Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index Natural Bridges Designation National Monument Location South East Utah, United States Nearest City Blanding, Utah Latitude 37° 35' N Longitude 110° 00' W Area 7,637 acres Date of Establishment 1908 Visitation 97,999 (2002) Governing Body National Park Service IUCN category III (Natural Monument) Natural Bridges National Monument is located in the southeast of Utah, in the western United States. It features the second and third largest natural bridges in the world. The elevation ranges from 5,500 feet to 6,500 feet. At higher elevations pinyon-juniper forests grow, giving way to shrubs and grasses at lower elevations. In the canyons, where there is more water, there are willow and cottonwood trees. Natural bridges are formed through erosion by moving water. The remaining rock spans the canyon like a bridge, hence the name. The three bridges in the park are named Kachina, Owachomo and Sipapu, which are all Hopi names. Table of contents 1 Attractions 2 Biology 3 History 4 External Links Attractions The main attractions are Bridge View Drive which winds along the park and goes by all three bridges, and hiking down to the base of the bridges. There is also a campground and picnic areas within the park. Electricity in the park comes entirely from a large solar array near the visitors center [[Image:sipapu_bridge.275.jpg| Sipapu Bridge]] [[Media:Image:sipapu_bridge.752.jpg|Sipapu Bridge (Larger version)]] Bridge Height Span Width Thickness Owachomo 106 feet 180 feet 27 feet 9 feet Sipapu 220 feet 268 feet 31 feet 53 feet Kachina 210 feet 204 feet 44 feet 93 feet Biology Animals include: birds, rabbits, lizards, bobcats, coyotes, bears, mule dear, mountain lions. Plants include: willow, cottonwood, douglas fir, ponderosa pine, pinyon pine, juniper, grasses, shrubs. History In 1904 the National Geographic Magazine publicized the bridges and the area was designated a National Monument April 16, 1908 by President Theodore Roosevelt. It is Utah's first National Monument. External Links NPS Website Park Information This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.