Photos: The Colorado River of the Grand Canyon

This is a unique photo.  I took this photo from our raft, floating down the Colorado River, looking straight up at both spans of Navajo Bridge, which is the only road crossing of the Colorado River for 600 miles (965 km).  The original bridge on the left was built in 1929.  It is now used for pedestrians.  The bridge on the right was added in 1995.

Compare the color of the river in the above photo with the color of the river in the photo below.  The reason for the difference?  I took the photo above in the late afternoon and the river reflected the color of the canyon walls on the opposite bank.

This is the little Colorado River flowing into the main Colorado River.   Hiking up the tributaries and side canyons was a treat of our raft drift down the middle of the Grand Canyon.  The tributaries are short, and the water in them was warmer than the Colorado River, which stays as 48 degrees F. (9 C) because the water comes from the depths of Lake Powell.

Yes, this is a Grand Canyon pink rattlesnake right along the trail.  We had to be careful about our hikes, particularly if climbing up rocks, to make sure we did not grab or step in a spot near a rattlesnake.

This is a reflection the opposite canyon wall and sky in a quiet spot of the river bank between two sand bars.  It was hot during our journey, but our river raft guide told us that there could be no complaints about heat because natural cooling was always close by -- cold river water.  To get cool all we had to do is wade into the river or dip some clothing into the river.  Our guide said that "If you say you are hot, you are saying 'I'm stupid.'"  At least there were no complaints about the heat.