WSPC12452 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

. . e ., ~. l. 6 ,I ", _'_ J i tJ/ BLACK CANYON FACTS First designated as a National Monument (March 2, 1933), the Black Canyon currently is the Nation's newest National Park (October 21, 1999). The narrow opening, sheer walls, and startling depths of the canyon have lured explorers and sightseers to the area for over a century. The best know expedition trough the area was led by John W. Gunnison (1873~ 1874), who the river was later named after. While making it into the rim of the canyon, the expedition bypassed the gorge not daring enter the unknown canyon. The Gunnison Expedition ~as well as brave explorers before him deemed the canyon "inaccessible." It wasn't untill901 when two men set out through the canyon in search of a feasible place to build an irrigation tunnel that would supply water to the Uncompahgre Valley. The first successful navigation trip allowed for the construction of the Gunnison tunnel. The project started in 1905, thanks to the passing of the Reclamation act by Congress, the project became one ofthe first conducted by the Reclamation service, which later became the Bureau of Reclamation. The finished project of the tunnel was eleven feet high, twelve feet wide, and nearly six miles long. The tunnel still in use today, is one of the largest projects ever attempted. Acreage- as of September 23, 2000 ~ Federal Land-27,592.36 ~ Non-Federal Land- 112.78 ~ Gross Area Acres- 27,705.14 Visitation- Since 1996 ~ '96- 200,125 ~ '97- 209,863 ~ '98- 193,451 ~ '99- 200,142 ~ '00- 191,506 Average annual visitation since 1980: 259,601 Budget ~ FY 2000 Annual Budget: $715,000 ~ FY 1999 Annual Budget: $691,000 ~, FY 1998 Annual Budget: $663,000 Source http://www. nps.gov/blca/ 3