Grand Falls, Tiered waterfall in Painted Desert, Arizona.
Grand Falls is a tiered waterfall in the Painted Desert of Arizona that drops 181 feet (55 meters) into the Little Colorado River. The cascade forms a wide, fan-shaped drop across multiple brown-colored tiers shaped by sediment carried in the river flow.
The formation was created when lava from Merriam Crater in the San Francisco volcanic field built a natural dam, forcing the river to carve a new path. This geological event shaped the falls into their current form within the desert landscape.
The falls lie on Navajo Nation land, where the indigenous community maintains stewardship over the area and surrounding territory in the Painted Desert. Visitors should respect Navajo cultural rules and traditions when entering the site.
The falls show their strongest flow between March and April, when snowmelt from the White Mountains feeds the water. Outside these months, the falls can be dry or barely visible, so plan your visit accordingly.
The falls are also called Chocolate Falls because the water shows a rich brown color from river sediment. This coloring remains visible throughout the flow season and sets the formation apart from other waterfalls.
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