Who Discovered The Grand Canyon

Who discovered the Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and there's no debate about that. The canyon's breathtaking sceneries never fail to mesmerize the millions of visitors who want to discover its gorges each year. Our gratitude to the first recognized person who discovered the Grand Canyon.

The Grand Canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long while width ranges from about 0.1 to 18 miles (0.2 to 29 km). Around six to five million years ago, when the continental drift began uplifting the whole Colorado Plateau, the Colorado River began its course over the region meandering in areas and creating tributary streams, and carving its away throughout forming what it looks like today. The power of erosion was enhanced as a cause of this elevation. The North Rim is more than 300 meters higher from the South Rim. In the deepest areas, the Grand Canyon has a depth measuring a mile or approximately 1.6 km.

However, long before any notable personality in history who discovered the Grand Canyon, the Native Americans were the first people who ever set foot on the canyon and built settlements around its mesas. In 1540, a Spanish conquistador named Garcia Lopez de Cardenas sighted the Grand Canyon, which spells the first recorded sighting of the great gorge. Cardenas' team went to explore for gold, which they thought laid on the bottom but exhaustion and scarcity of supplies made them leave the area.

The second notable person who discovered the Grand Canyon was Major John Wesley Powell, a member of the U.S. army, who lead a scientific expedition to the canyon in the 1860's. Powell, who discovered the Grand Canyon, found the prominence of sedimentary rocks in the canyon walls and referred to them as "leaves in a great story book". Scientists and researchers until today are still awed with the vivid exposure of rocks that represent the different geologic times.

Until today, any visitor who discovered the Grand Canyon will say that it looks far more beautiful than its pictures tell. Millions of rolls of films have been utilized to capture the best view of the canyon but nothing has ever given justice to its grandeur. To preserve its splendor, part of the Grand Canyon is considered a forest reserve since 1863 through the efforts of then U.S. President Benjamin Harrison. About one million acres of the entire canyon is home to Native Americans who continue to dwell and pursue their daily activities.

Aside from housing visitors, the Grand Canyon also serves as home of thousands of animals including endangered species that have sought refuge in this vast landscape.