N. Arizona Adventure (Part 5 of 12) – Little Colorado River Canyon

On this Northern Arizona adventure, we saw our first sign for the Little Colorado River near Holbrook as we came out of the Petrified Forest National Park. It appeared to be bone dry so we weren't too impressed. Little did we know that It is one of the larger tributaries of the Colorado River and its irregular flow created a huge canyon network about 100 miles away.

We started to hear about a potential snow storm heading for the area when we stayed at the La Posada hotel on Monday night. The snows were predicted to hit on Wednesday so we changed our plans and headed to the Grand Canyon the next day.

The route to the canyon was simple. We would head west on I-40 out of Winslow until we came to State Route 89 about 53 miles away. Then head north up 89, skirting along the western part of the Navajo Nation the entire way, until we came across the junction for State Route 64 just before the trading post at Cameron. From there we would climb up 3,000 feet in elevation to get up to the south rim of the Grand Canyon.

Everything was normal until we were 5 miles west of Winslow on I-40. I noticed huge dust storms to the south of the highway and a few minutes later the gusts started. At first the car shifted a bit but as the gusts grew in strength it was really a white knuckle drive all the way to State Route 89.

State Route 89 runs north along the edge of the San Francisco Peaks and Flagstaff's eastern suburbs. It was a nice drive through these woodlands and the wind subsided a bit. But eventually the road descends into the wide open spaces of the western part of the Navajo Nation. The gusts (from the west this time) started to pick up and we headed into a giant sand storm.

Again it was a white knuckle drive the entire way to Cameron. Our car was pelted by hundreds of speedy tumbleweeds that were blowing across the road.

Somehow we found Cameron in this dust storm and headed west directly into the gusts. About 10 miles up that road we noticed a turnoff for the Little Colorado River Tribal Park. They only charge $2 per car so we decided to take a chance in spite of the windy conditions. We parked near the indian vendor booths where a few hearty souls were still around hoping the conditions would change. The overlook was a 100 feet or more past the booths so we decided to take a chance. The sheer ruggedness and height of the cliffs were impressive.

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I noticed that the wind had died down a bit so we started to walk over to the railing for a look. Then out of nowhere this gust came from behind us and almost knocked both of us to the ground. I am convinced that if we had been near the railing, the Navajo officials would still be collecting parts of us down in the canyon - 1000 feet down.

After our stop at the Little Colorado River Canyon, we continued climb westward up State Route 64 until we reached the gates at the south rim of the Grand Canyon. From the road you could see the horrendous dust storms sweeping across the Navajo Nation.

Next: Part 6 - The Grand Canyon