Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

We entered Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park via the South Rim and took the two hour scenic drive which stops at about 12 canyon overlooks. Each stop requires a short hike out the the overlook which is usually about 1/4 mile. We stopped at most of the overlooks, so we got our steps in today. The NPS does not allow dogs on the official hiking trails, but dogs are allowed to go to the overlooks. We had a picnic lunch at an overlook called Sunset View.

San Juan Mountains - Mount Abram

The drive from Durango to Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP took us through the San Juan Mountains. This was a beautiful drive through gigantic mountains. This photo of Mount Abram shows a peak close to 13,000 feet! We saw a moose on the road but I was unable to get a good photo…you will just have to believe me. We also drove through Silverton and Ouray which are two super cute old mining towns.

South Rim Visitors Center Overlook

The National Park Service does a great job of providing safe overlooks at the very edge of the canyon.

Gunnison River

The river that runs through the bottom of the canyon is the Gunnison. In most places, it is a straight drop from the rim down to the river. This photo shows a bit of a slope down to the water where they only allow a few people to hike down, and back up, each day.

Make it stand out

This sign attempts to demonstrate how deep this canyon is. The camera just can’t capture it. In many places the canyon is close to 3000 feet which is similar to the tallest building in the world. Awesome!