Verses: 1 John 1:5-9
Fun Fact: Black Canyon gets its name because some parts of the gorge receive only 33 total minutes of sunlight per day.
Favorite Hike: Oak Flat Loop
Black Canyon of the Gunnison is located in south western Colorado. A 5-hour drive from Denver, it’s not the easiest part to get to--making it one of the least visited national parks. Black Canyon is also one of the younger national parks, established as a national monument in 1933 and then redesignated as a national park in 1999. The park protects 14 miles of the 48-mile long Black Canyon, including the steepest, deepest and most narrow sections.
The visitor center is located at the south rim, as are many of the most popular hikes. You can also drive the South Rim Road and stop at the various pull-offs for stunning views of the canyon and river. Black Canyon is often a destination for expert rock climbers. The Painted Wall is the highest cliff in Colorado; from the bottom of the river to the rim it is 2250 feet tall.
Those seeking adventure can hike down into the canyon, all the way to the river, but it’s a very strenuous hike and not well marked. To go into the canyon at all, you must obtain a wilderness use permit from the visitor center. If you’d rather not hike, you can drive down to East Portal to visit the river.
Black Canyon gets its name because some parts of the gorge receive only 33 total minutes of sunlight per day. In many places the canyon is deeper than it is wide, and sunlight only penetrates to the bottom at mid-day.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison (like many other national parks) is certified as an International Dark Sky Park. Dark Sky Parks use a specific metric, sky quality meters (SQMs), to measure darkness; the lower the number, the brighter the sky-- the higher the number, the darker the sky, with 23 being the highest possible number. For a park to be considered an International Dark Sky Park, they must have an average reading of 21.2. There are a number of places for ideal stargazing at Black Canyon, and the park rangers often host various astronomy talks.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison is a good park to experience and appreciate darkness- from the darkness of the deep canyon to the night sky, unpolluted from artificial light. As believers though, throughout the Bible, we see darkness repeatedly associated with evil and light associated with goodness.
Read John 1:5, John 8:12, Matthew 4:16 and Micah 7:8
Light refers to biblical truth, wisdom and holiness. Darkness refers to deception or sin.
Now read 1 John 1:5-9. These verses capture this principle well:
5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
In these verses, John affirms the perfect attributes of the Lord, that no darkness (sin) exists in him, and a genuine Christian life pursues that as well, seeking to uphold gospel truths in word and deed. This is a rebuke to the false teachers who may have claimed to know the Lord, but did not walk in his ways, but chose darkness.
These verses also tell us that this ability to walk in light, to know the Lord and grow in holiness, is only accomplished through the saving work of Jesus Christ, who is faithful to forgive and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. This is a call to believers-- to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to flee from darkness and pursue light and to do so through humble repentance.
I pray as you visit Black Canyon of the Gunnison, you experience the darkness-- may you marvel at the stars and the depth of the canyon. Darkness in our national parks can be remarkable, but not in our spiritual lives. I pray Black Canyon reminds you to flee from darkness and pursue the light, turning to the One who created it, sustains it and embodies it perfectly. May we be more like Him; walking in the light and sharing it with others.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:5
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