In fact, while most Wasatch Front residents stop at better-known and larger Moab when visiting southeastern Utah, Monticello also offers excellent outdoor recreation possibilities. It's just a short drive from Monticello to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Newspaper Rock, Natural Bridges and Hovenweep national monuments, and Colorado's Mesa Verde National Park. The nearby mountains offer cross-country skiing in the winter, some small high-mountain fishing lakes, and quiet campgrounds.
The town itself is small but has a small museum and visitor center that includes an interesting collection of historic tractors and some items collected from pioneers in the area. During the summer months, the Bull Hollow Raceway (www.bullhollow.com) offers a schedule of motorized races and also hosts the Ancient Trails Motorcycle Tour in the fall.
Major annual festivals in town include the Blue Mountain Festival of the Old West the second weekend in May and the San Juan County Fair and Rodeo in August.
Visitors looking for an interesting place to stay should check out the Grist Mill Inn, a bed and breakfast establishment built inside an old mill that was originally built in 1933. It has a lot of personality, although there are some decent chain motels in town as well.
According to the book "Utah Place Names," it is probable that Patrick O'Donnell, a cattleman who built a cabin in Monticello in 1879, was the area's first settler. In 1887, five families were called by the LDS Church from Bluff to settle the site, which was first called Piute Springs and North Montezuma Creek. The town considered adopting the name Hammond, after the first LDS stake president, and Antioch before settling on Monticello.
