DESTINATION-QUARTERMASTER CANYON

“DESTINATION – QUARTERTERM CANYON PICTORIALS

When Lake Mead first spread over the rugged country behind Boulder Dam, it opened to amateur explorers and travelers a vast new area of exploration and scenic beauty in the lower end of Grand Canyon. The lake entered the western portals of Grand Canyon at Pierce Ferry, about 85 miles up-lake from Boulder

ASTER CANYON

Dam. In the pioneer days, settlers coming into Arizona from Nevada and Utah crossed the river at this point and the name of the crossing has been retained. For several years after the lake was formed, it was possible to travel by motor boat a distance of 30 miles into the Canyon and the few people who were lucky enough to make the trip were rewarded far beyond the usual trip to a scenic point of interest. The blue lake and the narrow canyon walls formed memorable pictures. Hidden and intriguing side canyons were made of easy access to the traveler by boat on the lake. These little canyons, peopled only by wild burros and mountain goats, rarely lent their scenery and beauty to human eye until the lake was formed. In the eventual development of Boulder Dam as a recreational area, many of these canyons will be logged by National Park Service officials for the traveler. Near the extreme upper end of Lake Mead lies Quartermaster Canyon. Because of its sparkling liquid contribution to the lake, Quartermaster is a side canyon of unusual in

interest and beauty. In addition to forming a ninety-foot waterfall, Quartermaster Creek turns its gravelly wash into a series of deep, crystal clear, pools. But easy access to Quartermaster and other canyons like it has been short lived. The Colorado river is a jealous guardian of its canyons. Each year since Lake Mead began to fill, more and more silt has been deposited at its upper end by the river. At the present time the silt barrier lies approximately four miles above Pierce Ferry, and exploration up the Grand Canyon in large boats is at an end. However, for one with an outboard motor and a determination to see some of Arizona's most glorious country, such exploration is still possible.

Long before Boulder Dam was built and Lake Mead was formed, the National Park Service began making plans for a great recreational area. Immediately after the dam was completed, development of permanent recreational centers around the lake, especially in the upper regions, could not begin until the lake had filled and high water marks had been formed. As funds are available this work will continue. One of the vitally needed features is a road system to make the lake more accessible, and this is especially true in the area around Pierce Ferry in Mohave County, where the lake pushes into Grand Canyon. Someday a 500-mile highway will be built around the lake, which would open to the traveler one of the most scenic parts of America. This is an area now that is known only to a few trappers and prospectors and to one or two photographers. Before entering Lake Mead the crystal clear stream drops over ninety feet forming Quartermaster Falls. Austere canyon walls contemplate in gloomy silence the waters fo Lake Mead at portals of Grand Canyon.