King Exposures

colorful castles at Capitol Reef National Park withMelanie Streetman Humphreys

Navajo Bridge over the Colorado River at Marble Canyon, providing access to the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. The 1929 north (left) bridge has been just for pedestrian use since it was replaced with the wider (right) vehicle bridge in 1995.

While we were there a crowd gathered to peer over the edge of the pedestrian bridge to observe a California Condor sitting on the structure. In 1987 the last 27 wild Cal. Condors were captured for breeding, and there are now 336 in the wild with 200 more in captivity. You can see the transmitter/tag on this one to monitor him. The black head indicates he is a juvenile; at age 6 or so his head will be bright pink-orange. They are the largest wild birds in North America, weighing 20 lbs. with wings spanning 10 feet. They may live up to ~60 years. Not pretty, I know, but magnificent creatures nonetheless.