We had many firsts during our Labor Day motorcycle trip, not the least of which was my first time visiting New Mexico!

It was a brief but memorable visit, and I’m already planning another road trip to Albuquerque and Santa Fe in the new year now that we’re within driving distance.

The morning of our visit we woke up in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, and rode across the southern part of the state toward our destination: Four Corners Monument.

The Four Corners Monument is a Navajo Tribal Park and the only place where four states – Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah – meet. There were a number of other motorcycles there during our visit, and we learned there was a Four Corners Motorcycle Rally in nearby Durango, Colorado, that was likely contributing to much of that traffic!

The ride to the tribal park was easy with wide open and well maintained roads, but it was getting pretty hot by the time we reached the monument in the early afternoon.

For all of the vehicles, there didn’t seem to be many people waiting their turn to take photos on the marker. There were lots of signs posted about lining up and limiting the number of photos, etc., which are likely necessary when there are big bus tours and crowds.

Happily, we didn’t have any issue taking turns with the other couples in the area, and one guy even volunteered to take photos for a few of us who were waiting!

There were a number of stalls around the outside of the marker and seating areas, with people from the Navajo tribe selling their goods. I’m sure more of the stalls are operational at busier times of year.

While we didn’t need to buy any goods, we did need a late lunch and headed over to Grandma’s Frybread Shack. Grandma was in the house and just getting set up – before I knew it, she had Brian in the back helping her get things up and down from one of her higher shelves!

As she got to work on our fry bread, we learned she was a retired teacher and had started her fry bread stand so she could keep engaging with the community. It was nice visiting with her before other people started coming over and she was preoccupied with making all the orders.

Since this was our lunch, we opted for a savory option with garlic salt. It was fantastic – I could have eaten the entire thing myself and was glad we were sharing!

After a few final photos and a water break, we hopped back on the bikes and headed toward Mesa Verde National Park where Brian booked us into the lodge for the night. It was an uneventful ride with a brief pause so Brian could capture a few photos of nearby Ship Rock.

Four Corners Monument is definitely a tourist site and a bit out of the way, but I enjoyed the ride to and from the tribal park, including the portion of the ride that took us through New Mexico! I look forward to getting back down to explore more of that state soon.