. JULY 2013 BACK ISSUE by Ralph Lee Hopkins Ever since the first time I first gazed into the canyon on a family camping trip when I was 12 years old, the Grand Canyon has always been a special place for me. It's where I discovered my passion for both geology and photography. We camped on the North Rim. Alone, I walked through the ponderosa pine forest to the rim. The towering tress ended abruptly at a sheer cliff of gray rock. Before me was a canyon so deep I could not see the bottom. Although I would not realize it until years later, the Grand Canyon changed me forever, and also shaped my future. It was in an earth science class in high school that I learned how the Grand Canyon was formed. My childhood memories came flooding back, recalling the layer-cake rocks of the canyon walls, the distant mountains like sailing ships on the horizon, and the mighty Colorado River that carved the landscape. These memories began to make sense, and I knew then, while still in high school, that I wanted to be a geologist.  As fate would have it, I ended up at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona, only 60 miles from the Grand Canyon. At the time I started graduate school, I had only published a handful of images from my travels in Utah shooting with a large-format 4 X 5 film camera. By the time I finished my thesis studying the rim rock of the canyon (the Kaibab Formation), I had a portfolio of images that would later be published by Arizona Highways magazine. But it wasn't until I made my first river trip down the Colorado River did I understand the depth and complexities of the Grand Canyon. Viewed from the rim, it appears as one huge expanse of canyon. Below the rim, however, it's a different story. At river level the Grand Canyon breaks up into an infinite number of canyons, becoming a network of canyons within canyons, from large ones to microcosms, each one unique in its own way. In Marble Canyon there's North Canyon, Buck Farm, and Nankoweap, just to name a few. Downriver in the Granite Gorges there's Elve' s Chasm, Blacktail, Matkatamiba, and Deer Creek. Around every bend in the river there are hidden canyons that would take many lifetimes to explore. And there's water, lots of flowing water. And waterfalls, and springs that emerge from the rocks dripping with ferns. For the past decade I’ve explored the Grand Canyon leading photo expeditions down the Colorado River. It’s a pilgrimage back to my roots. The river trips ground me for my worldwide travels. I often dream of the canyon, calling me home. Expedition support from Arizona Raft Adventures and Grand Canyon Discovery Colorado River below Nankoweap Canyon, Marble Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Raft in Upper Granite Gorge, Colorado River, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Columbine and Waterfall, Elves Chasm, Middle Granite Gorge, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Redwall Limestone bolder, Colorado River at Blacktail Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Fluted rock and mineral patina, Upper Granite Gorge, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Redwall Cavern, Marble Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Tapeats Sandstone layers in Blacktail Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Reflection Pool, North Canyon, Marble Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Turquoise pool, Little Colorado River, Marble Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Colorado River, Lower Granite Gorge, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Reflection in Matkatamiba, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Fluting in Muav Limestone, Colorado River, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Hikers in Deer Creek Canyon Narrow, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Hiker enjoys Waterfall, Stone Creek Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Full moon and red rocks, Marble Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Back to current issue