I love national parks (NP’s) and one of the most thrilling vacation choices I have made recently was to check out some not so popular parks. Yosemite, Rocky Mountain, and Yellowstone are all amazing and it’s no wonder everyone in the world wants to visit. But that does not mean there are no other cool places to go. I was lucky enough to check out one of these not so popular parks in Colorado, and I had a great adventure! Black Canyon of the Gunnison is out of the way, but worth the drive across the state. I visited last June of 2023.

I set up my tent in the East Portal Campground, and the sites were walk in only so it takes a little extra work to pack in your gear. I loved the intimate setting and enjoyed hanging out with some neighbors, and the river runs right next to the campground, with the cliffs hanging above. I took the same picture over and over again with different lighting each time.

Then I travelled up to the South Rim Visitor Center. I developed a plan to hike all the short hikes along the one road in the park and stop at all the pullovers all the way to the west along the canyon. The last stop is called Warner Point and there is a great trail that takes you to an amazing viewpoint.

This is high desert country and the surprise to me was the diversity of flowers that were bluming. They were an amazing contrast to the rock and sand.

The river runs far below and is accessible in this area only by an extremely difficult trail, but the fishing is obviously awesome, according to multiple folks I encountered, since so few reach this area.

As opposed to the Grand Canyon, this valley is much steeper and narrower, giving rise to rock that seems to just jut up straight out of the river bottom. The drop is over 2000 feet, and the distance rim to rim is only 1000 feet! The area is uplifted volcanic rock, mostly granite, pegmatite, gneiss, and schist, (The Gunnison Uplift) that was carved over 2 million years by fast moving snow melt from the surrounding mountains that had nowhere else to go.

I enjoyed all of the short hikes along the road above the canyon. At the end of the road, there is a nice picnic area with restrooms. Here, the final hike reached an awesome overlook with some of the best views of the day.

This is a special park with unique features and excellent staff who were very helpful in understanding the geology of the region. I was so happy I visited!

Helpful hints: you will be at 6000-8000 feet above sea level. Water is scarce. Stay hydrated, wear sun screen and a wide rimmed hat. Sturdy hiking boots are a must.