Page 517 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - USA

UT AH  515

of dramatic desert and canyon
country around the 185-mile
(298-km) long Lake Powell,
named after John Wesley
Powell. The lake was created by
damm ing the Colorado River
and its tributaries to supply
electricity to the region’s
growing population.
The construction of the Glen
Canyon Dam, completed in 1963,
was controversial from the start.
The deep crevices of the canyons south of Green River The spirited campaign, led by
the envi ronmentalist Sierra Club,
e Green River of the site's builders beyond continues to argue for the restor-
the clues found in the round, ation of Glen Canyon, believing
* 950. n 1765 E Main St, (435)
564-3427. Open Apr–Oct: 8am–8pm; square, and D-shaped towers, that ancient ecosystems are
Nov–Mar: 8am–5pm daily. and pottery and tools that they being ruined. Pro-dam advocates,
left behind. however, firmly believe in its
Located in a broad, bowl- Researchers have speculated ability to store water, generate
shaped valley, the town grew that the towers might have power, and provide recreation.
around a ford of the wild Green been built as defensive The “Y”-shaped recreation
River in the 19th and early fortifications, astronomical area follows the San Juan River
20th centuries. Today, it is a observatories, storage silos, east almost to the town of
launching spot for white-water or as religious structures for Mexican Hat, and heads north-
rafting on the Green and the entire community. east along the Colorado toward
Colorado Rivers. Canyonlands National Park.
The John Wesley Powell Within the area is the Antelope
River History Museum at t Lake Powell & Canyon, a famously deep “slot”
Green River has 20,000 sq ft Glen Canyon canyon. Other highlights
(1,860 sq m) of displays tracing National Recreation include Lees Ferry, a 19th-
the history of the area’s explor- century Mormon settlement
ation. Principally it examines Area that now offers tourist facilities,
the surveying and discoveries 2 miles (3 km) N of Page on Hwy 98, off and the Rainbow Bridge
made by American geologist Hwy 160. ~ n Carl Hayden Visitor National Monument. Rising
and ethnologist John Wesley Center, (928) 608-6404. Open Apr– 309 ft (94 m), this is the largest
Powell (1834–1902). Oct: 8am–5pm daily; Nov–Mar: 8am– natural bridge in the world.
4pm daily. 7 visitor center only. 8 Today, the lake is busy with
E John Wesley Powell River - 0 =  Page & Wahweap only. water-sports enthusiasts and
History Museum ∑ nps.gov/glca, lakepowell.com houseboat parties, exploring
1765 E Main St. Tel (435) 564-3427. the myriad sandstone side
Open Apr–Oct: 9am–7pm Mon–Sat, The Glen Canyon National canyons. Glen Canyon is
noon–5pm Sun; Nov–Mar: 9am–5pm Recreation Area (NRA), estab- also one of the most popular
Tue–Sat. Closed public hols. & 8 lished in 1972, covers more than hiking, biking, and 4WD
∑ jwprhm.com
one million acres (400,000 ha) destinations in the country.
r Hovenweep
National
Monument
E of Hwy 191. Tel (970) 562-4282.
Open 8am–5pm daily (to 6pm May–
Sep). Closed Jan 1, Thanksgiving,
Dec 25. & 8  ∑ nps.gov/hove
The six separate sets of ruins
at this Ancestral Puebloan
site were discovered by W.D.
Huntington, leader of a Mormon
expedition, in 1854. The culture
at Hovenweep, a Ute word
meaning “Deserted Valley,”
reached its peak between
1200 and 1275. Little is known Rose-colored sandstone of Antelope Canyon, in Glen Canyon NRA
For hotels and restaurants in this region see pp550–52 and pp553–5

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