Description

Cretaceous - Tertiary
The entire area underwent uplift during the Laramide orogeny between 70 and 40 million years ago which was also part of the Gunnison Uplift. This raised the Precambrian gneisses and schists that make up the canyon walls. During the Tertiary from 26 to 35 million years ago large episodes of volcanism occurred in the area immediately surrounding the present day Black Canyon. The West Elk Mountains, La Sal Mountains, Henry Mountains, and Abajo Mountains all contributed to burying the area in several thousand feet of volcanic ash and debris.

The modern Gunnison River set its course 15 million years ago as the run-off from the nearby La Sal and West Elk Mountains and the Sawatch Range began carving through the relatively soft volcanic deposits


Exif: F Number: 22, Exposure Bias Value: 0.00, ExposureTime: 1/13 seconds, Flash: did not fire., ISO: 100, White balance: Manual white balance, FocalLength: 18.00 mm, Model: NIKON D90