Grand Canyon Find Out More About The Grand Canyon

  1. The Grand Canyon is one of the seven natural wonders of the world
  2. It is 277 miles long and, at its widest, 18 miles across.
  3. At its narrowest point, the canyon is around 550 metres across
  4. It is NOT the deepest or longest canyon in the world. The Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon in Tibet plummets to a depth of 17,567 feet, making it more than 2-miles deeper than the Grand. The Tibetan canyon is also about 30 miles longer than the USA’s Grand Canyon.
  5. An expedition in 1871 led by John Wesley Powell lead to the first reliable maps of the Colorado River being created. Powell is also responsible for coining the name we use today – the Grand Canyon
  6. The Grand Canyon National Park was established in 1919
  7. The Gran Canyon is host to a vast array of wildlife. 373 species of bird call the Grand Canyon home along with 91 different mammals and 58 species of amphibians and reptiles
  8. Three threatened species survive in the Grand Canyon. The Mexican Spotted Owl, The Yellow-Billed Cuckoo and The Desert Tortoise.
  9. There are thought to be around 1,000 caves in the canyon, but only 335 have been recorded. Only one of these caves is open to the public – the Cave of the Domes on Horseshoe Mesa.
  10. The Grand Canyon National Park is home to six species of rattlesnakes including the Grand Canyon Pink Rattlesnake. The most common of the rattlesnakes in the park, the snake’s striking pink colour allows it to blend in seamlessly with the canyon’s rocks.
  11. Official records state that there has only ever been one fatal snake bite in the history of canyon.