Copper Canyon

400 years ago, Spanish warriors invaded Central and Southern American in search of gold and other precious metals. After fighting off a few natives, and finding no gold or diamonds or fountain of youth, you can imagine their surprise at finding this:



This is a rock from what's now called the "barranca del cobre" or copper canyon. The Spanish conquistadores saw the green and orange moss on the rocks, lots of rocks, mainly from far away (because, honestly, getting up close and personal was a little difficult using only their feet and a donkey). They assumed that the rocks throughout the canyon were holding hidden reserves of copper. Not gold, not even silver, but copper. So they were pretty excited.



Today, thanks to engineers who made it easier to travel to and through the canyon, and to geologists who researched the area, we know much more about the "copper" canyon. It is really a series of 6 canyons, formed by 6 different rivers, hidden within the Western Tarahumara/ Raramuri mountain range. The overall system is at least 4 times larger than the "Grand" canyon in Arizona, and is definitely deeper than the Grand Canyon in multiple areas.

This is us standing in front of a large canyon. It is absolutely beautiful, and pictures do not do it justice.

for more copper canyon pics, check out our picture site at www.dropshots.com/DavidAnderson