Unit 10: Scenic America

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Grand Canyon

The setting sun turns the western sky crimson red, lining higher clouds with golden borders. A dark shadow crawls slowly up the sides of the canyon ahead, first blotting out the tiny silver thread of the Colorado River 1500 meters below. The red brown layers across the way shine as if they were fired to a glowing heat. At times almost 29 kilometers across the great chasm, the North Rim is usually visible from the South Rim, which is more accessible for most tourists. As the silence of the desert night descends, one can only marvel at the awesome spectacle known as the Grand Canyon, America's most famous scenic wonder.

This is no valley between two mountains; this is not a separation due to an earthquake. This is a gorge slowly carved away for nearly 6 million years by the waters of the Colorado River. The canyon is so deep that there are four distinct zones of climate from top to bottom, each with its own distinctive flora and fauna. When it is snowing on the upper rim, it is tropically hot and moist on the floor of the canyon.

Over 4 million people each year visit this place approximately 120 kilometers north of Flagstaff, Arizona by train, bus, or private automobile to see this spectacle of nature. There are helicopter rides available for the adventuresome. Trails curve along the edge of the South Rim. And some trails lead down into the Canyon. Some tourists hike part of the way down, and slowly trudge back by evening. Others take a mule caravan either halfway down and back for the day, or else all the way to the river below to stay overnight and return the next day.

This scenic area is one of the U.S. National Parks, hence there are guides, Park Rangers, available for information in addition to small exhibition buildings where experts inform visitors about the geology, the flora and the fauna, and the history of the area. The Park was established in 1908 by President "Teddy" Roosevelt, and has continually incorporated more and more territory until, in 1975, the entire Grand Canyon, a total of 4930 sq km, is within the boundaries of the Grand Canyon National Park.

The Southwest

There are other National Parks nearby. To the east, the Painted Desert National Park includes multicolored hills and small uprisings from the desert floor that glow in the daylight in colors of reddish-brown, yellow, orange, and even purple. Within this park is also the Petrified Forest, a field of fallen trees that have turned to stone by a process of mineralization known as petrifaction. The organic cells and tree rings can easily be seen in these ancient "rocks". To the south, the Sunset Crater Volcano National Park has the remains of a very early volcano explosion, much greater than the recent Mt. St. Helens eruption. And to the west, there is Hoover Dam and the lake behind it, Lake Mead. Hoover Dam is a major hydroelectric power supplier and is named after President Herbert Hoover. It is no longer the largest dam in the western part of the United States, but it is of great historic interest, and the view of it is quite spectacular.

Petrified Trees

Sunset Crater Volcano National Park Mt St Helens

Volcano Eruption

Lake Mead

Moving north from the Grand Canyon National Park, one encounters many scenic areas that are not in parks. The desert areas of Nevada and the mountains and streams of southwestern Colorado are all quite beautiful. Many Native American tribes live in these areas as well, and visits to their villages hold much interest for the inquisitive traveler.

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