Navajo Bridges (Leighty)
Mile 4.0 - View SSW of the Navajo Bridges. The upstream bridge was built in 1928 and the downstream bridge in 1995. The upper part of the cliff is Kaibab Formation, with the Toroweap Formation forming most of the lower part.

Paleozoic rocks (Leighty)
Mile 4.1 - The Kaibab Formation and Toroweap Formation are both Permian in age, which is the youngest period of the Paleozoic Era (542 to 251 Ma). The crossbedded sandstone in the Toroweap is just above river level.

Kaibab slump block (Leighty)
Mile 5 - Zack's boat: look out! A block of Kaibab Formation has slid down onto the Toroweap. The Kaibab, Toroweap, and Coconino are all exposed here, with the Toroweap forming the talus-covered slope in the middle. These units are relatively thin in Marble Canyon and become much thicker to the south and west.

Condor watching (Leighty)
Mile 5 - John T. spotted this California condor, and we all watched it glide on a thermal. Several have been released from an aviary atop Vermillion Cliffs. From 1982 to 2003, the California condor population in the wild has increased from 22 to 84 (222 total).

Kaibab rockfall (Leighty)
Mile 7.1 - A relatively fresh rockfall (Spring 1970) from the Kaibab Formation. The slope-forming Hermit Shale underlies the debris at the bottom of the cliff.

Badger Creek Rapid (Leighty)
Mile 7.9 - View SE of Jackass Creek. Debris from Jackass Creek and Badger Creek form these rapids, the first major rapids encountered in Marble Canyon.

Hermit Shale and Quaternary talus (Leighty)
Mile 9.3 - The slope-forming Hermit Shale consists mostly of reddish mudstone and sandstone and is typically covered by talus from overlying rock units. The talus in this area is well cemented due to salt seepage at the base of the Coconino Sandstone. The Hermit was originally deposited on an arid river flood plain during the late Early Permian (roughly 280 Ma).

Permian marine transgression (Leighty)
Mile 9.3 - This Permian cliff sequence represents a marine transgression: a river floodplain (Hermit) and coastal dune complex (Coconino) were eventually covered by a shallow sea (Toroweap and Kaibab).

Ten Mile Rock (Leighty)
Mile 10.0 - A vertical block of calcareous sandstone (roughly 20 feet long and 5 feet wide) from the Toroweap Formation forms Ten Mile Rock.

Ten Mile Rock (Leighty)
Mile 10.0 - This block was polished by flooding prior to the construction of Glen Canyon Dam, giving some indication of the level of pre-dam river flow. Note the slabs beneath the water.

Approaching Soap Creek (Leighty)
Mile 10.5 - View SW towards Soap Creek, which enters on the right. The promontory is ~1100 feet above Soap Creek Rapid ({5}; 17' drop). The canyon narrows below Soap Creek as the more resistant Supai Group appears. Badger and Soap Creeks both get their names from Jacob Hamblin, who alledgedly shot and cooked a badger here, only to have its fat turn to soap in the alkaline water.

Supai cliff (Leighty)
Mile 10 to 11 - Looking up at the Esplanade Sandstone, the uppermost formation of the Supai Group, a thick sequence of reddish-orange sandstone, mudstone, and limestone. The Esplanade is an eolian (wind deposited) sandstone much like the Coconino. The Esplanade is Early Permian in age (roughly 299 to 280 Ma), whereas the rest of the Supai Group is Middle to Late Pennsylvanian (roughly 313 to 299 Ma).

House Rock Rapid (Leighty)
Mile 17.0 - House Rock Rapid ({8}; 8' drop) is present where House Rock Creek drains out of Rider Canyon. See VIDEO.

View south from House Rock camp (Leighty)
Mile 17.0 - Late afternoon downstream view (south) from the gravel bar at House Rock camp.

Kaibab spire (Leighty)
Mile 17.0 - Late afternoon light on the Kaibab cliffs downstream.