Dispatch, Arizona—I traveled 15,000 roundabout miles to see the Grand Canyon, and it was worth it. Driving through Coconino County, and even the road leading up to the National Park, there’s no indication that you’re about to come upon such a spectacular sight. Not until you walk up the visitor’s path does the natural wonder reveal itself.
Carved over eons by the Colorado River, the canyon is 18 miles across and more than a mile deep. It’s actually a composite of thousands of gorges stretching 277 miles. Its eastern boundary is Lees Ferry, named for the Mormon John D. Lee, who ferried settlers across the river. The small community is a starting point for canyon excursions. The Grand Wash Cliffs marking the western side are a striking geological feature resulting from tectonic activity. The area supports species such as the desert tortoise, Gila monster, and bighorn sheep, thriving among Mojave Desert shrubs and pinyon-juniper woodlands.
The canyon river is bounded by two great dams and the lakes they contain: Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell upriver and Hoover Dam and Lake Mead downstream—man-made marvels that electrify nine states.
The canyon’s climate differs dramatically between the rim and the river below, which has shrunken to a minimal size from its days of carving out the great gorge. It’s about 30 degrees cooler at the top than the basin below. About 15 inches of rain falls on the South Rim and 25 inches at the North, but only eight inches reach the canyon bottom. While the rims support a cool forest, the depths host a hot desert.
The canyon walls are striped with rock layers created during the planet's formation over hundreds of millions of years. They are a stacked palette of Earth tones created from ancient seas, swamps, deserts, and even volcanos. Interestingly, the canyon does not fall below sea level—the Colorado River is actually about 2,200 feet higher.
People are here from all over the world. They share a mystical connection with the ancient inhabitants and the same sense of awe as García López de Cárdenas, the first outsider to view the canyon as part of Francisco Vázquez de Coronado’s expedition of 1540. They tried to trek down to the river below but underestimated the terrain and had to turn back.
I’m here after traveling from New Zealand via Los Angeles. I've been on the road for many days and truly appreciated my stop at the Great Canyon.