Grand Canyon view from North Rim at Point Imperial
Point Imperial on Grand Canyon’s North Rim puts you at 8.800 feet in elevation, and with a rather scary view. The much more highly visited South Rim has nothing like this.
In this photo we see…a sea of cliffs. Canyon carving to the extreme. As the Earth uplifted here long ago, the rivers and side streams had no choice but to keep up by carving their way downward. And they’re not done yet.
Colorado River, from Navajo Bridge, US 89A, Arizona
One of my favorite drives in northern Arizona crosses the line on the map between the Navajo Nation and the upper reaches of Grand Canyon National Park.
Navajo Bridge is a long steel span on US 89A that crosses the Marble Canyon portion of the Colorado River gorge. Actually there are two bridges: the new one and the old one. The old one serves as a tourist attraction, and a spectacular one at that. On the west end of the bridge is the National Park Service Visitor Center, with bookstore and restrooms. On the east end is the Navajo Nation, with numerous Indian artists selling their authentic jewelry.
Walking out onto the old bridge affords excellent views of the Colorado River beneath. In this photo we can notice some things. The calm flow of the river, the reflection of the Arizona blue sky above. The red rock canyon walls. The bright green strips of vegetation hugging the river’s edge, beyond which it’s immediately desert again.
Upriver from here is Lee’s Ferry, the famous put-in spot for all those river rafting expeditions into Grand Canyon. They will float languidly into this view before eventually entering the deeper portions of the canyon, with their whitewater rapids hazards and thrills.
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