Rainbow Bridge National Monument

Rainbow Bridge, the world's largest natural bridge, is considered a sacred place by the Navajo Indians, for whom personified rainbows have stood as guardians of the universe. This natural wonder nestles among canyons carved by streams en route to the Colorado River from Navajo Mountain's north flank. Until the formation of Lake Powell, this was one of the most remote and inaccessible regions in the contiguous United States. It is located on 160 acres of federal land in San Juan County, Utah, immediately adjacent to Navajo Mountain and the Navajo Reservation.Today, the bridge is accessible by a two-hour, one-way boat ride from Wahweap Marina.

No Dock Access to Rainbow Bridge

Date Posted: 10/21/2021 No dock access to the shoreline at Rainbow Bridge due to low water. Boats and small vessels beach at your own risk. While no longer connected to the shoreline, the docks will still be accessible with restroom facilities. Winter trail crews will rebuild.

Climate

Summers are extremely hot with little, if any, shade. Winters are moderately cold with night time lows often below freezing. Spring weather is highly variable with extended periods of strong winds. Fall is generally mild. Temperatures range from 110° F in June & July to 0° F in December & January. Although precipitation is generally less than 6 inches annually, both heavy rains and flash flooding can occur. Recommend lightweight, light colored clothing in summer, including a hat. Layers of clothing are best other times of year.

 

How To Get There

To Reach Rainbow Bridge by Water
Most people take the water route on Lake Powell, some 50 miles from Wahweap, Bullfrog or Halls Crossing, to the landing in Bridge Canyon. The hike from the courtesy docks at the Rainbow Bridge is approximately 2.5 miles round-trip. Wear good footwear and take plenty of food and water. For using your own boat there are launching ramps at Wahweap, Halls Crossing, Bullfrog and Hite. Here, concessionaires sell boating and camping supplies and provide guided boat trips. Tour boats operate from Wahweap and Bullfrog. The nearest marina is Dangling Rope, 10 miles to the northwest. It offers gasoline, supplies and emergency service.

By Hiking or on Horseback
You can reach Rainbow Bridge on foot or by horseback via the trail from Navajo Mountain Trading Post (14 miles), and on foot via the trail from abandoned Rainbow Lodge (13 miles). Before you begin a trail trip, be sure to ask a park ranger about conditions (the trail is not maintained), if trading posts are open and where water and supplies are available. Best hiking times are April, May, early June, September and October. A permit is required from the Navajo tribe.

Trail Ethics and Rules
The hiking trails begin on the Navajo Reservation, where you are a guest. Respect their land. Hogans are private property; treat them as such. Do not drive or otherwise harass livestock. Leave gates as you find them. Build fires only in previous fire sites, and extinguish them completely. Better yet, carry a backpacking stove. Pack out all trash and bury human waste 8 inches below ground. Each person will require 1 gallon of water per day (minimum) in warm weather.

Description

History

The first publicized sighting of Rainbow Bridge was made by the Douglass-Cummings party in 1909. Two parties had set out, under government surveyor W.B. Douglass and under University of Utah Dean Byron Cummings, to seek the great stone arch that Indians said lay near Navajo Mountain. The two parties eventually met and joined forces. They were guided by Ute Jim Mike and Paiute Nasja Begay, and by John Wetherill, trader and self-taught archeologist.

The country proved rough and treacherous. Horses slipped and skidded on the slickrock surfaces. Rimrock ledges, like terrible sandstone mazes, frequently blocked progress and turned the party back. They struggled through canyons, some dry and boulder-choked, some containing water and dense brush. Then, coming down what is now Bridge Canyon in the late afternoon of August 14, the party beheld this beautiful natural stone bridge.

A view of the dock at Rainbow Bridge National Monument. There are two half-day trips and one full-day trip that leave from Wahweap Marina West Lake Powell.

Geology

The base of Rainbow Bridge is composed of Kayenta Sandstone, reddish-brown to purplish consolidations of sands and muds laid down hundreds of millions of years ago. Above its base, the bridge is composed of Navajo Sandstone. This formation was created as wave upon wave of sand dunes were deposited to depths of 1,000 feet. Over the next 100 million years, both these formations were buried more than 5,000 feet deep by still other strata. The pressures and temperatures of this profound burial consolidated and hardened the rock of these formations.

Some 60 million years ago, the landscape we know as the Colorado Plateau began a gradual uplift. Today's landscape results from the erosion caused by streams cutting into these massive layers of rock, now lifted far above sea level. As the landscape lifted and tilted, these streams acquired more force and began to downcut their meanders.

As Bridge Creek entrenched itself into the landscape, the scene was set for carving Rainbow Bridge. As the canyon cut through the Navajo Sandstone and then hit the hard Kayenta Formation rock, the cutting became more difficult. The stream then widened its path and undercut the canyon walls. Finally, it cut through the neck of a meander loop. The stream then altered its course, taking the more direct course through the break. Huge flakes of sandstone broke loose and fell, leaving a concoidal or shell-like pattern like that found in the chipping of Indian projectile points. Natural flaking, called exfoliation, contributes to the formation of alcoves and natural bridges throughout this region.