The Grand Canyon Is 278 River Miles Long and a Mile Deep

The Grand Canyon is hard to take in, so the numbers help. The US National Park Service lists the canyon’s length as 278 river miles, or 447 kilometers. Its width varies a great deal along the way. The narrowest point is at Marble Canyon, at 600 feet. The average distance from rim to rim is 10 miles, and the maximum is 18 miles. The depth is given as one mile on average. The two rims are not level with each other. The park service puts the average elevation of the South Rim at 7,000 feet and that of the North Rim at 8,000 feet. Grand Canyon National Park as a whole covers 1,904 square miles, and the park service gives the canyon’s volume as 5.45 trillion cubic yards.