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Photograph Colorado National Monument

Grand Junction, Colorado

4.2/5
based on 5 reviews

Description

Added by Connor Morris

Gorgeous Views. Easy access. Amazing sunrise/sunset.

Driving through Colorado National Monument was very easy and gorgeous. Very scenic drive with many lookouts to stop at. Every lookout has a spot to park and you can just jump out and photograph the book cliffs and canyons. I stopped at almost all of the lookouts and they are all breathtaking. I definitely recommend checking this place out and bringing your camera along with.

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Photography
Scenic
Wildflowers
Wildlife

Photograph Colorado National Monument Reviews

We happened upon this on a road trip after looking on a map for a place to stop and are so happy we did. It's beautiful, not crowded, and a lot of fun. We even saw big horn sheep! The ranger was so nice too!

Jason is right, finding a good composition can be tricky just because of the monument's proximity to modern civilization, but the rocks themselves are gorgeous. Sunrises and sunsets here are really good because the rocks tend to glow with the low hanging sun. Definitely worth checking out if you're in the area.

Unexpectedly beautiful area. Agree with the previous comment about this being a challenging place to photograph. Worth a shot though! Great camping in the monument at Saddlehorn Campground.

Great drive through some incredible rock structure, stop near the west end of the road at sunset, or the east end at sunrise for photos, and aim back across the "inlet" area of the canyon so that the opposite wall is illuminated. And though I am fairly certain climbing is not allowed within the monument, on the east exit back toward Fruita, there is a boulder field outside the monument boundary on the left side of the road that has some good sized (ranging from 10-20' tall, uncrowded boulders. I only had time to hike around the area, but there were chalk marks up several of the larger rocks.

This a pretty place to see but hard to get a compelling image out of. The park runs along populated areas so you'll have to work a bit if you want to avoid houses in your images. If it looks like sunset/sunrise will be good it's definitely still worth photographing.

Leave No Trace

Always practice Leave No Trace ethics on your adventures and follow local regulations. Please explore responsibly!

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