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Hiking Trails – Horseshoe Bend

LandmarkHorseshoe Bend
Sculptor: Nature ❤️
Nickname: East Rim of the Grand Canyon
Interesting Facts: The Colorado River created a roughly 1,000 ft (305 m) deep, 270º horseshoe-shaped bend in Glen Canyon, about five million years back.
Distance: 1.5 mile (2.4km) out & back from the parking to the overlook
Fee: $10 per car
City: Page
Reservation Area: Yes, Navajo
State: Arizona
Country: USA

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Forever Marilyn

Landmark: Forever Marilyn Sculpture
Sculptor: Seward Johnson
Interesting Facts: 26-foot tall, 24,000-pound monumental sculpture created with stainless steel and aluminum
Year: 2011
City: Palm Springs
State: California
Country: USA

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Baps Swaminarayan Temple

Landmark: Baps Swaminarayan Temple
Religion: Hinduism
Architecture: Unique blend of traditional Indian architecture and
the state-of-the-art engineering modern construction
Interesting Facts: The complex is the first earthquake-proof Mandir in the world.
City & State: Chino Hills, California
Country: USA
Address: 15100 Fairfield Ranch Rd.  
Chino Hills, CA 91709 USA

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Triyuginarayan Temple

Triyuginarayan Temple

Landmark: Triyuginarayan Temple
Religion: Hinduism
Architecture: 9th Century AD group of Temples
Interesting Facts: Anand Dhuni from the times of divine marriage between Lord Siva and Goddess Parvati and four sacred kunds
State: Uttarakhand
Country: India
Address: Rudraprayag District

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Narayan Koti Temple

Narayan Koti Temple

Landmark: Narayan Koti Temple
Religion: Hinduism
Architecture: 9th Century AD group of Temples
Interesting Facts: Shrines for each Navagraha &
State: Uttarakhand
Country: India
Address: Near Guptakashi

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Roadside America – World’s Tallest Kachina Doll

Landmark: World’s Tallest Kachina Doll
Deity: Kachinas are known to be the spirits of deities, natural elements or animals, or the deceased ancestors of the Hopi.
Culture: Native American South westerm
Country: USA
State: Arizona
Address: Tonto Hills near Cave Creek

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Exploring Glen Canyon

Lake Powell:
Lake Powell is an artificial reservoir on the Colorado River in Utah and Arizona, United States. It is the second largest artificial reservoir by maximum water capacity in the United States behind Lake Mead, storing 24,322,000 acre-feet (3.0001×1010 m3) of water when full. Lake Powell is named for John Wesley Powell, who in 1869 led the first expedition to traverse the Colorado River’s Grand Canyonby boat. Lake Powell was created by the flooding of Glen Canyon by the Glen Canyon Dam, which also led to the 1972 creation of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, a popular summer destination of public land managed by the National Park Service.

Glen Canyon Dam:
Glen Canyon Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the southwestern United States, located on the Colorado River in northern Arizona, near the city of Page. The 710-foot-high (220 m) dam was built by the Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) from 1956 to 1966 and forms Lake Powell, one of the largest man-made reservoirs in the U.S. with a capacity of more than 25 million acre-feet (31 km3). The dam is named for Glen Canyon, a series of deep sandstone gorges now flooded by the reservoir.

Glen Canyon Bridge:
The Glen Canyon Bridge or Glen Canyon Dam Bridge is a steel arch bridge in Coconino County, Arizona, carrying U.S. Route 89 across the Colorado River. The bridge was originally built by the United States Bureau of Reclamation to facilitate transportation of materials for the Glen Canyon Dam, which lies adjacent to the bridge just 865 feet (264 m) upstream. The two-lane bridge has an overall length of 1,271 feet (387 m) with a deck 700 feet (210 m) above the river, making it one of the highest bridges in the United States. The bridge was the highest arch bridge in the world when completed in 1959.

Cameron Trading Post

Cameron Trading Post:
Established in 1916, this place offers one stop for shopping, dining, resting and fueling. From t-shirts and trinkets to fine Native American jewelry, pottery, basketry, this location offers a little respite to your weary shoulders. This location houses a gas station and Cameron Post Office.

Cameron Suspension Bridge (now old and no traffic allowed):
A scenic and standing, still tall, over Little Colorado River the suspension bridge formerly carried U.S. Route 89 was built in 1911. It has an overall length of 680 feet (210 m) and a main span of 660 feet (200 m). The bridge was built by the Midland Bridge Company of Kansas City for the Office of Indian Affairs and the Indian Irrigation Service. W. H. Code of the Midland Bridge Company was the designer. The suspension design was chosen to address the steep-walled canyon at the crossing, which required a single span with no temporary falsework. When built, the Cameron bridge was the longest suspension span west of the Mississippi River. It was replaced by a newer deck truss bridge in 1959.

The Cameron Suspension Bridge is the oldest suspension bridge in Arizona, and one of only two of that type in the state. The Cameron Suspension bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 5, 1986.

Please watch our trip video here:

https://youtu.be/yUuP_CiPmkU

Brahmakapal in Badrinath

On the banks of the Alakananda River is the famous Brahma Kapal Ghat, where Hindus perform rituals for their departed dear ones and by doing so, it is beleived the departed souls get liberation from the cycle of birth and death. The ritual uses pind as the symbolic offering to the ancestors. A Tarpan is usually performed along the riverside or a flowing water body. Pinddan Tarpan contains rice balls with sesame seeds and water.

It was believed that Lord Shiva got his curse lifted and got his salvation here at Brahma Kapal after committing a Brahma sin. Hindu devotees take a dip in the river or bathe in it because Hindu belief states that doing so one cleanses his or her worldly sins.

Please watch our video on our visit to Brahmakapal:

https://youtu.be/ZOJ7Ik5aZwg