Black Canyon of the Gunnison

National Park · Colorado

Park Stats

Area32,950 acres

Depthup to 829 m

Established1999

DEMUSGS 3DEP 10m

Notable Features

Painted Wall2,560 m
Warner Point2,665 m
Chasm View (N rim)2,488 m
Gunnison River1,720 m

Layer

Colored Hillshade

Elevation

Hillshade

Opacity 100%

About

The Gunnison River drops 11 m per km through this canyon — one of the steepest mainstem rivers in North America. Walls are 1.7-billion-year-old Precambrian gneiss and schist, banded with lighter pegmatite intrusions. The canyon is "black" because it's so deep and narrow that direct sunlight only hits the bottom briefly each day. Painted Wall at 700 m is the tallest cliff in Colorado.

10 m colormap + 10 m hillshade NW @ 45° · sources at /data