Cliff Dwellers

Unique Tale and Spectacular Scenery

Today’s post is the last in the series of blogs sharing photos from my recent photo tour of Northern Arizona and Southern Utah. The subject of this post is a roadside stop with a unique history, surrounded by spectacular scenery.

The Cliff Dwellers is a unique tale that takes place the same year Prohibition began. Bill & Blanche Russel were driving through Marble Canyon when their automobile broke down. After several attempts to fix it, they found themselves camping overnight. 

As the sun rose the next day, they ironically found themselves drawn to the natural beauty of the desert. At this point, they built a roadside trading post out of rocks next to a fallen boulder. The original structure, pictured below remains to this day. 

My companions on the trip, Tracey and Steve kindly posed for this photo, adding a feeling of homeyness to this long abandoned dwelling.

This curious edifice is located along US Highway 89A, an important thoroughfare between Interstate 15 and the Northern Arizona towns of Page and Flagstaff. While photographing the landscape below, one of many trucks passing through encroached on the scene. It adds to the story told by the photo, so it remains.

As I continued observing the terrain to the south, I saw a whirlwind, traversing the desert. Weather is always a good photo subject, so I chose to include it in today’s narrative.

As appealing as the local real estate may appear, the cliffs are not a good place to dwell. Imagine living under the constant threat of falling boulders. I have no idea how often this occurs; let’s just stay I don’t tarry to photograph and enjoy the beautiful scenery.

The area once inhabited by the Cliff Dwellers is very scenic, set against the backdrop of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. (In the United States, a national monument is a protected area that can be created from any land owned or controlled by the federal government by proclamation of the President of the United States or an act of Congress. National monuments protect a wide variety of natural and historic resources, including sites of geologic, marine, archaeological, and cultural importance.)

This post concludes the “Photo Tour 2023” series. I hope you have enjoyed the photographs and become more familiar with this amazing, geographic area.