Travel Stories: Grand Canyon
The John Wesley Powell Grand Canyon Expedition
IMAGINE THIS: The Grand Canyon expedition led by John Wesley Powell remains one of the most remarkable adventures in American history. In 1869, Powell and his team began exploring the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. Along the way, they faced unknown dangers. Their journey helped reveal one of the world’s greatest natural wonders.
Rushing streams over millions of years have carved these steep canyons and stone towers that will mesmerize you.
Powell was a Civil War hero who lost most of his right arm at the Battle of Shiloh. He went on to be a pioneer who led a successful boat expedition through the roaring Colorado River in the Grand Canyon.
Today, the raft journey through the Grand Canyon is one of the West’s great white-water thrills. It’s hard to imagine just how daunting the trip must have been in 1869, when the pioneers first decided to attempt it. Back then, the canyon was considered to be a desolate place and was utterly unexplored. It existed on maps only as a blank spot in the southwest.The Grand Canyon has a human history stretching back more than 10,000 years. Evidence suggests Native American communities have lived in the region for at least 4,000 years.
As John Wesley Powell famously observed:
“You cannot see the Grand Canyon in one view, as if it were a changeless spectacle from which a curtain might be lifted. To truly see it, you must toil from month to month through its labyrinths.”
John Wesley Powell Grand Canyon Expedition
John Wesley Powell Grand Canyon Expedition
The Challenges of Powell’s Colorado River Journey who had lost his right arm as an officer during the Civil War. Despite this handicap, he got together nine men, mostly his own friends and relatives. They transported four wooden boats to Green River in Wyoming. Waving goodbye to a few well-wishers by the riverbank, they set off to face 1,000 miles of unknown river. The challenge was extreme. The intrepid group had to learn how to ride the rapids as they went, with their clumsy boats regularly overturning. They subsisted on a diet of dry biscuits for much of the time. Three men became so discouraged they decided to hike out through the desert. No-one ever heard from again, and presumed that Indians killed them.
But Powell and the others would emerge unscathed at the southern end of the Grand Canyon, three months after their trip had begun. Powell became a national celebrity, as famous in the United States as Neil Armstrong would become after walking on the moon – a feat that occurred, coincidentally, exactly a century later. Running the treacherous Colorado River and conquering Grand Canyon would be just one of the many historic firsts for this explorer!
How Powell’s Exploration Changed American History
Powell’s immersive descriptions brought to the world the phenomenon that was the Grand Canyon. His thrilling adventure was widely publicized around the country and the world. He shared some of the most spectacular images of this beautiful place, making it a photographer’s delight. Grand Canyon suddenly became viewed as a world-class natural wonder, a place to be visited rather than avoided. And it carries that attraction to this day!
When you travel with Cosmos, you get to explore the captivating Canyonlands and experience spellbinding landscapes on an unforgettable National Parks tour! Start and end in Las Vegas, and overnight along the way inside Grand Canyon National Park; near Monument Valley in Kayenta; near Lake Powell in Page; Bryce Canyon National Park; and St. George, the most important Mormon community in southern Utah. Know more.
About The Author
