The Vermillion Cliffs are spectacular sand stone formations that range
in elevation from 3,100 to 6,500 feet. You can reach this beautiful area from
US Highway 89. It is one of the most scenic drives one can
experience leaving from or going to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.
The cliffs are a soft blend of pale blue, pink, orange and tan colors which are set against the pale blue sky, they are truly a confluence of landscape and sky that
stretch for 40 miles in uninterrupted spender.
The main feature at the Vermillion Cliffs is an expansive butte that literally defines this area, it is in fact the signature formation you will see. There are a few scattered ranches and several 12th century Anasazi remains known as the "Sand Hills" located here as well. Apart from Lees Ferry, the highway passes just one settlement known as the Cliff Dwellers. Cliff Dwellers has several adobe buildings nestled among huge boulders which are depicted in some of my images above. There is a trail head known as Soap Creek for those who wish to see the "back country".
Vermillion Cliff Tours offer hiking and back country trips to Havasu Falls and the Grand Canyon. As you leave the park, you cross the mighty Colorado River one more time, and from the bridge you can clearly see the river intersecting the Cliffs along the horizon.
I made the turn south toward Sedona and decided to stop at Meteor Crater on my way to Winslow Arizona. This huge depression in the earth is 1 mile wide, 550 feet deep and is 49,000 years old. A sight to see!
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