The Grand Canyon includes numerous side canyons created by erosion. It is through only one of these canyons we are able to journey to the bottom. Because many layers of rock were exposed during this process, the walls of the canyon consist of countless shades of brown, yellow, red and gray. As the sun moves across the sky the light changes making the vista transform dramatically over the course of the day. The rock levels represent a cross-section of the geological history of the earth with the stone at the Inner Gorge of the river being some of the oldest on the planet with an age of nearly two billion years. Grand Canyon hosts 6 of the 7 climatic zones with only Tropical missing. Departing from Williams we will travel through 5 levels arriving at the base of the Inner Gorge, the Colorado River, and to what appears to be another world. Some of the plants of the Lower Sonoran Life Zone can only be found at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

Because of the carving forces of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon, the river’s course tells the story of the earth’s formation and structure like few places on earth. We can learn much about the nature, culture, and history of the Grand Canyon by taking a closer look at this magnificent river.