A Paria Canyon Service Trip
by Doris Sherrick
The awesome vermillion cliffs at Lee’s Ferry, Arizona where the Paria River empties into the Colorado River was the beginning point for the March Paria Archaeological Service trip that my husband Bob and I participated in.
In 1872, John Doyle Lee, a Mormon with a notorious past, and one of his 19 wives made their home at this location. Here, they provided the only crossing of the Colorado River for 600 miles via a ferry service which operated until 1928.
Now a spectacular and safer crossing is provided by the Navajo Bridge at Marble Canyon.
This is an area of quiet, rugged beauty featuring immense, colorful canyon walls where millions of years of geological history are exposed. The human history too is a long one, spanning at least 10,000 years. Much evidence of the human occupation remains here as well as throughout the southwest.
It is the interest in the earlier cultures that drew our group together for the fourteen mile hike up the marvelous Paria Canyon. Our group ranged in ages from 37 to 70 years. It is very inspiring to those of us a little shy of 70 to watch someone of this age strap on a 60 pound pack and tackle the arduous hike with the energy and enthusiasm of the youngest member.
Our packs were quite heavy when we set out as we each had to carry a two day supply of water (two gallons). Once we reached our destination for the five day service project, Last Reliable Spring provided us with a good, tasty source of water.
The greatest challenge on the first day was the 20 river crossings. Though the water was rarely above our knees, it could be quite swift and more than one person managed to step into a deeper hole or otherwise slip and fall for an unexpected bath. The water in the Paria looks just like thin concrete, but is not quite thick enough to support anyone who falls in.
The Paria Canyon is relatively wide as it nears the Colorado River, but hiking upstream the canyon walls begin closing in to form a progressively narrower canyon. The canyon seems to pull you upstream by promising an even more breathtaking view around the next bend. The sheer red cliffs, densely patinated walls, and the sage green of vegetation growing on the steep talus slopes present ever changing hues accented by an incredibly blue sky.
About four years ago several California Condors were released in the Vermillion Cliffs area not far from the Paria Canyon as a part of the Condor Recovery Program. We were all thrilled to spot one riding the thermals high above the canyon the first day out. We were to have this privilege once again later in the week.
Many tracks and fresh scat told us the canyon is home to many Desert Big Horn Sheep. They are elusive and no one managed to spot one. Other unseen inhabitants of the canyon were the melodious canyon wren and the introduced Chukar who announced its presence with a chukking sound. Lizards, the western kingfisher and a few ravens weren’t quite as shy. The few cattle that were still allowed to graze in this wilderness area when we participated in a 1993 service trip have since been removed. It was heartening to see the amount of recovery of the native Indian Rice Grass and other native grasses as a result.
The next six miles of hiking on day two is the most difficult of the entire 39 miles of the Paria Canyon. It involves a lot of climbing and rock scrambling. So, it was a tired group that arrived at the campsite about two that afternoon.
Each of the next four days we packed up our lunch, water and recording materials and set out for the major archaeological site a mile upstream to do documentation. The project was supervised by a Bureau of Land Management archaeologist. A similar service trip in ‘99 had not had time to complete all the documentation. That was the goal of our group, and we’re happy to say we met it.
Our assignment was to locate petroglyphs (drawings on rock) and pictographs (paintings on rock), map them, photograph them, make an overview drawing, and draw and record the measurement of each individual element. All this documentation is important so the BLM will have an inventory to serve as a data base for research purposes. It also provides a baseline so they will know if vandalism occurs.
The petroglyphs and pictographs span many centuries. Many styles and subject matter are represented. The most common figure is the Desert Big Horn Sheep with human type figures, animal shapes, spirals and geometric figures making up most of the rest. They are very intriguing and mystifying. Many are very beautiful. We can only wonder at them and speculate about their meaning.
We have participated in many southwestern archaeological service trips. This one, like the others, fully met our expectations of meeting and working with interesting people; having the opportunity to enjoy a week in a wonderful, remote area; and contribute our time doing something we enjoy that is also providing a service. We encourage you to explore all the Sierra Club service trips offered each year through the Sierra Club and participate in one that suits your interests.