On our drive to Moab, Utah from Glenwood Springs, Colorado, we took a detour so we could see the Colorado National Monument. When I saw people mention it online, I figured it was a monument where you stop, take in the views, and then go on your way! When I researched it more, I realized it actually consists of a 23 mile road with amazing views of red rocks, canyons and just an overall breathtaking landscape.

The drive straight from Glenwood Springs to Moab takes about 3 hours. If you were to just drive through the Colorado National Monument on Rim Rock Drive (the only paved road there!), I’d say it would take about an hour or so because there are so many curves and turns! We kept stopping at the viewpoints so it took us longer. With our detour to Colorado National Monument, the whole trip from Glenwood Springs to Moab took us about 6 hours total. We went hiking at Hanging Lake earlier in the day, so this was a long day full of beautiful views for us!!

We entered through the town of Grand Junction, just following the signs to Colorado National Monument. Once we entered and the road climbed higher and higher, we were greeted with so many beautiful views! We didn’t go on any long hikes while we were there, just short walks to viewpoints. The best part was that it was so easy to take in great views there, so it would be the perfect place for someone who may not enjoy hiking or may not be able to hike, but still wants to enjoy nature. We pulled over whenever we saw something we really wanted to take in. There are 19 designated viewpoints and it felt like we kept stopping at all of them! It was late in the day, so the sunlight was quickly changing as we were driving. With every dip of the sun, the landscape looked totally different – which was why we couldn’t help but stop to take it all in!

The drive itself was so scenic and it was perfect to break up our drive to Moab. While it made the drive itself longer, it was nice getting out of the car and stretching our legs while looking out into the vast distance! Places like this remind us how large the world is and how small we are in the grand scheme of things.

The whole drive through the Colorado National Monument was pretty empty (a reoccuring but welcome theme during our trip!) since it was November and the off season. It was nice being able to enjoy the park without having to worry about traffic or crowds. We were able to take everything in by ourselves, enjoying the quietness of the nature. A few times we stopped, we kept seeing the same group of girls who were also driving through. Ironically enough, we ended up seeing them on a hike in Moab a few days later and we recognized eachother again!

Since we didn’t do too much hiking, we don’t have too many details about the Monument itself, but we definitely recommend even just driving through to enjoy the beauty of the place! Enjoy!!!