This natural-color image of Hells Canyon was captured by NASA’s Landsat-7 satellite on September 19, 2002. The image shows the northern part of the canyon, where the Imnaha River joins the Snake River.
he largest tributary of the Colorado River between Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon, the Paria River flows southeast from its headwaters in southernmost Utah to join the Colorado River between Page, Arizona, and Marble Canyon. The Paria River provides spectacular scenery, and is known for the very narrow “slot” canyons that it cuts through the layered rocks of the Colorado Plateau.
The Green River in eastern Utah once carved soft sediment into meanders on a floodplain. Then the land and mountains rose and the river dug deep, preserving those meanders in stone.
The Salmon River in Idaho, one of the longest free-flowing rivers in the United States, rushes through a geologic wonderland of wooded ridges, eroded bluffs, and stone towers and crags.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is a small park that encompasses the steep-walled canyons of the Gunnison River, which drains snowmelt from the Rocky Mountains in western Colorado.
Grand Canyon National Park spans 277 river miles and often stretches 10 miles wide. But the true wonder arises from its depth...or height, depending on where you stand.