Sipapu Rocky Landscape: The natural erosion of the rocky landscape around the Sipapu Bridge is evident by the swirly patterns and shapes in the sandstone landscape seen all around Sipapu. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
By GARY WARREN
Photographer
Formerly of Los Alamos
Natural Bridges National Monument is located in a remote area in southeast Utah and is home to three impressive geological formations known as natural bridges. The bridges vary in size and shape with the younger bridges being more massive and stronger in size while the older bridges may appear thinner and more fragile in size.
These natural bridges were discovered by prospector Cass Hite in the 1880s. The Natural Bridges National Monument was proclaimed by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1908 and was Utah’s first area in the National Park System.
The bridges in the park are all located along the Bridge View Drive, which is a one way, nine mile paved loop making it easy for visitors to see all three bridges during a one day visit. Each of the bridges has a parking area and trail which leads to the bridges.
The three natural bridges in the park are Sipapu, Kachina and Owachomo and are seen in that order by visitors who drive the Bridge View Drive. The age of each is evident by the shape of each bridge. Age is relevant, however, as all of these formations are millions of years old.
The park has a small camping area for campers that is located just outside of the Bridge View Drive and a picnic area which is located along the drive. There are hiking trails leading to each of the bridges from the parking area by each bridge as well as hiking trails between the three bridges if visitors want to see the bridges at a slower pace.
This is a fun and educational park to visit, and visitors can easily see it all in a day or stay longer and see the formations from different angles and viewpoints as they hike the canyon trail system at Natural Bridges National Monument.
Editor’s note: Longtime Los Alamos photographer Gary Warren and his wife Marilyn are traveling around the country, and he shares his photographs, which appear in the “Posts from the Road” series published in the Sunday edition of the Los Alamos Daily Post.
Sipapu: The Sipapu Bridge is the highest of the three bridges in Natural Bridges National Park at 220 feet. The span of this bridge is 268 feet. This is considered a ‘mature’ bridge. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Kachina Bridge: The Kachina Bridge is considered a ‘young’ bridge as it appears bulkier than the other two bridges at Natural Bridges National Monument. The height of Kachina is 210 feet and the span of the bridge is 204 feet. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Owachomo: The Owachomo Bridge is considered ‘old age’ as time has worn away much of the mass of the bridge making it appear much thinner and more fragile. Owachomo is 106 feet high and spans 180 feet. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Owachomo Close Up: This close up view of the Owachomo Bridge shows how the sunlight lights the underside of the bridges. The light is more evident and easier to see in Owachomo at the time of day we visited Natural Bridges National Monument. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com