Daybreak Monument valley                       click to enlarge

Unless you’re an early riser many people miss daybreak. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, daybreak is when the sun comes up and everything that was dark is now light. This term is used a lot in the west. Usually by cowboys and long haul truckers and some waitresses. It is also sometimes known  as dawn. Daybreak or dawn is almost always a good thing unless one has a hangover and wants to sleep for another week. But then what are you doing out in the desert with a hangover? What’s a matter with you? Stay home. You’re missing some of the best sights in the whole wide world.

Dawn in the low desert comes with startling swiftness. One moment you’re stumbling around in the dark wondering where your other shoe is and the next it is so light out you can’t blink fast enough. I like that. Talk about Wham Bam, that is some instant gratification. Yeah it’s possible to run around and duck down behind a rock in the shadows until your eyeballs adjust but that’s only available for a minute or two, then the sun gets a little higher and that’s it. It’s day out. Wake up.

Monument valley has a lot of daybreak in the morning. This is just one small example of it. To get the full effect of it you have to be there for a few days and make a good concentrated effort of getting up every morning, then you’ll understand how this thing works. So if you’re not doing anything tomorrow, you already missed it this morning, hop on over to Monument valley just before daybreak and be prepared to be impressed. Oh yeah, and don’t forget your RayBans.