The Canyon is 120 miles long, as much as 20 miles wide, and has a maximum depth of more than 800 feet. Its elevation at the rim is 3,500 feet above sea level. It is often claimed that Palo Duro Canyon is the second largest canyon in the United States. The largest, the Grand Canyon, is 277 miles long, 18 miles wide, and 6,000 ft. deep.
Palo Duro Canyon was formed by water erosion from the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River. The water deepens the canyon by moving sediment downstream. Wind and water erosion gradually widen the canyon.
I did not get to the canyon until late in the afternoon, but did take time to go on a two hour hike. It is a beautiful canyon. The CCC camps in the 1930s built a road down into the canyon as well as several buildings and campgrounds. I did drive back up to the top and registered for a campsite. I just had to stay in the second largest canyon in the country.
View from the rim by the visitor's center...
Satin Spar veins were in the layers everywhere....
A helicopter flew right over my head as I was hiking....
Lighthouse Rock in the distance....
More satin spar....
Local residents....
My campsite...
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