The Grandest Canyons in America
Grand Canyon in Arizona is one of the seven natural wonders of the world. It stands out as the grandest canyon on the planet, not just the United States. Yet the US has many outstanding canyons, valleys, gorges, and gulches. So which are the grandest canyons in America?
We set out to find the best of the rest. By evaluating their size (including depth and length), scenic value, what we consider the “wow factor,” and even accessibility for seeing them in the wild, we were able to find a large quantity of canyons that should be considered for this list. Then we narrowed it down to those that stand out above the rest.
Goosenecks State Park on San Juan River Canyon
Below is a list of the 25 canyons that we consider the grandest in America. These are not necessarily in the order of most grand to least grand, but some of largest and deepest canyons are listed near the top. Each one has a link to a topographic map and satellite images. Note that several of these canyons were more impressive before they became reservoirs, but they are still grand today.
Looking up in Kings Canyon National Park
Here are the greatest canyons in the US
- The Grand Canyon (National Park – Colorado River), Arizona
- Hells Canyon (National Recreation Area – Snake River), Idaho & Oregon
- Black Canyon of the Gunnison (National Park – Gunnison River), Colorado
- Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone (National Park – Yellowstone River), Wyoming
- Salmon River Valley (National Wild & Scenic River), Idaho
- Canyonlands (National Park – Colorado & Green Rivers), Utah
- Pine Creek Gorge (Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania), Pennsylvania
- Grand Gulch (Bears Ears National Monument), Utah
- Paria Canyon & Buckskin Gulch (Wilderness), Arizona & Utah
- Rio Grande Gorge (National Wild & Scenic River), New Mexico
- Flaming Gorge (National Recreation Area – Green River), Utah & Wyoming
- Kings Canyon (National Park – Kings River), California
- New River Gorge (National River), West Virginia
- Glen Canyon (National Recreation Area – Colorado River), Utah
- Waimea Canyon (State Parks – Waimea River), Kauai, Hawaii
- Black Canyon (Lake Mead National Recreation Area – Colorado River), Arizona & Nevada
- Linville Gorge (Wilderness – Linville River), North Carolina
- Dark Canyon (Bears Ears National Monument), Utah
- Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne (Yosemite National Park – Tuolumne River), California
- Buffalo River Gorge (National River), Arkansas
- San Juan River Valley (Glen Canyon NRA, Bears Ears NM), Utah
- Badlands (National Park), South Dakota
- Palo Duro Canyon (State Park – Red River), Texas
- Bryce Canyon (National Park), Utah
- Little Colorado River Gorge (Navajo Nation), Arizona