Dead Horse Point

Trip miles 3443
Daily miles 152

We finished Arches and then proceeded to Dead Horse Point Park, a place neither of us had ever heard of before. We are so glad the concierge told us about it - it was spectacular.

Legend has it that it gets it's name from the 19th century. The point is an outcropping of rock into the Colorado River basin that is almost completely surrounded by thin air, much like Guano Point on the Grand Canyon. Cowboys used to herd wild mustangs onto the point from which they couldn't escape. They would then take the ones they wanted and leave the rest to die of thirst, hence the name. I'm not sure why the horses wouldn't go back from where they came after the humans left, but anyway that's the explanation, which if true is pretty sad.

The approach to it is pretty impressive since you know you are driving one one of those mesas you usually look up at. You see the ground receding as you get closer to the edge. It's a very similar effect to approaching the lip of the Grand Canyon.


There is a really nice observation area with 360 degree views around.

It does take some skill to drive there, so we were impressed. I'm not sure how he can reach the pedals.



The views are simply breathtaking.


This is a picture of the Big Bend (aiiiigh!) in the Colorado River. It's incredible that the river carved such deep canyons over the years.


This pic is somewhat redundant, but I simply had to put it in because it is so majestic.

I was blown away by the place. I find it incredible that it is almost the equivalent of the Grand Canyon (within a thousand feet probably) and yet I've never heard of it. We went there almost as an afterthought after Arches (and I had heard of that) and in many ways it is more impressive. It's simply amazing how much awesome stuff there is to see in America that no one has heard of.