Natural Bridges National Monument, UT

From the Canyonlands NP area, we meandered south to Natural Bridges National Monument, near Lake Powell and Glen Canyon NRA in southern Utah.

At 220 feet tall and 268 feet wide, Sipapu Bridge is one of the largest natural bridges in the world.  Sipapu is a Hopi word meaning "place of emergence."

Horsecollar Ruin, difficult to see in the photos, was a cliff dwelling inhabited by the Anasazi between 1050 AD and 1300 AD.  The site is unusual because it contains both round and square Kivas, ceremonial chambers.  The round Kivas are associated with the Mesa Verde Anasazi while the square Kivas are associated with the Kayenta Anasazi of northern Arizona.  Based on pottery also found at the site, it is believed that Horsecollar Ruin was occupied first by the Kayenta Anasazi and later by the Mesa Verde Anasazi.

The ruins are a little difficult to see in the photos below.  In the first photo they are in the upper right hand corner.  They are easier to spot in the closeup of the second photo.

In these photos the ruins appear to look almost like part of the sandstone.  They are clumped together near the center of the photo below.

Kachina Bridge is still being enlarged by streams, especially during the monsoon season.  Kachina Bridge is 210 feet tall and 204 feet wide today.

The third and final bridge in Natural Bridges National Monument is the Owachomo Bridge.  Owachomo Bridge is 106 feet tall and 180 feet wide, and the most delicate of the bridges in the park; the span is very thin and appears as if it could crumple down at any second.  A short trail leads down to the bridge.