2011 Map of Water Pockets

About this map

The Paria River carves a sinuous path across this high-desert landscape in Coconino County, serving as the primary drainage for the surrounding terrain. This remote area is defined by its topographic extremes and scarce water sources, where man-made improvements like the Bush Head Tank provide vital points of collection in an otherwise arid environment. High points such as Bush Head and the stretching expanse of Horse Ridge overlook a complex network of dry washes and intermittent streams. The naming of the Water Pockets area suggests a landscape where geologic depressions occasionally hold seasonal rainfall, a critical resource for travelers and livestock in this portion of northern Arizona. The absence of roads or permanent settlements highlights the isolation of this river corridor in the early twenty-first century.