The Red Ravine: The Grand Canyon

There are many amazing places created and formed by nature that can be found all over the world. There are the tallest mountains, hidden valleys, huge forests. This blog's goal it to show off a couple of these great places that people can visit and find things to do at the National Parks usually surrounding these wonders.

Traveling further south from my previous post in Redwoods National Park, my journey takes you to the blazing deserts of Arizona and Grand Canyon National Park.

The Grand Canyon is a unique formation that makes the Redwoods seem like children compared to the Canyon's age. In comparison the Redwood trees are thousands of years old, while the canyon is 5 million years old. It is astonishing to think that this place has more history than humanity as a whole.

The Grand Canyon is too big to just say it is "large". The canyon is 6,000 feet deep, deep enough to stick three Empire State Buildings end to end all the way yo the bottom with a little room to spare. This monstrosity stretches 18 miles wide, and 277 miles long. It is not in a straight line though, it is jagged and twists all over the place. It is like a giant took a mile long serrated sword and carved it into the earth.

The National Park surrounding the canyon has many activities a family or group of friends can do to have a fun trip. There are trails all along the edge of the canyon, for groups to peer over the railings to see how far it goes. If you feel a bit more daring than the average person, there are places without railings going onto rock outcrops. It is a fun, but horrifying experience to sit on the edge of a cliff and swing your legs over the edge. Another popular pose is to have someone hold your shirt as you lean over the cliff. Bravery is just the feeling you get before you do something incredibly stupid.

If the edge is not enough, there are trails and tours going into the canyon. Horse trails, that take a group to the canyon floor to camp for a few days. If the luxury route is your style, there is a helicopter tour for the in air experience. Once down in the canyon, groups can hike, camp, do a river kayaking experience that lasts a week, take you pick.

My personal favorite part of my trip, was the starlight tour. Since the Grand Canyon is a national reserve, there is not a lot of artificial light in the area. The ranger service will take a group of people to a part of the canyon away from the visitors area to view the stars. It is a beautiful sight, because there is no air/ light pollution covering the bright lights. There are hundreds of stars visible in the night sky, something people can't get in the city.

Grand Canyon National Park is a great place to see something huge and unique, something not found in a backyard of local forest. It is a place to explore and find new things. Go to Grand Canyon National Park's Website to venture into a trip that you will never forget.