[guitar picking]
When people imagine the Colorado River, often they picture its green or muddy
brown waters traveling through the steep walls of Grand Canyon.
But this desert lifeline connects many national park units
starting with a very different landscape, the Rocky Mountains.
[upbeat guitar strumming]
Welcome to Rocky Mountain National Park, home to the headwaters of the Colorado River.
Tucked up against the Continental Divide,
the snow and ice will melt and run down here
to the Kawaneeche Valley. Under the snow and ice, the Colorado River starts as a
meandering stream that will rise and grow as it makes its way across the
American West. In Rocky Mountain National Park, the
river nourishes life and has drawn people to the humble banks of what will
become a mighty river for centuries. From the Ute and the
Arapaho in search of game, to homesteaders in search of a fresh start
to park visitors in search of a grand adventure.
[upbeat guitar strumming]
Although the Colorado River doesn't pass directly through Arches National Park,
it does make up the south boundary. This spot in the Moab Valley is one of the
easier places to cross the Colorado River along its path,
making it a natural corridor for thousands of years, for animals
and people alike.
[upbeat guitar strumming]
In Canyonlands National Park, the Colorado River cuts over 40 miles
of colorful, steep-walled canyons. Setting the stage for the ultimate adventure.
Paddling down canyon, you're pushed to test your strength
and self-reliance. Whether it be on class 5 rapids in Cataract Canyon,
on calm sections of flat water along the confluence with the Green River,
or traversing remote and challenging terrain on a pack rafting adventure.
The river brings people together, for a unique
wilderness experience.
[upbeat guitar strumming]
As the Colorado River rose and fell, a side creek pushed its way through the
sandstone to form Rainbow Bridge. For centuries Indigenous Peoples came
here, each forming a powerful connection with this sacred site. Their
travels continue today, along with people from all around the
world, who come here to stand in awe of Rainbow Bridge National Monument.
[upbeat guitar strumming]
Hello from Lee's Ferry in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.
Remnants of historic buildings tell a story of dependence on water.
This low point in the canyon has always offered a passage across the Colorado River.
In the late 1800s, pioneers established Lees Ferry to make the river crossing easier.
But today a nearby bridge provides a speedy crossing for automobiles.
Here adventure seekers begin the ride of a lifetime,
rafting down the Colorado River into Grand Canyon.
[upbeat guitar strumming]
While many humans aspire to set out over the mighty rapids of the Colorado,
there are critters under its surface that don't need any special equipment to
navigate white water. Well, aside from fins and gills.
Here at Grand Canyon National Park, biologists are working hard to maintain
our large population of endangered fish known as the humpback chub.
These able-bodied swimmers can be outcompeted by non-native species.
By studying and preserving fish habitats
biologists protect all native fish that call the canyon home.
[upbeat guitar strumming]
Welcome to Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument, we're here in Whitmore Canyon
and scientists have been brought
together by the river to study an amazing phenomena here, lava flows
that entered the river, the Colorado River,
boiled it away, dammed it. The river eventually
blew out those dams, made terrible floods. Scientists want to know when the next
time it's going to happen, maybe we'll see it in our lifetime but
maybe not.
[upbeat guitar strumming]
When people come to Grand Canyon, they don't just marvel at the immense chasm
before them, many are searching for a view of the
amazing river at its bottom. The Colorado River serves as a
connection point for visitors. Whether standing on the rim and looking
into its depths, or right here next to it, its water is
not only precious because it brings life, it brings people together.
[upbeat guitar strumming]