Grand
Canyon, great gorge(desfiladero)
of the Colorado River, one of the natural wonders(maravillas
naturales) of the world; c.1 mi
(1.6 km) deep(profundo) ,
from 4 to 18 mi (6.4–29 km) wide, and 217 mi (349 km) long, NW Ariz.
The canyon shows in its rocks the repeated geological sequence of
uplift(levantado) ,
erosion (due to the river's constant wearing(repetida,
agotadora) force), submergence(proceso
de inmersión) , and deposition of
materials.
The multicolored rocks, the steep(empinado)
and embayed(formando
huecos) rims(borde) ,
and the isolated(aisladas)
towers, mesas(mesetas) ,
“temples,” and other eroded(erosionadas)
rock forms catch the contrast of sun and shadow and glow(brilland)
with changing hues(matices
variables) of great beauty.
Plant life(plantas,
vida vegetal) on the canyon walls
varies from subtropical at the base(base)
to subarctic near the rims(bordes) .
Hundreds of ancient pueblos dot(pueblan,
salpican, "puntean") the lower
canyon walls(paredes
inferiores del cañón) and the
rim, and the Havasupai people still occupy(ocupa)
a part of the canyon.
The first European to see the canyon was the Spanish explorer García
López de Cárdenas in 1540. In 1869 the U.S. explorer John Wesley
Powell became(fue,
se convirtió) the first person to
lead a party(grupo)
through the canyon bottom(pie
del cañón) in a boat.
The Grand Canyon was set aside(considerado,
reservado) by the U.S. government
in 1908 as a national monument.
In 1919 an expanded area was designated Grand Canyon National Park.
(1,217,403 acres/492,876 hectares). The park was enlarged(ampliado)
in 1975 to include other areas, such as Marble Canyon(lit.
Cañón de Mármol) and parts of
Glen Canyon and Lake Mead. Along(a
lo largo de) the forested(cubierto
de bosque) northern rim and the
more accessible southern rim are numerous lookouts(miradores) ,
and trails wind(sendas
que serpentean) to the canyon
floor.
Raft(balsas)
and boat(barco,
bote) excursions along the
canyon's river bottom are popular. In 2000 the lands north of the
western portion of the canyon, an area almost the size of the park,
were designated Grand Canyon–Parashant National Monument. (1,014,000
acres/410,670 hectares). |
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