Montrose, Colorado
As we were driving down US-50 from Crested Butte to Telluride, the National Park arrowhead symbol came into our view from the side of the highway. We quickly realized we were passing Montrose, Colorado, home of The Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Naturally, we opted for the detour.
We enjoyed an hour or so at this lesser known, smaller National Park. It was HOT in the gorge and we chose not to go hiking in the 100 degree heat.
We walked around the closer viewing points, marveled at the canyons and tried (and failed) to spot the infamous Dusky Grouse, a bird native to the Gunnison.
1.8 billion years ago, volcanos blasted ash into what became the bed of The Black Canyon. Over time, pressure and heat transformed the bed into metomorphic gneiss and schist (it’s ok, we didn’t know these words before either) and the Gunnison River carved the rocks into the canyons they represent today.
