Where in America Are You?
By Randy Karr

These rocks, rock. Finally, a place of spectacular steep-walled, red rock canyons that is virtually unknown to most people, yet easily accessible. Spanning before you are awe-inspiring vistas of sandstone sculptures, formed by nature’s artistry. From high atop the Uncompahgre Plateau, you watch the isolated monoliths, dramatically change color as the sun sets or take on captivating new shapes as you stroll along the rim. Over the years, people found inspiration in the sandstone figures and christened them with names like Praying Hands, Pipe Organ, and Kissing Couple, which you see in front of you. In 1911, the canyons were proclaimed a National Monument by President William Taft, but only after a recluse, who lived in the canyons during the early 1900s, single-handedly waged a one-man, letter-writing campaign to protect the area. The newly established park was named, not after the state, but after a nearby river that rises in the Rocky Mountains and flows through a valley located below the mouth of the canyon. Here, in the Grand Valley, a frontier town prospered and eventually became known as Grand Junction due to its location at the confluence of the Colorado and Gunnison Rivers.

The park’s Rim Rock Drive, which was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps, offers panoramic views of Independence Monument, an isolated 450-foot tower of sandstone, that today hosts nesting peregrine falcons. Where in America are you, anyway? Name this arid parkland where sandstone monoliths rise from the canyon floor like skyscrapers.

Copyright © 2005 Randy Karr
Answer hidden in this issue.

Answer to "Where in The World Are You?" from page 1:

Colorado National Monument