Black Canyon of the Gunnison

The Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is not the most visited or best known park among the National Parks of the United States. As its name implies, it does not compare well with the myriad of beautiful and changing colors of the Grand Canyon, in Arizona, the red rock formations of the Utah National Parks, or the golden hues of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone in Wyoming. It is relatively short. its total length is 48 miles and the length of the segment within the park is just 14 miles. It is deep and narrow. The deepest point is more than 2700 feet below the canyon rim and its narrowest point is a mere 40 feet at the river in the bottom of the canyon. The Gunnison River in the park is a very swift river. The average descent over the length of canyon:in the park is about 85 feet per mile, The greatest decent: occurs in the park at Chasm View , where the river descends at 240 feet per mile. That compares to a descent rate of 7.5 feet per mile for the Grand Canyon. One of the most interesting things to us was that the river was tapped for irrigation water in the early 1900s by blasting and digging a tunnel nearly 6 miles long through the basaltic rock to divert a significant portion of the river's water into the Uncompahgre Valley near Montrose, creating thousands of acres of productive farmland, a monumental feat considering the times in which the tunnel was created. The canyon has been a mighty barrier to humans. Only its rims, never the gorge, show evidence of human occupation - not even by Ute Indians living in the area since written history began. We didn't spend a lot of time in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, but we came away with a sense of awe at its beauty, its ruggedness, and the intrepid pioneers who first explored and tamed it, if only a small part of it.. We are grateful that our nation has had the foresight to set areas such as the Black Canyon of the Gunnison and other National Parks aside and helps to preserve them for future generations to enjoy. We truly enjoyed our short visit to this magnificent place in God's creation.

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