Upper Ferry Site

Crossing the Colorado by muscle was dangerous work. Early ferrymen rowed upstream and fought the current across; wagons sometimes went into the river. In 1896 James Emett took over and demanded a better way. By 1899 he had moved the landing to this safer site and rigged the boat to a fixed cable, letting the river's own current pull it across on a track. A log tower filled with stones anchored the line. The pile of rock behind the marker is what remains of that engineering.

What the plaque says

Safer and easier crossings made possible by moving the landing site here, Completed 1899, Improvements included a new ferry launch site, new ferry boat mounted on permanent track cable, and new road., James Emett took over as lead ferryman in 1896 and requested major changes. Previous operators fought their way upstream rowing boats across the river, but the new cable system let the river current do much of the work., The cable was anchored in a log tower filled with stones. See the remaining pile of rocks behind you.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Antelope Canyon — 11 mi
  Tsé bighánílíní — where the water runs through the rock

More markers nearby

• Lees Ferry Fort — steps away
• Lees Ferry — 0.4 mi
• Historic District River Trail — 0.5 mi
• Lonely Dell Ranch — 1.0 mi