Day 7 – Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park-South

Day 7 – 5/19/2021 – Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park-South

This morning our drive takes us along route 50 to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park south entrance.  Leaving early, we get a good clear view of the San Juan Mountains that we passed through yesterday, only today it is clear.  Many of these mountains are over 14,000 feet high.  The extra snow from yesterday makes the peaks shine in the sunlight.  Seeing the snow and not for the first time, we see a sign indicating a chain up area for trucks. 

Almost at the South Rim Visitor Center and stopping at Tomichi Point, we look south and begin to see some of the canyon. 

While walking out to the viewpoint, we catch a glimpse of a bird that perched on top of a bush.  I do not know what the bird is and have not seen a bird of this coloring in any of the information on the park.  Our guess is that it is an American Dipper.

What a view!  Part of the formation, which by the way is nearly a half-mile away, the fin-like formations created by molten rock seeping into fissures and the resistance to weathering creates the view we see here. 

Looking up the canyon, you can clearly see how steep the walls are.  Notice the light lines in the far wall.  These are the lines created by the molten rock mentioned earlier.

Again, we can see the lines in the canyon walls.  We were on that side of the canyon yesterday looking towards this side of the canyon. 

There are some flowers near where we parked the car and decided to get pictures.  I’m not sure the flower name, but I think it is a Fivenerve Sunflower, anyway that is my guess.

Moving on to Pulpit Rock Overlook, we can see how the river has shaped the canyon.  Look at how steep the left side of the canyon is.  

After getting back to the car, we are at Cross Fissures Overlook and find this flowering bush.  Carmen and I think it looks like apple blossoms, but we know that this is not an apple tree. 

At the canyon edge, I catch Carmen taking pictures of the spires and river below. 

We are kind of surprised that we see lupines, I think these are called Silvery Lupine or maybe Texas bluebonnet.  Either case they are all of the lupine family and I like lupines, so they are in the blog.

Back to the canyon, we can see where the spire on the wall across the canyon is breaking away from the wall.  Maybe it will fall in about a thousand years.

We have seen many Juniper and pine trees in the area.  I am not certain, but I think these are pinion pine tree pinecones.  The harvested seed is eaten as pine nuts.

Another bird landed on a tree right in front of us and stayed in one place long enough for us to get a picture.  Mind you, we do not know what the bird is, so your guess is as good as ours.  But, our guess is that it is a Swainson's Thrush, a Sage Thrasher, or a Brown Thrasher, or some other bird.

On the opposite wall of the canyon, from where we are standing, is a cleft in the rock.  You can clearly see the break and more of the canyon beyond the break.  To give you a size of scale, the break is at least 800 feet top to bottom.

Continuing to walk along the canyon edge taking pictures of the rock I come across another group of lupine. 

On to the next viewpoint, we come to Devil’s Overlook.  Carmen is walking in front of me and a rabbit runs across the path between us.  I stalk it but lose sight of the rabbit, then when I moved up the path a little I looked back and there it was in the path. 

At the edge, we again see the wonders of the canyon.  What I find fascinating are how the trees grow right out of the rock wall.  How the rock weathers to create spires and columns is also interesting.

Can you believe it; we are hearing a bird singing and finally find it on the top of this tree.  We think it is a robin by the colors, but not sure.

As we are walking back to the car, I see this flower just off the path.  After taking the picture I realized I don’t know what kind of flower it is; so it is either a Gilia, Rockcress, or maybe Buckwheat, take your pick.

Now at Chasm Viewpoint, do you feel uneasy looking down into the canyon?  The river is about 2500 feet below our feet, disappearing around the next turn.  A Geo marker puts our viewpoint at about 7713 feet above sea level, about because the marker is worn and part of the number obscured.

Painted Wall Overlook gives us a fantastic look at the Pegmatite Dikes.  These are where molten rock filled fissures in the canyon’s dark rock.  As the molten rock cooled, it formed the light-colored rock we see now.  This panorama shows how this viewpoint gets its name.

The river, clearly seen at the bottom of the canyon, is 2300 feet deep and The Empire State Building would only stand a slightly over half way to the top of the cliff.  The patterns in the rock wall were created over a billion years ago, so the river has had many years to erode the canyon to its current depth.

At Cedar Point there is another great view of the canyon.  The river winds along the bottom back and forth before disappearing around the last bend.  This view is stunning.

Moving on to the next viewpoint, Dragon Point, we see more of the Juniper Trees that adorn the area.  Many, like this tree are short and twisted, making them interesting to look at. 

On the way to the canyon edge, we met a family and took their picture at this Juniper Tree.  Afterwards, we had them take our picture.  The tree had a twist that made a great seat for Carmen and me to sit for our picture.

At the canyon edge at Dragon Point we continue to see the river as it winds its way out of the canyon.  I take a picture of Carmen taking a picture of this end of the canyon. 

Passing the juniper tree where we took our picture, I take another without anyone sitting on it. 

On the way back to the car, for the drive to the next viewpoint, I get another picture of some of the flowers along the trail. 

We are at the last viewpoint, High Point and Warner Point Trail and stop for a look.  It is a 1.4-mile hike, so Carmen stays in the car while I go check it out.  I do not go all the way, only to where I have a view of the valley below.  You can definitely see how high we are in elevation.

Having stopped at the last viewpoint, we make our way back to the hotel.  As we head out of the park, we can again see the San Juan mountains in the distance. 

Nearing Montrose, we pass by the Museum of the Mountain West.  Not sure if it is opened or not, but we are tired and decide to skip the museum.  It has buildings made to look like those that might have been in the area in the early to mid 1800’s. 

Tomorrow we are on our way to Canon City and the Royal Gorge.  I understand that route 50 is under construction and the road is closed.  After some checking, the road opens from 6:00AM-8:00AM, so we will be up early and on our way by at least 6:30AM.