Our next excursion took us to the beautiful Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, one of the most spectacular areas in Colorado. This canyon has been a barrier to humans from the time it was formed. Only its rim, never the gorge, show evidence of human occupation—not even by Ute Indians living in the area since written history began. There were some expeditions in the 1800’s but it was deemed inaccessible. The Gunnison River drops an average of 96 feet per mile in its 48 miles in the National Park. Some water from the river now is diverted to a dam used for irrigation here in the valley. Undammed, the river used to slam through this gorge in flood stage at 12,000 cubic feet per second with dramatic force scouring the riverbed and eroding canyon walls. At one point the gorge is 2,772 feet deep. It is an awesome site.