grand-canyon | The Compass Rose Queen

Notes: For this post, NP = National Park, NM = National Monument, SP = State Park, NRA = National Recreation Area, and BLM = Bureau of Land Management. All photos were taken by me. I’ve been working on this article for months, and am saddened by the recent news in Grand Canyon National Park. My condolences to all who are affected by the wildfire destruction at the North Rim. Donating to the Grand Canyon Conservancy is one way to help. I’ll list the link at the bottom of this post. I’ve also been deeply saddened by many other things impacting people in the national and world news lately. Please join me in praying for these situations to get better and/or helping out in any way you can.

Recently I saw a photo of Grand Canyon NP, and it got my brain gears turning. I remembered having seen other gorges with the title “Grand Canyon” in them, such as the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone [River] in Yellowstone NP, or having Grand Canyon as a nickname, like Breaks Interstate Park, dubbed “the Grand Canyon of the South.” Could the U.S. national park one then be called “The Grand Canyon of the United States”? Or just the very literal “Grand Canyon of the Colorado River”? Or is “the Grand Canyon” enough to denote the big one in GCNP?

Being the information nerd that I am, I decided to look up Grand Canyons for every region and state in the USA as well as any I could find in other countries. Here’s a fun list of what I found. I’ll try to add photos for any that I’ve seen myself if I can find them in my old photo folders. Links to references and websites with multiple “grand canyon” locations will be listed at the end.

I had fun looking at canyons ranging from epically grand to small-but-scenic. Some are noteworthy for their width and others for their depth. Being from the state of Oregon with fairly dramatic topography thanks to volcanic activity, my definition of a canyon may be different than some people’s definition of a canyon. One time I was driving through Nebraska to visit family and came across a place called “Massacre Canyon.” While it had an interesting human history, I thought it was only a slight dip in the road compared to gorges we have back home. For many of the states, I could only find a “Little Grand Canyon” of some sort which resembled the scale and scenery of the many waterfall canyons we have here in Oregon. But I will happily let these states and regions lovingly nickname their local scenery as Grand Canyons, because, why not? Everyone needs one, evidently. You’ll notice that many of these are in national parks, state parks, preserves, and national geologic areas.

Cool fact: for Nebraska’s entry below (which is not the aforementioned canyon), I learned a bit of neat family history on my dad’s side! Also, for educational purposes, check out this description of the difference between a canyon and a gorge, although we use them somewhat interchangeably around here: https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-is-the-difference-between-a-canyon-and-a-gorge.html

Enjoy this list, and please comment about any you’ve been to or any you know of that I missed.

By U.S. regions, these are known as “The Grand Canyon of the…”:

Midwest: Turkey Run SP in Indiana – deep sandstone ravines carved by glacial action and later wind and water
North: Hull Rust Mahoning Mine in Minnesota (human made, so less interesting to me, but still looks pretty)
Pacific: Waimea Canyon, Waimea Canyon SP in Hawaii – formed by erosion as well as the collapse of the volcano that created the island, more than 10 miles long and 3,000 feet deep!
Northwest: the Columbia River Gorge on the border of Oregon & Washington, or Hells Canyon on the border of Oregon & Idaho. I’ve been to the Columbia Gorge many times to hike to the many waterfalls or gaze out from the Crown Point Vista House, and even went on a short river cruise with my husband Chris on our honeymoon. It is beautiful! Haven’t been to Hells Canyon yet, though. By some measurements, it’s the deepest gorge in the world. I’ll make it there someday.
East: Pine Creek Gorge in Pennsylvania or Letchworth SP in New York – explained more below.
West: Couldn’t find a definitive answer for this (or “Grand Canyon of the Rockies” online, but I’m voting for the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone in Wyoming. I loved seeing the canyon at Lower Falls even more than seeing the geysers! So big and beautiful. There are several other canyons in national parks that could vie for this title that will be mentioned in the U.S. States section below.
South: Providence Canyon SP, Georgia, or Breaks Interstate Park on the border of Kentucky & Virginia – I saw the latter with my ex-husband when we drove an hour or two from his parents’ house in Eastern Kentucky to see fall foliage there. The leaves hadn’t turned yet due to lack of rain, but I got a neat photo of a lady painting the lush green gorge. The ironic thing about this one is that it’s technically farther north than Grand Canyon NP!
Southwest: the Grand Canyon [of the Colorado River] in Arizona – I haven’t been to the national park side of it yet, but years ago I got to fly over it in a small jet and stop at the Hualapai tribe side of it with my ex-husband’s family who were living in Las Vegas at the time. It was spectacular, but in some ways so grand that I couldn’t even comprehend it. Can’t find my old photos, sadly. Someday, I’d like to hike down into it, at least a bit.

By continent/world region:

South/Central Asia: Band-e-Amir NP in Afghanistan – Okay, I am spoiled. I’ve flown over this one in a 10-seater jet, as well. When I was a teacher at the International School of Kabul, some colleagues and I organized a trip with a pilot friend who worked for an organization that flew people who worked for NGOs around the country. It was a day trip to see the Buddha Caves and other wonders in the Bamiyan area. They flew us over Band-e-Amir so we could see Afganistan’s Grand Canyon on the way there. It was so beautiful! I managed to get a photo or two over the wings of the little King-Air jet.
Central Asia: Charyn Canyon in Kazakhstan – the “Valley of the Castles” portion of it looks fantastic, literally.
Western Europe: High Cup and Cheddar Gorge in the United Kingdom, Cruz du Van in Switzerland, and the Bastei Rocks in Saxon Switzerland NP in Germany – This last one isn’t on the compilation websites below, but when I googled Grand Canyon of Germany, it showed up on the blog https://www.girllightning.com/2017/08/grand-canyon-germany-bastei-rocks.html I was excited because I’ve been there! I hiked to the beautiful stone Bastei Bridge in the snow once while on vacation from teaching overseas. A scene from the Han Solo movie was filmed there.
Eastern Europe: Vikos Gorge in Greece (listed as world’s “deepest compared to its width” by Guinness Book of Records), Tara River Canyon in Montenegro (over 40 waterfalls pour into it!), and Sulak Canyon in Russia (deepest in Europe)
Southern Africa: Fish River Canyon in Namibia – the largest canyon in Africa, one of the most popular hiking trails in Southern Africa
East Asia: Yarlung Tsangpo (or Zangbo) Grand Canyon in Tibet/China – the deepest canyon in the world according to Wikipedia
South America: Colca Canyon in Peru – home of the Andean Condor
Australia: Cappertee Valley in, well, Australia (that one continent that’s just one country) – the widest canyon in the world, according to Wikipedia
Northern North America: the aforementioned GCNP is of course the main contender for North America’s Grand Canyon, but Canada has one, too: the Grand Canyon of the Fraser in British Columbia (not to be confused with nearby Fraser Canyon, which looks even more epic to me in the photos)
Mexico: When I published this post, I just listed Copper Canyon (Barrancas del Cobre in Spanish) in the state of Chihuahua, México, because it looks amazing and has tall waterfalls and a fascinating history. However, my husband and I recently got to video chat with my ex-husband and his partner in México, and they told us about Cañón del Sumidero in the state of Chiapas. It looks amazing, too! Hopefully someday, I’ll get to visit both of these.
Central America: Pacuare River in Costa Rica is famous for whitewater rafting through rainforested gorges.
Oceania/Pacific: Waimea Canyon in Waimea Canyon SP, Hawaii, USA (see description in U.S. regions above)

By every U.S. State: (some of these may be repeats from the U.S. regions list). Note: I couldn’t find any feature referred to as a “grand canyon” for a few states. Any guesses? Read on to find out! If you’re from those states, please tell me if there’s a “grand canyon” of any sort there!

Alabama – Little River Canyon National Preserve in the Southern Appalachians has waterfalls, sandstone cliffs, and forested vistas
Alaska – Grand Canyon of the Noatak River, in Noatak National Preserve – people float the river in the summer to see more of the canyon in a short amount of time
Arizona – Grand Canyon of the Colorado River (aka GCNP) of course, but don’t miss Walnut Canyon NM. I stopped there on a road trip and loved the history (the cliff dwellings from the Ancestral Puebloans as well as the visits and quotes from legendary author Willa Cather). And the canyon itself may not be as big as at GCNP, but it was beautiful.
Arkansas – Vendor Valley – the deepest canyon in the Ozarks was labeled “Arkansas’ Grand Canyon in a marketing campaign by the owners of Cliff House Inn. Works for me! I’d stop there, based on the photos I see!
California – Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne [River] in Yosemite NP, or Kings Canyon in Kings Canyon NP – these both look beautiful in pictures, and are in national parks, so of course I want to go to both of them. I’ve been to Yosemite Valley in Yosemite NP, and it is a pretty impressive glacier-cut gorge, too! (Yes, that’s a huge understatement)
Colorado – Black Canyon of the Gunnison in Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP – this one looks so deep and epic in the photos I’ve seen! Black because it’s in the shade most of the day.
Connecticut – some random chasm made by installing a pipeline, according to Reddit. That’s all I could find. Sorry, Connecticut!
Delaware – Delaware Water Gap NRA – a dramatic mountain pass in the Appalachians
Florida – ????? couldn’t find one
Georgia – Providence Canyon – human-made from mining but still looks neat, or Tallulah Gorge SP – Tallulah Falls looks awesome in the photos!
Hawaii – Waimea Canyon (see above in Regions section) – I mean hey, I’ll use an excuse to go to Hawaii. This one of course looks epic in the photos.
Idaho – Bruneau Canyon on BLM land (not to be confused with Bruneau Dunes SP) – deep and wide, it looks like a NW-style geologic version of the Arizona GC but without the crowds. In fact, very few people make their way out there. Hells Canyon, where the Snake River runs between Oregon and Idaho, is by some accounts the deepest canyon in the world (if you use the top of mountains in the calculations).
Illinois – the Little Grand Canyon Trail in Shawnee Forest – compared to some of the others, the 100 foot sandstone cliffs may not sound huge. But for Illinois, that is pretty deep! And it has a neat natural staircase carved by water that you can climb.
Indiana – Turkey Run SP (description above in the Regions section)
Iowa – Lost Canyon in Whitewater Canyon Wildlife Area is “Iowa’s Little Grand Canyon”, aka “Midwest’s Little Grand Canyon” – 200-foot cliffs believed to be formed by a collapsed ancient cave system
Kansas –Arikaree Breaks – ravines and canyons in a badlands area, a nice break from cornfields! I feel like I saw topography that looked like this when I drove through Kansas from Colorado to Oklahoma.
Kentucky – Red River Gorge Geologic Area – Red River Gorge in the Daniel Boone National Forest boasts 41 natural bridges, according to the NPS. Kentucky also shares Breaks Interstate Park with Virginia.
Louisiana – Longleaf Vista Recreation Area in Kisatchie National Forest is “Louisiana’s Little Grand Canyon” – doesn’t look like a canyon or even a valley to me, but one website says “the topography is rugged by Louisiana standards” so we’ll let it slide.
Maine – Gulf Hagas – has multiple waterfalls gushing out of stone cliffs very near the Appalachian Trail
Maryland – Swallow Falls SP had some famous historical figures as visitors over 100 years ago! Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and Harvey Firestone camped there in 1921, according to the state park website.
Massachusetts – Chesterfield Gorge – a pretty hiking area with small waterfalls and 70-foot rock walls
Michigan – Canyon Falls is “the Grand Canyon of the UP [Upper Peninsula]” – the river falls 30 feet into a box canyon
Minnesota – Hull Rust Mahoming Mine (human-made from mining)
Mississippi – Red Bluff – an exposure of red clay, soil, and sand sloping into the Pearl River floodplain
Missouri – Grand Canyon of Charrette Creek has high vertical walls on either side of a wide floodplain, or Grand Gulf SP is considered one of the natural wonders of the Ozarks and “Missouri’s Little Grand Canyon”
Montana – Gates of the Mountains Wilderness Area was named by Lewis & Clark for how the cliffs seem to open up like gates as you traverse the Missouri River, or Bighorn Canyon NRA which looks more like the big Grand Canyon and is of course epic since it’s in Montana
Nebraska – Frenchman Creek Valley is “Nebraska’s Little Grand Canyon” or “Wauneta’s Little Grand Canyon” according to a local sign. It looks badlands-esque and also looked to be very close to where my Dad grew up. I sent him a screenshot of the webpage, and he says he would see it weekly when he rode along with his dad (the grandpa that died before I was born) to a job he did for the state, which was observing and recording which farmers were irrigating because the state was monitoring water usage.
Nevada – Red Rock Canyon near Las Vegas – I couldn’t find a reference to a Grand Canyon in Nevada because every search for Nevada led me to tours of GCNP from Las Vegas. But I’ve been to Red Rock Canyon (on BLM land) with my ex-husband and his family, and it was stunning. Pink and red colors swirling everywhere. Absolutely otherwordly. Can’t find my photos of it, sorry!
New Hampshire – Sculptured Rocks Natural Area is a geology-oriented nature preserve with impressive rock formations surrounding a popular swimming hole
New Jersey – Palisades Interstate Park (geologic site) – a 12-mile long and 1/2 mile wide area of cliffs and uplands just minutes from Manhattan – I had no idea that New Jersey has scenery like this!
New Mexico – Rio Grande Gorge – the Rio Grande’s “grand canyon” follows an eroded chasm in northern New Mexico. I crossed over the Rio Grande much farther south in New Mexico, so I didn’t see this beautiful stretch of it, but even the part I saw was sure grand!
New York –Letchworth SP “the Grand Canyon of the East” – follows the Genesee River over several large waterfalls
North Carolina – Linville Gorge – earns its nickname as “the Grand Canyon of North Carolina” as one of only two official wilderness gorges in the South, with the Linville River 1400 feet below the ridge and having one of the few old growth forests in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
North Dakota – Painted Canyon in Theodore Roosevelt NP aka “Grand Canyon of North Dakota” – named for its colorful rocks, it reminds me a bit of the Painted Desert in Arizona’s Petrified Forest NP.
Ohio – Conkle’s Hollow State Nature Preserve in the Hocking Hills region – I’d go see this one just for the name. But it also has 200-foot Black Hand sandstone cliffs that look amazing.
Oklahoma – Red Rock Canyon Camping & Adventure Park – formerly known as Red Rock Canyon SP as well as Kiwanis Canyon Park – its red rock cliffs now offer activities run by a private company since the state ceased operating it and some other parks to balance the budget. But before it was a state park, it had plenty of history – Native Americans used it as a winter camp, and was later a rest stop for pioneers on the California trail (you can still see wagon ruts).
Oregon – Owyhee River Canyon /Canyonlands in SE Oregon/SW Idaho is the main contender for the title according to the internet, with breathtaking scenery in every direction. Also shared with Idaho, Hells Canyon could count (see description in Idaho above). And the Columbia River Gorge, shared with Washington, is full of activities (see description in U.S. Regions above). For smaller ones only in Oregon, visit Crooked River Gorge for Central Oregon with the spectacular Smith Rock SP and other viewpoints, and Silver Falls SP with its dramatic waterfall canyons. And my friend Natasha says to make sure to include Crack in the Ground as a “Little Grand Canyon” in South-Central Oregon, which is a small but amazing slot canyon from a volcanic fissure. I’ve been to all of these except Owyhee and Hells Canyon.
Pennsylvania – Pine Creek Gorge, called “the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania” – a perfect V-shaped gorge that is included in a state natural area and contains a state park
Rhode Island – No real canyons that I could find. My husband tried to help and found Cranston Canyon, a road construction project. That’s it.
South Carolina – Jones Gap SP or Jocassee Gorges – Jones Gap is part of the Mountain Bridge Wilderness Area on the Blue Ridge Escarpment and has waterfalls. Jocassee Gorges has waterfall canyons and a beautiful lake.
South Dakota – Spearfish Canyon “Grand Canyon of the Black Hills” – a long, narrow canyon of limestone palisades and waterfalls
Tennessee – Tennessee River Gorge – formerly known as Walden Gorge, is the 4th largest largest river gorge in the eastern U.S.
Texas – Palo Duro Canyon SP – the 2nd largest canyon in the country, according to the Texas State Parks website. Looks like some beautiful places I’ve seen in Arizona. Caprock Canyons SP was also mentioned on some sites, and has the bonus of bison herds.
Utah – San Rafael Swell, Zion NP, or Canyonlands NP – any of these 3 would qualify! And probably others, too, since Utah is chock-full of epic parks. Does Bryce Canyon NP count, too? The only one of these I’ve been to is Zion NP. Y’all probably already know about the NP sites, so I looked up San Rafael Swell. It’s a large dome-shaped geologic feature carved by flash foods into valleys, canyons, gorges, mesas, buttes, and badlands, according to Wikipedia.
Vermont – Quechee Gorge in Quechee SP is Vermont’s deepest gorge, formed by glacial activity
Virginia – Breaks Interstate Park – “the Grand Canyon of the South” (also in Kentucky) – description in U.S. regions section above
Washington – Grand Canyon of the Elwha or Palouse River Canyon – I’ve seen the Elwha River in Olympic NP, but I don’t think I saw this section of it, or the nearby section called Goblin’s Gate, which looks amazing.
West Virginia – New River Gorge NP is one of the USA’s newest national parks, and ironically the New River is one of the oldest rivers in the nation. The Endless Wall trail zig-zags along a cliff edge nearly 1,000 feet above the river. The park is also famous for rock climbing. I think my ex-husband and I drove over the landmark New River Gorge Bridge once.
Wisconsin – has many small canyons and no consensus on a “grand” one, but the Dells of the Wisconsin River is a 5 mile gorge with Cambrian sandstone rock formations and tributary canyons, and Devils Lake State Park has 500-foot bluffs above the lake.
Wyoming – the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone – description in U.S. Regions section above