Like a rock, I was strong as I could be
Like a rock, nothin’ ever got to me
Like a rock, I was something to see
Like a rock
You may recognize these words as the chorus from the 1986 Bob Seger song “Like a Rock”, perhaps better known as the theme music of commercials for Chevy trucks, filmed in Monument Valley. Monument Valley spans the Arizona/Utah border and is known for its spectacular buttes and mesas. The Chevrolet truck commercials featured their vehicles, posed atop these impressive geologic structures while Seger’s music played in the background. In addition to its being the site for truck commercials, Monument Valley has been featured in dozens of movies and television programs, mostly westerns.
I’ve been there on at least three occasions and I’m certain I’ll return again. It is an amazing place and a paradise for anyone wielding a camera. I’m posting some shots today from a trip in April 2007. Accompanied that day by Jaime and Andrew, I ventured out to meet our guide in the pitch black of the very early morning. We were rewarded with a beautiful sunrise and the opportunity to get many good photographs .
This first scene was taken at about 6:45 am. The spire silhouetted against the sunrise is the Totem Pole, one of Monument Valley’s better known landmarks.
A short 15 minutes later, I was able to get this next shot, also of the Totem Pole but from a different angle. The light had changed dramatically in that short period with the sun’s illumination highlighting the rugged features of the landscape.
We wrapped up our morning at the Visitor Center of the Navajo Tribal Park, where I captured this final scene, featuring Sentinel Mesa.
The Monument Valley area is part of the Colorado Plateau. The floor is largely Cutler Red siltstone or sand deposited by the meandering rivers that carved the valley. The valley’s vivid red color comes from iron oxide exposed in the weathered siltstone. The darker, blue-gray rocks in the valley get their color from manganese oxide.