Rivers – Page 12 – WANDERLUST FAMILY ADVENTURE

Glen Canyon National Recreation Area – Arizona/Utah

August 30, 2020 Joseph Candora Architecture, Arizona, Beaches, Bridges, Hiking, Historic Sites, Lake/Pond, Mountain, National Parks Service, North America, Rivers, United States, Utah

Glen Canyon National Recreation Area is a recreation and conservation unit of the United States National Park Service that encompasses the area around Lake Powell and lower Cataract Canyon in Utah and Arizona, covering 1,254,429 acres of mostly rugged high desert terrain. The recreation area is named for Glen Canyon, which was flooded by the Glen Canyon Dam, completed in 1966, and is now mostly submerged beneath the waters of Lake Powell.
Glen Canyon NRA borders Capitol Reef National Park and Canyonlands National Park on the north, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument on the west, Vermilion Cliffs National Monument and the northeasternmost reaches of Grand Canyon National Park on the southwest, and the Navajo Nation on the southeast. The southwestern end of Glen Canyon NRA in Arizona can be accessed via U.S. Route 89 and Arizona Route 98. Arizona Route 95 and Utah Route 276 lead to the northeastern end of the recreation area in Utah. Click the links below for posts on individual sites within the Recreation Area.

Marble Canyon

New photo by Wanderlust Family Adventure / Google Photos

Glen Canyon Dam

Rainbow Bridge National Monument

Lee’s Ferry

Rainbow Bridge National Monument – Glen Canyon National Recreation Area

August 30, 2020 Joseph Candora Arizona, Canoeing, Cruise, Hiking, Historic Sites, Lake/Pond, National Parks Service, North America, Rivers, United States, Utah

Rainbow Bridge National Monument is administered by Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Utah. Rainbow Bridge is often described as the world’s highest natural bridge. The span of Rainbow Bridge was reported in 1974 by the Bureau of Reclamation to be 275 feet, but a measurement of span according to definition by the Natural Arch and Bridge Society in 2007 resulted in a value of 234 feet. At the top it is 42 feet thick and 33 feet wide. The bridge, which is of cultural importance to a number of area Native American tribes, has been designated a Traditional Cultural Property by the National Park Service. To get to the bridge prepare for a very long hot hike or take the boat ride to the site.

Glen Canyon Dam – Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (Arizona)

August 30, 2020 Joseph Candora Architecture, Arizona, Dam, Historic Sites, Lake/Pond, National Parks Service, North America, Rivers, United States

Glen Canyon Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam on the Colorado River in northern Arizona, near the town of Page. The 710 foot high dam was built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation from 1956 to 1966 and forms Lake Powell, one of the largest man-made reservoirs in the U.S. The dam is named for Glen Canyon, a series of deep sandstone gorges now flooded by the reservoir; Lake Powell is named for John Wesley Powell, who in 1869 led the first expedition to traverse the Colorado’s Grand Canyon by boat.

Marble Canyon – Arizona

August 30, 2020 Joseph Candora Arizona, Camping, Canoeing, Hiking, Historic Sites, Lake/Pond, Mountain, National Parks Service, North America, Rivers, United States

Marble Canyon is the section of the Colorado River canyon in northern Arizona from Lee’s Ferry to the confluence with the Little Colorado River, which marks the beginning of the Grand Canyon. Marble Canyon marks the western boundary of the Navajo Nation. In 1975, the former Marble Canyon National Monument, which followed the Colorado River northeast from the Grand Canyon to Lee’s Ferry, was made part of Grand Canyon National Park. The name Marble Canyon is a misnomer because there is no marble there. Although John Wesley Powell knew this when he named the canyon, he thought the polished limestone looked like marble. In his words, “The limestone of the canyon is often polished, and makes a beautiful marble. Sometimes the rocks are of many colors – white, gray, pink, and purple, with saffron tints.”

Lee’s Ferry – Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (Arizona)

August 30, 2020 Joseph Candora Arizona, Camping, Canoeing, Hiking, Historic Markers, Historic Sites, Mountain, National Parks Service, North America, Rivers, United States

Lee’s Ferry is a common launching point for river runners starting their journey through Marble Canyon and then onward to the Grand Canyon. It is part of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Marble Canyon is also well known for the Navajo Bridge, where US Highway 89A crosses the Colorado River. This is one of the very few areas where you can reach the Colorado River by car. Due to its unique geography – the only place in hundreds of miles from which one can easily access the Colorado River from both sides – it historically served as an important river crossing and starting in the mid-19th century was the site of a ferry operated by John Doyle Lee, for whom it is named. Boat service at Lees Ferry continued for over 60 years before being superseded by a bridge in the early 20th century, which allowed for much more efficient automobile travel.

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