The Grand Canyon, Arizona - One of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World

There are places in the world visited annually by millions of people. There magnetic places bring history and culture together in an astonishing way, which talks all languages as it is universal for all men on a site unique for the Earth. The most mesmerizing places like the pyramids in Egypt or the Great Chinese Wall will always be an emblem of an ancient civilization that extinct but left traces for the next generation to follow back the history of human kind. Now, the Earth also left this kind of traces, were we can see how it was formed and trace back the origin of its breathtaking beauty. One of these traces (a huge one) is the Grand Canyon.

Five million people visit annually the Canyon, which is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. It is included in the Grand Canyon National Park, which covers 1,217,262 acres in the state of Arizona, the United States. The Grand Canyon is like an opened book in geology revealing 2 million billion years of Earth's history. It is one of the most interesting places for geologists around the world. The latest study shows that the canyon's origin begins 17 million years ago, much more than the previous studies.

Carved by the Colorado River the canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long, 18 miles (29 km) wide and has a maximum depth of over a mile (6,000 feet / 1,800 metres). It received National Park status in1919 as one of the main proponents was the U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, who visited the canyon for the first time in 1903.

The region was inhabited for thousands of years by Native Americans, while the first European to explore the canyon was the Spanish conquistador,, Garc°a L°pez de C°rdenas in 1540. The river was explored months earlier by the Spanish navigator Hernando de Alarc°n, who is known for his "Narrative of the Coronado Expedition”, where he described his contacts with Yuma-speaking Indians met along the Colorado, as well as their culture and habits.

The Grand Canyon was considered a sacred place by the Pueblo people, who were the first people to live in the area. Other Native Americans that used to live along Colorado were members of Ancestral Puebloan , Cohonina, Cerbat, Hopi, Zuni, Navajo, and more. 12,000 years old artifacts were found in the canyon as the American exploration of the area began in 1826.

Today the Canyon is one of the most visited sites in Northern America and in the entire world. Its majestic vastness offering spectacular vistas bring people from all over the world on the South Rim and on the North Rim. There are also many activities that attract tourists. Rafting, hiking and running are among the most popular activities. There is a big marathon organized on the Grand Canyon called Grand Canyon Ultra Marathon. It is 24-hour marathon and runs on a 78-mile (126 km) race. Hiking on the rims is quite risky and many people are rescued by park officials annually. Camping below the rims is allowed with a permit.

Recently ne of the major attractions is The Grand Canyon Skywalk, a transparent cantilever bridge, owned by the Hualapai Indian tribe and built for $31 million. It is located at the South Rim 24 miles (39 km) west of the village of Grand Canyon.
In 1979, UNESCO declared Grand Canyon National Park it as a World Heritage Site.