A canyon so deep and narrow the bottom barely sees the sun.
Photo: Terry Foote · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons
Some canyons are wide and sunny; the Black Canyon of the Gunnison is the opposite — a sheer, dizzying slot so narrow and so deep that the walls stay in shadow through most of the day. That gloom is where the name comes from. The Gunnison River carved it through some of the hardest, oldest rock in North America, dropping at a ferocious rate, and the result is a chasm of dark, near-vertical walls falling as much as 2,722 feet — including the Painted Wall, Colorado's tallest cliff at 2,250 feet, streaked with pale veins of pegmatite.
You experience it mostly from the rim. The South Rim Road strings together a series of overlooks where you step to a railing and the earth simply drops away — Gunnison Point, Chasm View, the Painted Wall, Dragon Point — each a gut-check view into the gorge. The inner canyon is true wilderness, reached only by steep, unmaintained routes for experienced hikers on a permit; to stand by the river without that effort, the steep East Portal Road switchbacks down to the water.
The South Rim near Montrose is the main, accessible side, open year-round to the visitor center (the rim road beyond closes roughly November to April); the North Rim is a remote, partly-gravel drive around with no bridge connecting them. It has been a certified International Dark Sky Park since 2015, and it sits right on the route between Montrose and the San Juan Mountains. The July 2025 South Rim Fire burned a good part of the developed side: all three park roads and all twelve South Rim overlooks are open again, but the Rim Rock and Uplands trails cross heavily burned ground and the campground is running at reduced capacity.
Black Canyon is a small park with one genuinely serious road in it. The South Rim drive is easy — twelve overlooks along a seven-mile rim road — but East Portal drops five miles to the river at a sixteen percent grade with a hard 22-foot vehicle limit, and it is the piece of driving people remember. The 2025 South Rim Fire closed a lot of this park; all three roads and all twelve overlooks are open again.
Six miles east out of Montrose on US-50, then seven miles climbing north on CO-347 — fourteen miles all told, about 25 minutes. The South Rim is the developed side and the only part of the park open year-round, so unless you have a specific reason this is the one you want.
The highway carries on east past Curecanti and the Blue Mesa Reservoir, about 65 miles from Montrose to Gunnison. A good drive in its own right and the way through if you are crossing Colorado rather than visiting the canyon.
Eleven miles south-west of Crawford, the last seven of them unpaved, and closed to vehicles in winter. It faces the deepest, sheerest part of the canyon and it gets a fraction of the visitors, which is the entire appeal.
The rim drive, from Tomichi Point out to High Point, with short walks to each viewpoint and the canyon dropping away 2,000 feet and more a few steps from the car. It is a small road and an easy one, and the reason a first visit here takes an afternoon rather than a day.
TipThe overlooks face different directions and the canyon is so narrow and deep that light reaches the bottom for only part of the day. Mid-morning to early afternoon is when you actually see the river.
Closed in winter, typically November through April
The only road to the river from inside the park, and the reason to check what you are driving before you arrive. Twenty-two feet is the hard limit and it includes trailers, so anything longer has to stay up top. It was shut after the 2025 South Rim Fire along with much of the park and is open again — expect burned ground either side of the road for a few years yet.
TipSort the trailer out before you start down; there is nowhere to turn round once you have committed. Low gear both ways so you are not riding the brakes, and allow one to two hours for the round trip.
A rough rim road on the far side, reached from Crawford rather than from the South Rim — there is no crossing inside the park. The overlooks here sit directly above the sheerest walls, including the far side of the Painted Wall.
TipGetting between the two rims is a couple of hours by road. Pick one for the day rather than trying to do both.
The marquee stop — Colorado's tallest cliff at 2,250 feet (taller than the Empire State Building), the near-black rock streaked with pale pink pegmatite dikes.
Insider tipLight is best mid-to-late morning, when the dikes pop against the dark wall. It's a short walk from the pull-off.
Plan a trip to this spot →The closest overlook to the South Rim Visitor Center — the quickest 'first wow,' with a sheer plunge straight to the river.
Insider tipPair it with the visitor center exhibits before driving the rest of the rim road. Good for those short on time or mobility.
Plan a trip to this spot →The narrowest place in the park — 1,100 feet rim to rim — and the stretch where the Gunnison falls hardest, dropping 240 feet in a single mile.
Insider tipLook across for climbers on the walls, though the big routes close for nesting raptors from mid-March to mid-July. Not for anyone uneasy with sheer exposure.
Plan a trip to this spot →One of the best frontal views of the Painted Wall and a classic composition of the canyon's curve.
Insider tipA strong sunset spot, when the low sun rakes across the canyon walls.
Plan a trip to this spot →A short interpretive trail from High Point, the last overlook on the rim road, out to the westernmost viewpoint in the park — canyon below, the West Elk Mountains north, the San Juans south.
Insider tip0.8 miles each way, and you climb back out on the return. The best end-of-drive payoff. Bring water; it's exposed at 8,000-plus feet.
Plan a trip to this spot →River level, inside the canyon, with the walls going straight up overhead — a different park entirely from the one you see at the rim. Crystal Dam is here, and so is the east end of the Gunnison Tunnel, the 5.8-mile irrigation bore that President Taft came out to dedicate in 1909.
Insider tipThe only way down is the East Portal Road, and nothing over 22 feet is allowed on it, trailers included. Allow one to two hours for the round trip; the road closes November to April.
Plan a trip to this spot →High and dry. The weather station down in Montrose (~5,800 ft) gives the regional picture — warm summers, cold snowy winters, and a late-summer monsoon — but the South Rim sits at about 8,000 feet and runs roughly 8–12°F cooler with more snow, which is why the rim road beyond the visitor center closes in winter. The canyon floor, by contrast, tracks closer to the warmer Montrose readings.
The South Rim is the main, accessible side; the North Rim is a remote drive around with no bridge between them.
Fourteen miles from Montrose, about 25 minutes — the visitor center and the 7-mile string of twelve overlooks. The side virtually all visitors use.
Eleven miles south-west of Crawford, the last seven unpaved, with quieter overlooks and a 13-site first-come campground. No road connects it to the South Rim — it's a 2–3-hour drive around.
No lodging in the park — three small campgrounds, one on each rim and one at river level, plus the gateway towns.
The main in-park campground near the visitor center. The 2025 South Rim Fire cut it back hard: 25 of its 88 sites reopened for 2026, all non-electric, $20 a night, and reservations on Recreation.gov are required for the 18 May to 30 September season.
Booking tipBook early — a quarter of the sites and a fixed season means it fills. The park is cashless, so pay online.
The remote North Rim campground has 13 first-come sites; East Portal has 15 at river level, reached by the steep East Portal Road with its 22-foot limit and winter closure. Both are $20 and pay-by-app.
Booking tipDownload the Recreation.gov app before you arrive — there is next to no cell service at either one.
Montrose (the largest, 14 miles from the South Rim) plus Crawford (nearest the North Rim) and Gunnison (65 miles east on US-50) cover hotels and supplies.
Booking tipMontrose is the practical base for a South Rim visit.
What does it cost?
$30 per vehicle (good for 7 days), $25 motorcycle, $15 per person on foot or bike, under 16 free; a Black Canyon annual pass is $55 and the $80 America the Beautiful pass works. The entrance station and the campgrounds are cashless, and there's no timed entry.
When should I go, and does the road close in winter?
May through October is peak, with the full South Rim Road open. Roughly November to April the rim road closes beyond the visitor center (the area stays open for snowshoeing), and the North Rim and East Portal roads close entirely. The visitor center itself stays open all year except Christmas and New Year's Day.
Can I hike to the bottom?
Only experienced hikers should. The inner canyon is wilderness with no maintained trails — the descent 'routes' are unmarked, very steep scrambles on loose rock, and every one of them needs a permit, day trips included. On the South Rim between 1 May and 31 October the Warner, Gunnison and Tomichi routes must be reserved in advance on Recreation.gov, and each has a small daily quota. Off-season on the South Rim, and year-round on the North Rim, permits are free and first-come at the visitor center or a self-registration kiosk. To reach the river by car instead, take the East Portal Road.
Why is it called the Black Canyon, and how deep is it?
Because so little sunlight ever reaches the bottom — the walls are steep enough and close enough together to keep the gorge in shadow most of the day. It's 2,722 feet deep at Warner Point, as little as 1,100 feet across at the rim, and pinches to 40 feet at the river in a stretch called The Narrows. The Painted Wall, at 2,250 feet, is the tallest cliff in Colorado.
North Rim or South Rim?
The South Rim, off US-50 near Montrose, is the main, accessible, year-round side. The North Rim is remote, partly gravel, first-come, and winter-closed — a quieter experience for those willing to drive the long way around.
Is it good for stargazing?
Excellent — certified as an International Dark Sky Park in 2015, with rangers and the local astronomical society running telescope nights and constellation tours in season.
Pick your vehicle, line up the stops on the way in and out, and carry the whole route in your pocket.
