Grand Staircase Escalante Monument

Scenic byway 12 or on highway 89.

Grand staircase escalante monument. Grand staircase is the westernmost section of the monument and is most easily accessed from tropic cannonville or henrieville near kodachrome basin state park on highway 12also known as scenic byway 12 and kanab or big water on us. I researched the grand staircase escalante national monument off and on for a year before i made preparations to visit. President bill clinton named it as a national monument in 1996 in a presidential proclamation. This houses a visitor information center as well as the combined offices for the dixie national forest the grand staircase escalante national monument and the escalante subdistrict of glen canyon national.

Grand staircase escalante national monument spans the spectacular grand staircase of cliffs and terraces the rugged kaiparowits plateau and the wonders of the escalante river canyons. Grand staircase escalante national monument flickr album the monument is an outstanding biological resource spanning five life zones from low lying desert to coniferous forest. This area boasts a mixture of c olorful sandstone cliffs soaring. My visit involved driving the unimproved cottonwood road from the southern.

It was the last to be mapped in the contiguous united states. The allure of the grand staircase region the bulk of which is contained in the grand staircaseescalante national monument is phenomenal. The escalante interagency office is located on the west side of town. It was named grand staircase escalante due to the many plateaus including the kaiparowits plateau the highest plateau at 9000 feet that descend from bryce canyon national park south to the grand canyon.

The monuments resources and remote character provide extraordinary opportunities for visitors geologists paleontologists archeologists historians and biologists in scientific research education and. The grand staircaseescalante national monument gsenm is a united states national monument originally designated in 1996 as 1880461 acres 7610 km 2 of protected land in southern utahin 2017 the monuments size was reduced by a succeeding presidential proclamationthe land is among the most remote in the country. Deep within this vast and austere landscape the anasazi and fremont cultures made contact in the period ad 950 1100 leaving behind rock art panels occupation sites campsites and granaries. For example i purchased the proper vehicle before my actual visit in august 2019.

We recommend booking grand staircase escalante national monument tours ahead of time to secure your spot.