A visit to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Detailed review by 1krispy1

1krispy1(62)
Broomfield, USA

99%

perfection!

The Black Canyon of the Gunnison is very easy to get to. It is on US 50 between the cities of Gunnison and Montrose, Colorado. Montrose is about 60 miles southeast of Grand Junction. I drove down from Denver via I-25 and US 50 picking up US 50 in Pueblo from there it is a straight shot west on US 50. Montrose is about 9.5 km west of the park entrance.

Normally the entrance fee is $15 per vehicle. This is good for a week so one could go to Montrose for supplies or to catch a movie or for hotel accommodations and still get into the park. However when I pulled up to the entrance there was a sign on the gate that said fees waived in winter, so I motored right on in.

There are several features of this canyon that make it very unique. First it is the very steepness of the inner canyon. The Gunnison River drops an average of 95 feet per mile traversed. By comparison the Colorado River drops 7.5 feet per mile in the Grand Canyon. The age of the rocks in the canyon is up to 1.7 billion years. This is some of the oldest exposed rocks known. The Black Canyon of the Gunnison is home to the highest cliff in the state of Colorado. It is 2300 feet, known as the Painted Wall and is almost twice as tall as the Empire State Building. At river level the narrowest point of the canyon is only 40 feet. The canyon is extremely narrow this is due to the fact the Gunnison is working on such hard rocks. They are much more resistant to erosion than the examples in either the Grand Canyon or the Colorado National Monument both of which are sandstone.

There are a lot of recreational activities possible at the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Among these are rock climbing, kayaking, and fishing, hiking, camping and watching the wildlife that lives in the park.

The Black Canyon of the Gunnison was my first stop on a recent weekend tour of western Colorado late in March and early April of 2007. I drove down from Denver via I-70 to Pueblo then US 50 to the park. I have seen reports where the writers mention the surprise at how the canyon suddenly appears as if from no where. I can attest to this. Pulling off US 50 at the entrance road to the park I was marveling how spring was starting to bust out all over. The broad meadows are starting to green up and ranchers working up their equipment getting ready for the new growing season. There were signs that nature is getting ready for spring to return in earnest with migratory birds arriving and other animals starting to enjoy the longer days with courtship rituals.

The climbing up the mesa starts. The plants change from human planted to what nature has been tending for thousands of years. Sage seems to come to mind right off. There are also pinion and scrub oak and juniper. They form what is called a pygmy forest. It is formed because the soils are shallow, the water is lacking for the most part, the wind can be brutal, and the temperatures can vary greatly. In short the top of the canyon can be a brutal environment. The inner canyon can be eight degrees warmer than the rims. It is also home to poison ivy that can be as tall as five feet in height.

Just after entrance to the park a short climb follows and the first pull over shows up. I took advantage to check out he canyon. It was amazing. As stunning as this was I was thinking this is the shallow end of the park. Downstream the tallest cliff in the state of Colorado resides at 2300 feet. The deepest part of the canyon is about 2500 feet. The narrowest part of the canyon at the rim is only 1000 feet. To get to the other side requires a drive of about 160 km, time being somewhat limited on this trip I elected to be happy with the south rim.

There are pullouts with short hikes all along the rim. They vary from a few dozen yards to over 600 yards. One had a self guiding tour that explained the various plants or views to be had. All were easy, a couple are wheelchair accessible. The views are quite staggering. In fact if one is fearful of heights these might not be the most entertaining part of ones visit. They are fenced and very safe, but the posts are right on the edge. There is not a lot between the viewer and the Gunnison or the rocks around the Gunnison except air, a lot of it. Normally I am not fearful of heights but I did take extra care to make sure the camera was secure while peering over the edge or taking photographs of the vistas before me.

If one views the photograph posted of the Painted Wall the viewer will notice lighter colored rock twisting about the darker colored rock. This is intrusive molten rock that forced itself into cracks in the other rocks then hardened. It was exposed after the Gunnison uplift. It is harder than the surrounding rock and more resistant to the eroding factors of the Gunnison River.

The river can be kayaked sort of. The rapids are class IV and V. The river is too rough in places to be passed. Portages must be undertaken. The portages are very demanding because of the steepness of the canyon and poison ivy grows along the river at heights up to five feet. The walls or at least some of them can be climbed, again if you are skilled. In both activities if one gets into trouble self rescue is expected. There are trails down to the bottom of the canyon, I noticed one saying the expected decent was four hours and the accent six. Trophy trout are in the river and it is recognized as some of the best fishing in the state of Colorado.
The state's gold medal designation is bestowed in recognition of this fact.

At one point I stood near the edge of a side canyon. Behind me there was another. The crowds had left and I was alone. There was a calm serenity that was very interesting. Then a loud thunder clap, a crashing commotion very near me. Scared me. After several more I began to figure out what was going on. There has been melting going on. Water runs off to the side canyons and freezes into huge ice blocks. What the thunder clap was the breaking of these ice blocks breaking away from the wall of the canyon walls and crashing on the rocks below. The work of the canyon expansion continues.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park10