Is it hot at Monument Valley?

Monument Valley in July: desert heat and where the buttes throw shadow

Few places in the country are as spectacular and as unforgiving as Monument Valley on a July afternoon. The red sandstone buttes rise out of open desert on the Arizona–Utah line, and the land between them is exactly that: open desert, with no trees, no canopy, and nowhere to hide from the sun. July afternoon highs here reach about 93°F, and August and June are barely cooler at 92 and 91, so heat is not a footnote on this visit. It is the main thing to plan around.

At 3 PM in July the sun stands about 64 degrees up on a west-southwest bearing near 239, blazing down on bare rock and sand that soak up the heat and give it back. The valley floor drive and the overlooks are fully exposed. The only shade you will find is the shadow cast by the buttes themselves, and that shade moves and shrinks as the sun climbs toward its midday peak.

Time your visit to the ends of the day

The high desert makes the case for early and late better than almost anywhere.

• Sunrise, around 6:12 AM in July, is the classic time here. The air is cool, the light on the sandstone is at its best, and the long shadows off the buttes stretch across the valley.
• Late afternoon into the roughly 8:39 PM sunset is the other prime window, as the heat breaks and the western faces of the formations glow.
• Midday is the hour to avoid. The sun is nearly overhead, the buttes cast almost no useful shadow, and the open ground is at its hottest.

Treat the heat seriously

This is genuine desert. Carry far more water than you think you need, because there is no shade and often no services once you are out on the valley loop. Sun protection is not optional on bare rock at this altitude, where the sun feels stronger than the numbers alone suggest. If you take the driving loop or a guided tour, plan it for the cool ends of the day rather than the middle, and never rely on finding shade out on the floor, because there effectively is none except the moving shadow of a butte.

The shoulder seasons transform the place. By October the high drops to 70 and by May it is 78, both far more comfortable for spending hours outside, while the light stays dramatic. Summer rewards the disciplined early riser and punishes everyone who shows up at noon.

To see how the great formations throw their shadows across the valley at the hour you plan to be there, the satellite shadow view shows it for your date. At Monument Valley the rule is absolute: the desert gives no shade of its own, so let the buttes and the low sun of morning and evening be your only shelter, and carry your water.