They are both
towering mountains of rock, that stand out even more strikingly than do the
temples near at hand. The flat-topped mass is Wotan's Throne (once Newberry
Terrace), and is as massive as Shiva Temple, seen to the west. Its
elevation is seven thousand seven hundred feet.
Vishnu Temple. The more ornate and sculptured of the buttes is Vishnu
Temple, a solid mountain of rock carved into a majestic form by centuries
of erosion. Wherever one stands, at the eastern end of the Canyon, whether
on the north or the south, on the promontories at the rim or on the
plateaus beneath, it is the dominating and eye-compelling object. It is,
without doubt, the most stupendous mass of nature's carving in the known
world. It is seven thousand five hundred and thirty-seven feet above sea
level, and over five thousand feet above the Colorado River, which
practically laves its base.
In front of Wotan's Throne, and a trifle nearer the river, is the Angel
Gate, described in the chapter on Indian Legends.
Indian Garden. Now let the eye fall upon the Bright Angel Plateau. The
tents at Indian Garden are clearly to be seen as well as any trail party
that may happen to be crossing the plateau. The insignificant size of the
horses and mules and their riders can scarcely be believed. On the rim the
elevation is seven thousand and eighty-one feet. At the Garden the elevation
is three thousand eight hundred and seventy-six feet, so we are looking
down four thousand two hundred and five feet, over three-fourths of a mile.
Immediately below us, to the right, we see the rugged gorge of gneiss in
which flows Pipe Creek. The left fork of this (to the west) is Garden
Creek. A small break from Angel Plateau will be observed, where Garden
Creek curves to enter Pipe Creek. Here is a beautiful mass of green, and
not far away the trail that leads from the plateau to the river is in
sight.
El Tovar Point. A quarter of a mile west from Yavapai Point is El Tovar
Point (formerly called Grandeur Point), so named because it is the end of
the right arm of the amphitheatre in which El Tovar is located. Its
elevation is seven thousand feet.
Coconino Forest and Angel Plateau. To the west and south is the Coconino
Forest; beyond is seen the dry bed of the ancient Eocene lake, and the
blue ridge, where the lava-flows from Mount Floyd shut in the view. It is
a glorious expanse of over a hundred miles, and on a clear day every object
is plainly discerned. Here even better views of the Angel Plateau may be
obtained than from Yavapai Point, and an excellent outlook over the narrow
break in the great wall, where the shattering of the strata and the
deposition of talus and vegetable matter made possible the building of the
zigzag portion of the trail near the top.
