Follow the mighty Colorado River as it relentlessly sculpts the Grand Canyon, exploring its journey, its power, and its enduring influence on the landscape and life within.
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The River That Built Everything
This series, Colorado River: Lifeline of the Canyon, traces the story of the single force most responsible for carving one of Earth's deepest gorges.
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1
Six Million Years of Cutting Stone
The Colorado River drops roughly 2,200 feet in elevation as it passes through the canyon, and that gradient is the engine behind everything you see.
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2
A River That Refused to Move
The Colorado Plateau has risen roughly two miles over the past seventy million years, and the Colorado River simply refused to get out of the way.
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3
Green Ribbon Through Ancient Rock
Cottonwood trees along the Colorado's banks can drink up to seventy gallons of water a day, creating a lush canopy in a landscape that receives less than ten inches of…
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4
Glen Canyon Dam Changed Everything Downstream
Before 1963, spring floods on the Colorado River could reach over 120,000 cubic feet per second, scouring beaches and redistributing millions of tons of sediment through…
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5
Running the Grand Canyon by River
A full river trip through the Grand Canyon covers 277 miles and takes most parties between twelve and twenty-five days, making it one of the longest continuous…
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