The Sheer Cliffs and Painted Walls of Black Canyon of the Gunnison

I was supposed to go to San Diego last week. The trip had been planned months ago, but several last minute dropouts, a hail damaged car, and a broken cell phone later, the trip was cancelled. I found myself with a week off of work and nothing to fill it with. So I called my mom. My mom is always down for a spontaneous adventure, and, being a teacher, is generally free during the summer to take off on a whim. I want to go somewhere new, I told her. Somewhere I haven't been before.

So, instead of a beach, I found myself on the north rim of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison.

The Black Canyon is only about five hours outside of Denver, yet in all my time living in Colorado I'd never been there. Neither had my mom. In fact, neither of us really knew anything about it except that it was there. I wasn't expecting too much. My mom and I have made a few trips to the Grand Canyon--it's one of our favorite places on earth. So compared with that I didn't have high expectations for Black Canyon, especially since I'd not even heard much about it before.

The dirt road to the north rim was surrounded by short, shrubby bushes and trees and not much else to look at. It was hot as all heck that day, and we were starting to get nervous, telling ourselves that if there wasn't enough shade we could always turn back and find somewhere else to camp.

And then a huge crack yawned open in the ground ahead of us.

We spent two nights camping on the north rim. The campground on that side is very small and quiet and only a short walk from some of the most spectacular views from the rim. Black Canyon may not be anywhere near the size of the Grand Canyon, but it's sheer cliffs and painted walls make it breathtaking in its very own way.

We spent a lot of time exploring along the rim, taking photos, and drawing the scenery. Here are some of the photos from the trip. Enjoy!

I'd definitely recommend Black Canyon of the Gunnison to anyone looking for places to visit in Colorado. I, personally, can't wait for my next trip.

Thanks for reading,
Shelby