(MUSIC)
SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: This Monday, the United States observes Memorial Day, honoring all those who have died in military service. The holiday is marked with ceremonies and community parades. Most government offices are closed.
The long Memorial Day weekend also marks the traditional start of the summer travel season. That means millions of Americans are on the road, many of them visiting popular sites, like the Grand Canyon in Arizona.
Visitors at the Grand Canyon's Yavapai Point
JUNE SIMMS: The Grand Canyon is one of the world's largest canyons -- four hundred fifty kilometers across. The surrounding land seems to hide the existence of such a great opening in the earth. You come upon the canyon suddenly, when you reach the edge.
SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: In some places, the canyon walls are more than a kilometer deep. Far below is the dark, twisting line of the Colorado River.
On the other side, sunshine lights up the rock walls in red, orange and gold. The bright colors are the result of minerals in the rocks. Their appearance changes endlessly -- with the light, the time of year and the weather. At sunset, when the sun has moved across the sky, the canyon walls give up their fiery reds and golds. They take on quieter colors of blue, purple, and green.
(MUSIC)
JUNE SIMMS: Hundreds of rocky points rise from the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Some are very tall.
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25