Q 01/05

The Black Canyon was carved by which river?

A) The Gunnison

B) The Arkansas

C) The Green

D) The Animas

Answer · why

A) The Gunnison

The park holds the deepest 12 miles of the 48-mile gorge; the north rim, reached from Crawford, closes in winter.

Q 02/05

Why is the canyon called 'Black'?

A) Its rock is coal-bearing shale

B) Its walls are so steep that little sunlight reaches the bottom

C) A wildfire scorched the walls in the 1800s

D) The Ute name for it meant 'black water'

Answer · why

B) Its walls are so steep that little sunlight reaches the bottom

Parts of the gorge get only 33 minutes of sun a day, so the walls sit in shadow and look black.

Q 03/05

Per one park history, how many minutes of sunlight do the darkest parts of the gorge get each day?

A) 60

B) 90

C) 33

D) 180

Answer · why

C) 33

Author Duane Vandenbusche wrote that other western canyons are longer or deeper, 'but none combines the depth, sheerness, narrowness, darkness, and dr...

Q 04/05

How wide is the canyon at its narrowest point down at the river?

A) 100 feet

B) 150 feet

C) 300 feet

D) 40 feet

Answer · why

D) 40 feet

That spot is called The Narrows; at the rim the tightest gap is about 1,100 feet.

Q 05/05

What is the canyon's greatest depth, measured at Warner Point?

A) 3,100 feet

B) 2,722 feet

C) 4,100 feet

D) 6,000 feet

Answer · why

B) 2,722 feet

The Narrows is 1,725 feet deep; Hells Canyon in Idaho, North America's deepest, drops 8,043 feet.