Grand Canyon
NATURE'SGREATEST SCULPTURE
277 miles long, 18 miles wide, one mile deep — exposing 1.8 billion years of Earth's geological history. No words, no photograph can prepare a first-time visitor.
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Geology Exposed
A Mile Through Time
The canyon wall is a stone calendar. Each layer represents a completely different ancient environment — tropical seas, ancient deserts, flood plains — deposited over hundreds of millions of years.
Kaibab Limestone
270M yrs
Toroweap Formation
273M yrs
Coconino Sandstone
275M yrs
Hermit Shale
280M yrs
Supai Group
285–315M yrs
Redwall Limestone
340M yrs
Tonto Group
500–545M yrs
Vishnu Basement Rocks
1.7–1.8B yrs
South Rim, Arizona
Zion NP — 100 miles north
1.8 BIL
years of geology exposed in one vertical mile
In Detail
The Grand Canyon is 277 miles long, 18 miles wide, and a full mile deep
Standing at the rim, you gaze across a void wide enough to contain the entire city of Chicago. The Colorado River at the bottom is 70 feet wide and appears as a ribbon from the top.
The Grand Canyon exposes 1.8 billion years of Earth's geological history
Each layer of rock is a chapter in Earth's 4.5-billion-year story. The innermost Vishnu Basement Rocks are among the oldest exposed rocks on the planet's surface.
Five distinct ecosystems coexist within a vertical mile of canyon walls
Descending the Grand Canyon is like traveling from Canada to Mexico: spruce forests at the rim give way to desert scrub at the bottom, with four climate zones in between.
The Grand Canyon saved the California condor from extinction
Once reduced to just 27 individuals, California condors were released here in 1996. Over 500 now exist — one of conservation's greatest success stories.
The Colorado River carved the entire canyon in just 5–6 million years
Geologically a very short time — the river carved through rock deposited over 1.8 billion years, exposing nearly half the Earth's age in one vertical mile.
On a clear day, you can see for 200 miles from the South Rim
The Grand Canyon's scale is so vast you experience a view measured in tens of miles. The far rim is 10+ miles away; the horizon over 200 miles distant on clear winter days.
Grand Canyon is a certified International Dark Sky Park
Far from city lights, the canyon offers spectacular stargazing. The Milky Way is visible with the naked eye on clear nights, and the park holds annual Star Party events for astronomers.
“Do nothing to mar its grandeur, sublimity and loveliness. You cannot improve on it. But what you can do is to keep it for your children, your children's children, and for all who come after you.”
— Theodore Roosevelt