Watchtower Whimsy

Shortly after leaving Cameron Trading Post we had our first encounter with the Grand Canyon at Desert View Watchtower. To our seacoast-trained eyes, the watchtower looked like a long-abandoned lighthouse set to warn travelers down the Colorado River that ‘here there be dragons.’ In actuality the watchtower is a fantasy of Mary Colter, the architect of many of the Grand Canyon structures of the early 20th century. Fred Harvey (of Harvey House fame) seems to have given Mary Colter free reign to design and build this whimsical watchtower. The tower design mimics an Indian ruin, but in fact has a steel structure lying hidden in its stone walls. Visitors can climb three stories to the top for a bird’s eye view of the canyon. The pictures below and the two movie links will give you a sense of the weirdness within.

Desert Watchtower

Inside the Desert Watch Tower