The Paria River is a tributary of the

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...

, approximately long, in southern

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

and northern

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

in the United States. It drains a rugged and arid region northwest of the Colorado, flowing through roadless

slot canyon A slot canyon is a long, narrow channel or drainageway with sheer rock walls that are typically eroded into either sandstone or other sedimentary rock. A slot canyon has depth-to-width ratios that typically exceed 10:1 over most of its length and ...

s along part of its course.

Geography

It is formed in southern Utah, in southwestern Garfield County from several creeks that descend from the edge of the

Paunsaugunt Plateau The Paunsaugunt Plateau (pronounced "PAWN-suh-gant") is a dissected plateau, rising to an elevation of , in southwestern Utah in the United States. Located in northern Kane County and southwestern Garfield County, it is approximately wide, and ...

, meeting just north of

Tropic The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

. It flows SSE across Kane County and

Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument The Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument (GSENM) is a United States national monument protecting the Grand Staircase, the Kaiparowits Plateau, and the Canyons of the Escalante ( Escalante River) in southern Utah. It was established in ...

. Along the Arizona state line, it descends through the Vermilion Cliffs in the Paria Canyon and onto the

Paria Plateau Paria may refer to the following : Places and jurisdictions Old World * Paria, Gujarat, village in Vapi, Valsad, Gujarat, India * Paria in Proconsulari, an Ancient city and former bishopric, now a Latin titular see in Tunisia * Paria, of, f ...

. It joins the Colorado from the northwest approximately 5 mi (8 km) southwest of

Page, Arizona Page is a city in Coconino County, Arizona, United States, near the Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 7,247. History Unlike other cities in the area, Page was founded in 1957 as a housing co ...

and the

Glen Canyon Dam Glen Canyon Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam on the Colorado River in northern Arizona, United States, near the town of Page. The high dam was built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) from 1956 to 1966 and forms Lake Powell, one of t ...

. The lower 20 mi (32 km) of the river are within the

Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness The Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness is a wilderness area located in northern Arizona and southern Utah, United States, within the arid Colorado Plateau region. The wilderness is composed of broad plateaus, tall escarpments, and deep ca ...

, which is administered by the

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's ...

; a permit is required for any overnight visit. The Paria is essentially a large creek and is not navigable. A 2004 study estimated that the Tropic Ditch, a historic artificial irrigation canal that diverts water from the

East Fork Sevier River The Sevier River (pronounced "severe") is a -long river in the Great Basin of southwestern Utah in the United States. Originating west of Bryce Canyon National Park, the river flows north through a chain of high farming valleys and steep canyons ...

, loses 1060 acre-feet per year to seepage, and half of that seepage (530 acre-feet per year) ends up in the Paria River, bringing with it 1829 tons of

salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...

per year. To help restore the salinity of the Paria and Colorado Rivers to more natural levels, the Tropic and East Fork Irrigation Company have proposed replacing the last 5.5 miles of the ditch with a pipeline. The cost may be supplemented by a grant from the

Bureau of Reclamation The Bureau of Reclamation, and formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it applies to the oversight and opera ...

's Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Program.

Attractions

The Paria is one of the most popular destinations for

canyoneering Canyoning (canyoneering in the United States, kloofing in South Africa) is a type of mountaineering that involves travelling in canyons using a variety of techniques that may include other outdoor activities such as walking, scrambling, climbi ...

in the region.

Buckskin Gulch Buckskin Gulch (also known as Buckskin Creek, Buckskin Wash, and Kaibab Gulch) is a gulch and canyon located within southern Kane County, Utah, United States. It is located near the Arizona border and is one of the main tributaries of the ...

, a side canyon along the river in the narrows section, is considered to be one of the longest and deepest slot canyons in the United States. The Paria is also home to several important historical, geological, and biological resources.

Lee's Ferry Lees Ferry (also known as Lee's Ferry, Lee Ferry, Little Colorado Station and Saints Ferry) is a site on the Colorado River in Coconino County, Arizona in the United States, about southwest of Page and south of the Utah–Arizona state li ...

and the adjoining settlement are located within the canyon upstream of the confluence with the Colorado River, with several other abandoned settlements further north. The Paria and several nearby rivers and canyons also are the site of several well-preserved specimens of Native American

petroglyph A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

s, prehistoric drawings, and symbols carved into stone. The Paria boasts a vibrant

desert riparian Desert riparian is a North American desert vegetation type (or biome) occurring in the bottoms of valleys, canyons, and other watercourses that have water at or near the surface most of the year.Pam MacKay, Mojave Desert Wildflowers, 2nd Ed., p. ...

habitat that is home to several sensitive and endangered species and is also the location of Wrather Arch, the longest natural arch outside of

(although this claim may be superseded by

Aloba Arch Aloba Arch is the name of a natural arch located in Chad. Large natural arches are somewhat rare outside the southern and western regions of China and the Colorado Plateau of the southwest United States. Chad's Ennedi Plateau, located within the ...

). About a mile south of the river and the

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * ''Ghost Town'' (1956 film), an American Western film by All ...

of Paria is the Paria Movie Set which was the site for several western movies. The old film set in the canyon was a popular attraction but was damaged in a flash flood in 1998. The buildings were dismantled and rebuilt in a nearby location by volunteers. In 2006 these new buildings were destroyed in a suspicious fire.Rebuilt Kanab set: Volunteers who built the facility are furious
Salt Lake Tribune, August 29, 2006; retrieved 12 September 2006

References

External links

Paria Canyon-Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness

{{Authority control Rivers of Arizona Rivers of Utah Tributaries of the Colorado River in Utah Tributaries of the Colorado River in Arizona Canyons and gorges of Arizona Canyons and gorges of Utah Rivers of Garfield County, Utah Rivers of Kane County, Utah Rivers of Coconino County, Arizona Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument Archaeological sites in Arizona Archaeological sites in Utah Bureau of Land Management areas in Arizona Bureau of Land Management areas in Utah Former populated places in Coconino County, Arizona Pre-Columbian cultural areas

Geography

Attractions

See also

References

External links