Upper Black Canyon

We had read about Black Canyon before we arrived in the Gunnison area and knew this was one of the premier areas that we would want to visit.  We made exactly three visits to the Upper area of the Black Canyon.  We had heard that there was a 1.5 hour boat tour through the canyon and thought that would be an interesting sightseeing adventure.  Since there is virtually no cell service at our campground area, we figured out things the old fashioned way and drove to the place to find out about the boat tours.  That was our first visit to the Upper Black Canyon.  The second visit was for the actual boat tour, and the last visit was on a fishing expedition along the upper reaches of the Morrow Point Reservoir.

That's the Gunnison Crew on the 1.5 hour boat tour of the Upper Black Canyon on the Point Morrow Reservoir.  LtoR: Michelle, Jim, Gari, Steve

This area of the Gunnison National Forest is designated the Curecanti National Recreational Area.  Curecanti is named after a Ute Indian Sub-Chief Curicata who roamed and hunted this Colorado territory.  There are three reservoirs that make up the Curecanti Unit - Blue Mesa, Morrow Point and the Crystal Reservoirs.  The Colorado River Storage Project is the most complex and extensive river water storage project on earth.  It collects drainage from Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado and Arizona, about half of the continental area of the United States.  Storage units of this project include Glen Canyon, Flaming Gorge, Navajo, and these three Curecanti Dams.  These units regulate the erratic flow of the Colorado River so water needs for irrigation, municipal, industrial, hydroelectric, recreation and wildlife purposes are met in the upper and lower basin states.  We marked the boat tour and our RV park on the map below.  The Lower Black Canyon area is farther to the west or left on the map and deserves it's own separate blog post to come at a later time.

We arrived at the Morrow Point Boat Tour location to be met by unattended public restrooms and a sign indicating that Boat Tours are offered everyday except Tuesday.  You know what day this is, Tuesday!  The sign also indicated reservations are needed for the Boat Tour and provided a phone number.  Remember there is no cell service here because of the remote mountain location!  But it also said we could stop at the Elk Creek Visitors Center to make reservations.  Perfect, that is close to where we came from at camp.  Michelle and Jim review the sign below with exasperation.

Not deterred we head down into the canyon and the 0.9 mile hike to the boat.  Sure were happy now, we are at the top of the canyon and the hike is just starting!  We are facing hundreds of stairs descending about 300 feet into the canyon bottom below.

Jim and Michelle stop for a hero shot at the top stairs.

We can see the last platform just above the river in the shot below.

We made it to the bottom, that was the easy part!

Jim enjoys the magnificent boulders and scenery along the canyon bottom,

Really beautiful down here...

Jim and Michelle spot an old abandoned Feldspar mine high up on the canyon wall.

There is the mine below; a wide angle and close in view all in one.

We can see the tour boat!  Steve and Michelle lead the way.

There it is and there we are!  OK we have learned a lot so far.  We know Tuesdays are deserted, not a good day for a boat tour, but perhaps a perfect day to come back to fish this beautiful stretch of river.  Actually this is water of the Gunnison River below the Blue Mesa Dam, but it is also above the Morrow Point Dam and therefore is actually the Morrow Point Reservoir. The water does flow like a river just below the Blue Mesa Dam, but as we hiked toward the boat, the current slowed and the waters became more reservoir like.

OK it's time to head back and get to the Visitors Center to make reservations.

No problem, there is beautiful scenery along the way, at the canyon bottom...

 ... and high along the canyon walls.

Michelle pauses for one last long look before we depart the canyon.

Jim and Steve find a huge river boulder for a memory hero shot.

 

 We have reached the dreaded stairs; the 7,500 ft elevation doesn't make the climb any easier.

More stairs! Dig deep!

We made it!  Exhausted, but back on top!

Promised a scenic overlook on the other side of the canyon, we decided to drive over the dam for a look see.   The hydroelectric plant at this Blue Mesa Dam generates 98 Mega-Watts!  This plant operates two turbines, capable together of supplying electricity to over 150,000 homes and is remote controlled by the Glen Canyon Dam in Page, Arizona.

A view from the top of the earthen dam looking upstream over the 940,800 acre foot Blue Mesa Reservoir, which boasts 96 miles of shoreline.

Looking downstream below the Blue Mesa Dam, we can see the hydroelectric plant and the transmission lines and towers ascending the canyon.

At the scenic overlook we look downstream toward Pioneer Point and Black Mesa.

A steep view down into and across the canyon, we can see the parking lot (near top left of frame) where we parked to descend into the canyon and even some of the stairs can be seen at the bottom center of frame.

A view from the scenic overlook to the north of Soap Mesa.

A parting shot of the Blue Mesa Dam as we head toward the Curecanti Visitor Center.

Next stop the 1.5 hour boat tour through part of the Upper Black Canyon.