About 50 miles from Page we came t0 Lees Ferry, still part of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. The campground overlooks the Colorado River and is actually the beginning of the Grand Canyon. There are no hookups but a dump station and drinking water are across from the ranger station.
This is where most of the Grand Canyon raft trips begin.
Unfortunately, Jim got his wish and it was very hot, but we did take a short hike on the river trail, which still has remains of the ferry site form the late 1800’s. The ferry was the only way to cross the Colorado until the Navajo Bridge was opened in 1929.
Since the original bridge was only 18’ wide and not built for heavy loads, they constructed a new one in 1995. The old bridge is now for pedestrians, and is a great place to view the river and the new bridge. 
The area around the bridge is a also home to about 25 California Condors, and while we were there, we saw 5 of them lounging on the rocks. The ranger said when the wind picked up, they would fly, but we stayed about a half hour and they didn’t move, even though it was pretty windy.
We did go out to dinner at the Cliffdweller’s Lodge, and stopped back at the bridge after dinner. Of course, they were gone when we got back. Dinner was great, though.
These are photos of the Vermillion Cliffs, which we drove by for many miles on our way out of the park. There were lots of strange rock formations in the area, too.
And this interesting building with a giant rock for it’s roof.
This is an area we will definitely put on our list of places to return to and spend more time.
No comments:
Post a Comment