12 Fascinating Things You Probably Didn't Know About The Grand Canyon In Arizona

Sorry to start with a bummer of a fact. While still an impressive and accessible sight, the longest and deepest canyon is actually the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon in Tibet. That one measures 314 miles in length and its deepest parts reach down to 19,714 feet.

Known as the Vishnu Schist, these dark-colored rocks form the base of the canyon and can be found in the Inner Gorge.

First, if you have ever hiked down the canyon, imagine doing the same thing in clothing those men wore. I'm not sure if they always wore that metal armor, but if they did they were insane.

Led by a small group of Hopi, the conquistador García López de Cárdenas instructed some of his Spanish soldiers to trek down into the canyon in search of a massive river in 1540. They only made it about one-third of the way down before turning around for water.

A pair of Spanish Franciscan priests (Francisco Atanasio Domínguez and Silvestre Vélez de Escalante) encountered the Grand Canyon in 1776 as they traveled the area. Additionally, one priest, Fray Francisco Garces, visited that same year in an attempt to convert the Havasupai. He was unsuccessful.

What are they? From what I was able to gather, scientists are a bit divided on how to properly define stromatolites, but they are basically the equivalent of fossilized algae.

That's right. The canyon's rocks are too old for that. Try another Arizona park for dinosaur fossils, such as Petrified Forest.