Lee's Ferry

     In the early 1870s the leaders of the Mormon Church in Utah wanted to colonize Arizona, but the Colorado River and its canyons blocked the way Here at the mouth of the Paria River was the only place in hundreds of miles they could build a wagon road to the river, cross on a ferry, and continue south. Explorers, Indian traders, miners, and finally tourist followed the pioneers.

Boulder fields where huge rocks have fallen from the high mesas. 

Lee's Ferry Fort

      In 1874, the Mormon Church President, Brigham Young ordered that a fort be built at Lee's Ferry for protection against the Indians. The fort was never attacked since the ferryman became friends and traded with the Navajos in the area.

The area is desolate and O so Peaceful!

      Rumors of gold in the mountains led Charles Spencer to construction a gold mining operation along the Colorado River in around 1911. In order to get coal for his machinery, a rough mule trail was made up a seemingly sheer cliff. The trail climbs 1700 feet up switchbacks to the rim of the canyon after which the mules then had to haul coal from Warm Creek Canyon, which was about 30 miles away. We most definitely did not hike the mule trail and it looked nearly impossible to get up the cliff but I guess they managed!

A steel boiler that Spencer used in an attempt to extract gold.

      Spencer was in the Lee's Ferry for 10 years but only had the gold mine operations running for a year. The gold flecks were to small and light and floated away so it wasn't worth the time or money.

The sunken steamboat

      Spencer's investors from Chicago insisted that a steamboat would be a much more practical way to get coal instead of using the mules. The steamboat was hauled in pieces from San Francisco and constructed near the coalmine. The vessel launched in 1912 but never took another trip. It was not made for the swift currents of the Colorado and despite many failed attempts, they never could get the steamship upriver! Eventually it was abandoned and sunk into the river where we were able to see it.

A building at the site of the ferry

The ferry site

      In 1899 the ferry was moved upriver to this site in hopes that it would be a safer crossing then its previous location 1/2 mile downstream. The ferry was on a permanent track cable but many accidents still occurred. Nine people drowned in the mishaps and the ferry was often out of service for days or months at a time. The final accident occurred in 1928 (only 89 years ago!) when the first ferryman's grandson was crossing with 2 friends and his Model T. The boat twisted and was capsized which caused the cable to snap. Sadly, all three men drowned. Construction of a new bridge across the Colorado River 6 miles down was almost finished so they decided not to rebuild the ferry.

A faint wagon trail still remains on the opposite bank.

      This is where most of the Mormon pioneers crossed the river in the 1870s and 1880s. The road south continued one and a half miles up the steep and very rugged rock ledge that became known as Lee's Backbone. Many considered it to be the worst part of the trip to Arizona. Most people had to double-team their wagons to the top, 350 feet above the river!

A snapped cable remains on the shore.

The narrow wagon trail leading to the ferry.

The Colorado is now a calm, controlled river.

      Before the Glen Canyon Dam was built, this part of the Colorado River was dangerous and unpredictable. In the spring or after a storm it would become a roaring monster that flooded everything in its path but in the summer and fall it would dry up to barely a trickle. It was warm and muddy but now it is cold and clear.
     While we understand that dams are important to regulate the water, it's hard not to get passionately against them when you see how we have messed up the earth up by trying to control it. By creating a reservoir, you lose massive amounts of water due to evaporation and seepage. History is buried in millions of gallons of water. The ecological systems are highly disturbed and many animals are now extinct or going that way quickly. We've learned about places where dams have been built and soon thereafter the earth's surface has cracked and caused earthquakes. But! Despite the fact that there will NOT be enough water to raise crops and have huge green lawns in the west if we keep on, we continue to do what suits us best. Because, convenience. And money. And practicality. See, easy to get passionate about it :). 

"Broken beauty can still be beautiful"

Pictures showing the warm, muddy Colorado before the dam and the cold, clear Colorado River after the dam.

Lonely Dell Ranch

The Lonely Dell, a lovely 1 mile walk from Lee's Ferry

     The was the home to the families who operated Lees Ferry. This area was so isolated that anyone working at the crossing needed to be self-sufficient, growing food for themselves, their animals, and often the many travelers that came through in the summer months. It was hard work and a difficult challenge but several families did very well. 

     It was 1871 when John Lee and his wives Emma and Rachel (2 of 18!) arrived to start the operation for the Mormon Church. Emma became the driving force behind the ferry and ranch as John Lee was often absent, on "business" or visiting other wives. In 1874 he was arrested then executed in 1877 for his involvement at the Mountain Meadow Massacre. Look that up, horrible, horrible incident that the Mormons blamed the Indians for. 

The orchard at the Lonely Dell

      The last private owners of the property planted this orchard in 1865 but before this, many fruit trees were tended north of the ranch. The apricot, peach, pear, plum, and apple trees are tended by volunteers and the fruit is free to the public. The day we were there a very kindhearted gentleman was cleaning out ditches and took time to chat with us and gave us great history tidbits.

Irrigation ditches for watering the orchard and garden.

      One of the first things done at the ranch was a dam built across the Paria River and ditches dug to divert the water to the ranch. Irrigating the ranch was backbreaking work since the dam washed out an average of three times a year and the ditches were continually filling with mud or washing out. But they never gave up and grew a lush green oasis of pastures, alfalfa fields, orchards and vegetable gardens. It was either grow your own food or starve!

Ditches that ran water to each tree.

      Emily's favorite part of the day was talking to the gentleman and asking him questions about the trees. He told us that they white-wash (to be time period correct) the trunks to keep the trees from getting warm to early or else the sap will rise and they will start to bud before the danger of freezing is over. Fascinating how smart they were!

One of the remaining cabins

      The Lee's, Johnson's and Emmet's were three of the main families living here in the late 1880s. Since they were Mormon, it gets a bit confusing but each man had at least 2 wives that lived here with her children.

A wagon parked in front of the cabins.

The bell in front of the most modern building on the ranch. 

      The Weaver Ranch house was built after 1900 as a guesthouse but it was never very profitable.

Lonely Dell Dugout

      The dugout was used to store vegetables in the winter. In the summer it was a cool place to store milk, butter, and cheese. Families would often spend part of the afternoon there on the hottest part of the day. Makayla was completely fascinated by all the old buildings and imagined herself a little 8 year living there.

An old truck at the ranch.

      In 1965 the National Park Service purchased the Lonely Dell to be used as a historic site. The last owners left a few belongings there-like this old truck. Michael loved that it was a dually!

The Cementary

      Twenty-five residents and travelers were buried in this cemetery. The large headstone records one of the saddest events at the ranch. Four of the Johnson's six children died of diphtheria over a seven week period after they took in some ill travelers who were obviously carrying the disease.

The path leading to the Paria wilderness and canyon.

      We kept walking past the ranch and cemetery and soon came to this scary looking path we needed to cross in order to get to the "back pasture" of the ranch. Eldon assured me that if I fell off, I would simply float downstream to where I could easily crawl out. I was thrilled that his advice wasn't needed!

The back pasture.

      This is where sheep and cattle were often pastured. It was so beautiful here!

A falling apart shed.

Walking back across the scary path.

     It's impossible to capture the allurement of this place with a few pictures and words but I hope you caught a small glimpse. This was easily my favorite place we've been to in Arizona yet. The setting was so surreal and I loved how far removed from towns and people that it was.

     Eldon was intrigued by the necessity for the pioneers to be completely self-sufficient and their systems for irrigation and growing things. We are making plans to go back at least once during our time here and hopefully more. There is a lot of trails begging to be hiked and we want to see the fruit trees in bloom.