Cedar Mesa, Dark Canyon, Grand Gulch and Valley of the Gods are all places with names that evoke the almost mythical natural landscape familiar to many residents and visitors of the Four Corners who have hiked, hunted, floated and appreciated the archaeology in them. They are big places with open spaces one can imagine not looking too much different than they did millions of years ago.
Bounded to the west by the Green and Colorado rivers, to the east by Highway 191 from Moab to Bluff, and along the southern edge by the San Juan River, the 1.9 million acres of public and ancestral lands known as the Bears Ears may soon receive permanent protection. Some say this is long overdue – by a century or more...