitol Reef National Park and Hickman Bridge, which are northward into Utah. From there they traveled to Salt Lake City for their return trips.

This map shows the collection of roads near Capitol Reef National Park. Then the bottom map covers the same area but shows the location of the Hickman Bridge with the red dot, 7.6miles in or about halfway across the Capitol Reef park. It seems likely that they then followed Utah Hwy 24 up to I-70 as part of their route to Salt Lake City.

There is a neat Youtube video of the hike to the top of the Hickman Bridge.