From our base at Grand Junction CO, we drove south to the north rim of Black Canyon of the Gunnison. As with the north rim of the Grand Canyon, the north rim of Gunnison is much less visited and so, by our estimation, more attractive a destination. It did not disappoint.
Some of the trip is on well maintained dirt roads. We took the short drive along the rim and a few short walks to the canyon edge and marveled at the spectacular vista before us. Black Canyon is steep, high, and narrow. It's called the "black canyon" because its steepness makes it difficult for sunlight to penetrate into its depths. As a result, the canyon is often shrouded in shadow, causing the rocky walls to appear black.
At overlooks, the barriers at the edge of the canyon are a little more than thigh high. While they are sturdy and safe, you can get the feeling that you're going to blow right off the edge. Drop offs just behind the barriers are sheer and very deep. In some of my photos you'll see Ray standing well back from the barrier. He has a pretty developed fear of heights.
After checking out the rim drive, we hiked to exclamation point, a walk that takes you through some scrub and treed areas to a final view that makes the walk worthwhile, straight up the canyon.
When we got back to the RV late in the afternoon, we discovered that we had inadvertently picked up a hitchhiker, probably in Missouri. A mouse has joined us for the ride! We will be stopping at Walmart on our way out this morning to get some traps to end his journey with us--permanently.
Tomorrow we head to Capitol Reef in Utah.
Photos of the day here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/LgV9taAk5Y3yjVZS8
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