# Comb Ridge

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For the ridge in Antarctica, see [Comb Ridge (James Ross Island)](/source/Comb_Ridge_(James_Ross_Island)).

**Comb Ridge** ()[1] is a linear north to south-trending [monocline](/source/Monocline) nearly 80 miles long in Southeastern [Utah](/source/Utah) and Northeastern [Arizona](/source/Arizona). Its northern end merges with the [Abajo Mountains](/source/Abajo_Mountains) some eleven miles west of [Blanding](/source/Blanding,_Utah). It extends essentially due south for 45 km (28 mi) to the [San Juan River](/source/San_Juan_River_(Colorado_River)). South of the San Juan the ridge turns to the southwest and is more subdued in expression as it extends for an additional 67 km (42 mi) to Laguna Creek 9 km (5.6 mi) east of [Kayenta, Arizona](/source/Kayenta,_Arizona).[2][3]

It was designated a [National Natural Landmark](/source/National_Natural_Landmark) in 1976 as the only North American location of [tritylodont](/source/Tritylodont) fossils.[4] Parts of the ridge in Utah are protected as part of the [Bears Ears National Monument](/source/Bears_Ears_National_Monument).[5]

## Geology

The geologic [formations](/source/Formation_(geology)) involved in the east [dipping](/source/Strike_and_dip) strata of the fold include the [Jurassic](/source/Jurassic) aged [Navajo Sandstone](/source/Navajo_Sandstone), [Kayenta Formation](/source/Kayenta_Formation), [Wingate Sandstone](/source/Wingate_Sandstone), [Chinle Formation](/source/Chinle_Formation), [Triassic](/source/Triassic) [Moenkopi Formation](/source/Moenkopi_Formation) and [Permian](/source/Permian) [Organ Rock Formation](/source/Organ_Rock_Formation). The structure is the surface expression of a deep fault along the east margin of the Monument Uplift.[2]

## History

Traces of the [Ancestral Puebloan](/source/Ancestral_Puebloans) culture can be found along the southern part of the ridge where it follows [Chinle Wash](/source/Chinle_Wash). The [Macomb](/source/John_N._Macomb) and [Hayden](/source/Ferdinand_Vandeveer_Hayden) expeditions in 1869 and 1874–1876, respectively, were the first to publish maps and descriptions of this feature.[6] The ridge and adjacent Butler Wash were given their current names in 1884, by P. Holmann.[6][7][8]

Numerous [cliff dwellings](/source/Cliff_dwelling) are found along the ridge.

## See also

- [Posey War](/source/Posey_War)
- [Trail of the Ancients](/source/Trail_of_the_Ancients)
- [Anasazi State Park Museum](/source/Anasazi_State_Park_Museum)
- [Pueblo III Era](/source/Pueblo_III_Era)

## References

1. Linford, Laurence D. Navajo Places: History, Legend, Landscape, University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City, UT 2000.

1. [*Geosights, Comb Ridge, San Juan County, Utah,* May 2012, pp. 9–11](http://geology.utah.gov/surveynotes/snt44-2.pdf) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20121126224732/http://www.geology.utah.gov/surveynotes/snt44-2.pdf) 2012-11-26 at the Wayback Machine

1. USGS 30x60 quadrangle topographic maps: Blanding, Utah-Colorado; Bluff, Utah-Colorado; Rock Point, Arizona-New Mexico; Kayenta, Arizona

1. ["National Natural Landmark"](https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nnlandmarks/site.htm?Site=CORI-AZ). National Park Service. Retrieved 11 December 2012.

1. [Obama Designates Two New National Monuments, Protecting 1.65 Million Acres](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/28/us/politics/obama-national-monument-bears-ears-utah-gold-butte.html). Davenport, Coral. *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*, 28 December 2016

1. Gregory, Herbert E. (1938). [*The San Juan Country, a Geographic and Geologic Reconnaissance of Southeastern Utah: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 188*](https://archive.org/details/Gregory1938TheSanJuanCountry). US Government Printing Office Washington.

1. Roberts, David (March 2006). ["Hiking Comb Ridge"](https://web.archive.org/web/20060519123138/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/0603/features/comb_ridge.html). *National Geographic Adventure Magazine*. Archived from [the original](http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/0603/features/comb_ridge.html) on May 19, 2006. Retrieved 2009-05-06.

1. Roberts, David. *Sandstone Spine: Seeking the Anasazi on the First Traverse of the Comb Ridge*. Mountaineers Books. ISBN 1-59485-005-4.

## External links

- [Comb Ridge](https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nnlandmarks/site.htm?Site=CORI-AZ) [National Park Service](/source/National_Park_Service)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Comb Ridge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comb_Ridge) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comb_Ridge?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.