Post
by Kristy McCaffrey
This
will be the first installment of a 4-part series on the Grand Canyon.
Grand
Canyon National Park, located in Arizona, is known for its overwhelming size
and its intricate and colorful landscape. Over time, the elements have scoured
and carved the dramatically splendid Grand Canyon, known as one of the world’s
seven natural wonders. The distance from the South Rim to the North Rim varies
from half a mile to eighteen miles, and the canyon has a maximum depth of 6,000
feet. This great range in elevation allows for a variety of climate, flora, and
fauna; of the seven life zones on the North American continent, four can be experienced
within Grand Canyon.
The
most prominent feature in the Grand Canyon, besides the deep gorges exposing
millions of years of rock layers, lies at the bottom—the Colorado River. Named
in 1776 by a Spanish missionary, Padre Francisco Tomás Garcés, it means “red”
in Spanish, which is how the river would have appeared back then. Due to the
construction of Glen Canyon Dam in northeastern Arizona in 1964, the river is
now clear, clean, and cold.
 |
| Here's me on the Colorado River on a week-long boat trip through Grand Canyon. |
The
river begins as a tiny stream in Rocky Mountain National Park, eventually
flowing into Lake Powell, formed by the Glen Canyon Dam. Below the dam, it
begins its journey through Marble Canyon by joining with the Paria River. At
the confluence of the Little Colorado River does the Colorado finally enter
Grand Canyon National Park, flowing 217 miles until it reaches Lake Mead
Recreation Area.
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| John Wesley Powell |
The
first documented expedition of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon was
accomplished by Major John Wesley Powell in 1869. Powell, a Civil War veteran
with only one arm, and nine companions became the first men to journey 1,000
miles on the river, part of it through Grand Canyon. They braved rapids, heat,
plummeting morale, and the loss of three men. Powell’s account of this
expedition, Exploration of the Colorado
River of the West and Its Tributaries, made him a national hero as well as
brought the canyon to the attention of the country. The Paiutes called the
plateau that the canyon cuts through ”Kaibab” or “Mountain Lying Down,” but it
was Powell who first consistently used and published the name “Grand Canyon” in
the 1870’s.
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In addition to setting her 1877 historical western
romance The Sparrow in Grand Canyon,
Kristy will also have a short story featuring this natural wonder in Lassoing A Groom, an anthology coming
this summer from Prairie Rose Publications. A U.S. Deputy Marshal hunts a
fugitive in Grand Canyon, but is saddled with an unwanted companion when he
rescues a young woman who may not be what she seems. To stay up-to-date, visit Kristy's website.
