This under the radar National Park is highly worth visiting. Visitors can access the park and its rim drives and hiking trails from either the north rim or the south rim. The canyon features some of the steepest walls we have ever seen – it is not the deepest canyon we have visited (that would be Colca Canyon in Peru) but for sheer wow factor, this one is hard to beat. Located in the western part of the state, to access the north rim, one drives through the small communities of Hotchkiss and Crawford eventually reaching very little traveled roads before the gravel/dirt road leading to the ranger station.
One can visit the park simply by doing the north rim drive – a road that winds along the edge of the canyon providing numerous pull out spots for short walks to the edge of the canyon. But one should also do some longer hikes – one such hike we highly recommend is the North Vista Trail. It starts next to the bathrooms near the ranger station on the North Rim. An easy meandering hike of perhaps 1.5 miles round trip – this trail offers some of the most spectacular views of the rim bringing hikers right next to the steep cliffs. A small campground is also located near the ranger station.
Visitors will easily understand why this National Park has gotten its name – the rock walls are nearly 2 billion years old, much of these are shrouded in shadows creating a dark look to the terrain. Great rock climbing opportunities and fishing in parts of the park. There is no bridge connecting both rims – and driving between the north and the south rim can take as much as 3 hours due to the road having to go around the canyon and then back up the other side.
For more information, visit: www.nps.gov/blca/index.htm
Ah, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison—a hidden gem within the pantheon of national parks. This under-the-radar destination offers visitors access from both the north and south rims, each presenting unique perspectives of the canyon’s grandeur. The North Vista Trail, a gentle 1.5-mile round trip, brings hikers perilously close to the canyon’s sheer cliffs, offering unparalleled vistas. The park’s nearly 2-billion-year-old rock walls, perpetually cloaked in shadow, exude an enigmatic allure that rivals even the depths of Peru’s Colca Canyon.