BACK ROAD ADVENTURE

back road adventure Tatahatso Point Overlooks the Colorado River and Offers Views Not Usually Seen

Tatahatso Point rarely appears on maps and is never discussed in books. Located on the eastern edge of the Navajo Indian Reservation, the spot remains difficult to find, which may explain why it remains one of the most extraordinary and unforgettable spots on the Colorado Plateau.

A person standing where the vast expanse of sage ends can look toward his shoes and see the Colorado River winding between some of the most magnificent buttes, domes, and cliffs of Marble Canyon. Most visitors to Arizona who see Marble Canyon view it from Navajo Bridge, about 10 miles south of Lees Ferry, on U.S. Route 89A. Those who find that vantage point inspiring will lapse into gibberish when they see the same canyon from the stunning isolated cliffs at Tatahatso Point.

Tatahatso is protected as part of Marble Canyon Navajo Tribal Park, a long strip of bone-dry plateau that extends, roughly, from a point southwest of Cedar Ridge - some 90 miles north of Flagstaff to Navajo Bridge, which spans the Colorado River near House Rock Valley and the Vermilion Cliffs.

Tatahatso, a bungled attempt at transliteration, is derived from dida'a hotsa'a, a Navajo expression that means, literally, "the edge or top of it is big." It's more loosely translated as "the land juts out," according to Henry Lane, a Navajo rancher in the area.

Backcountry travelers would do well to keep in mind that this "park" is unconventional: Not only are the so-called "roads" to it unpaved, they also are unmarked. And even though the land is designated as a park, you will never encounter a sign that says so.

What does this mean? It means several things: You make this trip

in a high-clearance vehicle; you take along a companion to keep an eye on the compass (you'll need one), the scant landmarks, and the mazelike network of crisscrossing roads, which are actually two tire tracks separated by a mound of red dirt. A map may be helpful but not much. More useful is knowing where north is located, and remembering that Tatahatso Point is west and slightly south of Shinumo Altar, the most prominent landmark in the area. I managed to avoid doing all of the above on three attempts at finding this tribal park. As a result, I am now on speaking terms with several white-faced cows and a handful of whiny sheep. I am not on such good terms with a Navajo whose sheep camp I accidentally invaded. In the absence of any signs, how was I to know I was driving into the corral where he was shearing sheep? However, after a minute he set aside his anger and gave me the information I needed. He pointed to two ruts south of his corral. "Go west on that road, and then you'll swing north." That's not as precise as it sounds in a place where you often can't tell one road from another, but it definitely helped. To visit the Tatahatso Point area, you must purchase a backcountry permit from the Navajos at Cameron. Once you have your permit, drive north (ABOVE) Parry's agave was used by Native Americans for food, fiber for tools and clothing, and medicines.

(RIGHT) Sunrise illuminates the Kaibab limestone on the west wall of Marble Canyon opposite Tatahatso Point.

on U.S. Route 89 another 38 miles from the Little Colorado River bridge at Cameron to Cedar Ridge. The unpaved road you are looking for is Indian Route 6110, which is marked only with a cairn on the left (west) side of 89. You will not see any sign for 6110 until you have turned west at the cairn and driven 6.8 miles. At 6.8 miles from the cairn, the road forks. Bear right, and the road will swing northwest. At .6 of a mile from the fork, and immediately after crossing a culvert, turn left onto the narrow dirt road headed directly west. As you do so, take note of Shinumo Altar, a large butte standing by itself to the northwest. A 17-year-old artist named Frederick Dellenbaugh, who had accompanied Maj. John Wesley Powell on his second expedition down the Colorado River in 1871, is credited with naming Shinumo. Someone told him there was a prehistoric Indian tribe by that name, though experts have never heard of it. The word means "peace" in the Hopi language.With Shinumo north and west of you, drive another .8 of a mile, and you'll come to another fork. Bear right and go another .3 of a mile where the road forks again. Go left. You'll note a rock outcropping off to your left (south). Continue another 1.5 miles. You'll go over a small hill and down to a stock pond where cows, mules, and sheep will be amazed to see you. Two roads lead over the hill in front (west) of you. Take either one because they come together at the top of the hill. A quarter-mile above the stock pond, go left at the fork, and almost immediately you'll see three roads come together. Go right 1.8 miles to the next fork, where you continue bearing Right. After 3.5 miles from the last fork, take a sharp left (southwest) for .1 of a mile. You have arrived at Tatahatso Point. Reading these directions may be harder than finding Tatahatso Point. The roads are bad and confusing, but you really can't get too lost if you remember that almost every road in the area is headed either eastwest or north-south. If you accidentally take a wrong fork, there's no need to despair. As long as it's headed west, you'll eventually come upon a road headed north. And you certainly can't lose Marble Canyon: If you look west from almost any point on the plateau, you can see in the distance the silhouette of hazy cliffs. The cliffs are the eastern end of the Grand Canyon, and you will never reach them because you will get to Tatahatso Point and Marble Canyon first. The road ends at a cairn at Tatahatso Point. I thought the view from that spot was spectacular, but I scrambled down the hill in front of me and looked over the edge at the Colorado River snaking its way around sandstone domes and limestone pinnacles. Nothing seemed real. Later I read a few lines that Major Powell had written after one of his expeditions through the area more than 100 years earlier: "The landscape is too vast, too complex, too grand for verbal description." Yes, I thought, he had that right.Visitors to the Navajo Indian Reservation must purchase a backcountry-use permit at the Little Colorado River Navajo Tribal Park's Cameron Visitor Center. To purchase in advance and for more information, write P.O. Box 459, Cameron, AZ 86020, or call (520) 679-2303. Back road travel can be hazardous if you are not prepared for the unexpected. Whether traveling in the desert or in the high country, be aware of weather and road conditions and make sure you and your vehicle are in top shape and you have plenty of water. Don't travel alone, and let someone at home know where you're going and when you plan to return. Odometer readings in the story may vary by vehicle.

TIPS FOR TRAVELERS