Highway 89: the National Park Highway

Hailed by National Geographic as one of the best drives in the world, US Highway 89, the National Park Highway, spanned from Mexico to Canada, until 1992 when it was decommissioned south of Flagstaff.

Connecting 6 National Parks (7, if you start at Saguaro National Park in Tucson) Highway 89 begins its epic geologic journey amidst the volcanic cinders and red clay ruins of Sunset Crater and Wutpatki National Monuments near Flagstaff. As it cuts through the solitude of Northeastern Arizona and the Navajo Nation, it passes the historic Cameron Trading Post and offers sublime rose-colored vistas of the Vermilion Cliffs.

Today's Highway 89, since the 1960s, continues up to Page, past the Emerald Green spectacle of Horseshoe Bend and on to the Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell. Along the roadside you can buy handcrafted jewelry from individual vendors.

The original route, 89A, makes a less traveled trek to the scenic Navajo Bridge and orange walls of Marble Canyon before skirting the Vermilion Cliffs en route to Lee's Ferry and the North Rim. From here, it embarks on its colorful ascent up the geologic Grand Staircase, from the red and green hues of the North Rim, to the imposing pink and white sandstone of Zion and orange spires of Bryce. Both routes meet up again in Kanab.

From Saguaro National Park to the Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Glacier National Park and everywhere in between, US Highway 89 connects some of the most extraordinary natural treasures in the world.

I have started a Highway 89 Adventurers Group on Facebook. Thank you for reading! https://www.facebook.com/groups/440125597100460/?ref=share

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/drivers-drives-traveler

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