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Royal Gorge - wikipedia Royal Gorge For the gap in Missouri , see Royal Gorge ( Missouri ) . <Th_colspan="2"> Royal Gorge <Td_colspan="2"> <Td_colspan="2"> Royal Gorge near Cañon City Long - axis length 6 miles ( 9.7 km ) Width 50 feet ( 15 m ) ( base ) 300 feet ( 91 m ) ( top ) Depth 1,250 feet ( 380 m ) <Th_colspan="2"> Geology Type canyon Watercourses Arkansas River The Royal Gorge is a canyon of the Arkansas River located west of Cañon City , Colorado . The canyon begins at the mouth of Grape Creek about 2 mi ( 3.2 km ) west of central Cañon City and continues in a west - northwesterly direction for approximately 6 mi ( 9.7 km ) until ending near U.S. Route 50 . Being one of the deepest canyons in Colorado , it is also known as the Grand Canyon of the Arkansas ( River ) , with a maximum depth of 1,250 ft ( 380 m ) . The canyon is also very narrow , measuring from 50 ft ( 15 m ) wide at its base to 300 ft ( 91 m ) wide at its top , as it carves a path through the granite formations below Fremont Peak and YMCA Mountain , which rise above the north and south rims , respectively . Contents 1 Natural history 2 Early history and European settlement 3 Modern history 4 Gallery 5 References 6 External links Natural history ( edit ) The wall of Royal Gorge A view of the Royal Gorge Route Railroad A view of the Royal Gorge Bridge , from below The path of the Arkansas River was already set when the granite uplift that would eventually form the Rocky Mountains began . About 3 million years ago as the mountains began to rise from the surrounding plains , the Arkansas River -- then only a small stream -- began to wear away at the stone it flowed across . Scientists estimate that the mountains surrounding the canyon rose at a rate of approximately one foot every 2500 years . Over the millennia , this small stream grew , cutting a deep channel for itself through the surrounding granite . The gorge 's peculiar shape , contrasted to broad canyons such as the Grand Canyon , can be attributed to this long , direct erosion through hard rock . Early history and European settlement ( edit ) Before European settlement , Native Americans of the Ute people wintered in Royal Gorge for its protection from wind and relatively mild climate . The Comanche , Kiowa , Sioux , and Cheyenne used Royal Gorge on buffalo hunting expeditions as an access point to mountain meadow regions such as South Park Basin . Colorado 's Rocky Mountain region fell under Spanish claims , and conquistador expeditions of the 17th century or fur traders may have seen Royal Gorge in their traversal of the area . The first recorded instance of a European arrival , however , is the Pike expedition of 1806 . Zebulon Pike 's group built a crude shelter in the gorge and explored the area , descending on horseback over the frozen Arkansas River . Nearby Cañon City was founded in 1860 to exploit possible mineral deposits in the area . Discovery of silver and lead near Leadville in 1877 prompted a race to build rail access to the area . Royal Gorge was a bottleneck along the Arkansas too narrow for both the Atchison , Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad to pass through , and there was no other reasonable access to the South Park area . Both railroads thus took to fighting the `` Royal Gorge Railroad War '' , two years of essentially low - level guerrilla warfare between the two companies . Federal intervention prompted the so - called `` Treaty of Boston '' to end the struggle . The D&RGW completed its line and leased it for use by the Santa Fe . In the 1890s Royal Gorge was used as a passenger route for transcontinental rail travel . As many as four trains per day went through the gorge , though in time the establishment of alternate routes through the mountains made the Royal Gorge fall from favor for transcontinental use , and passenger train service on the main line was discontinued in 1967 . A sightseeing train now follows the route through the gorge . Modern history ( edit ) On May 7 , 1879 the first excursion train traveled through the Royal Gorge after years of court battles between the Denver & Rio Grande and the Atchison , Topeka & Santa Fe ( AT&SF or Santa Fe ) railroads . The Royal Gorge Route Railroad now operates excursion trains through the Royal Gorge throughout the year . The train travels 12 - miles through the canyon from Cañon City , Colorado to Parkdale and return . In 1929 Cañon City authorized the building of the Royal Gorge Bridge , which at 955 feet ( 291 m ) above the river held the record of highest bridge in the world from 1929 to 2001 . The bridge is the centerpiece of Royal Gorge Bridge and Park , an amusement park with rides and attractions on both sides of the gorge . The land and bridge are owned by the city and leased to a Dallas - based company called the Royal Gorge Bridge Company which has held the leasing rights since 1947 . Another Dallas - based company called Leisure and Recreational Concepts was hired by the Royal Gorge Bridge Company in 1984 to handle daily operations of the park . In 1955 , portions of the film Big House , U.S.A. starring Broderick Crawford , Ralph Meeker , Lon Chaney , Jr. , William Talman , Charles Bronson and Felicia Farr ( credited as Randy Farr ) were filmed in Royal Gorge Park and Cañon City . ISS image of burn scars with bridge circled in red On June 11 , 2013 , a wildfire broke out near the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park that ultimately destroyed 48 of 52 buildings in the park on both sides of the gorge . The bridge was only lightly damaged with some scorched planks requiring replacement . The park was rebuilt and opened again on August 30 , 2014 . In the summer months , rafting is a very popular activity in the Royal Gorge . Tourists travel from around the world to tackle the Class IV rapids of the Arkansas River and enjoy the scenery of the gorge . Named rapids in the gorge include Sunshine Falls , Sledgehammer , Wallslammer , Corkscrew , the Narrows , Boateater and Soda Pop Rock . River recreation in the gorge is regulated by Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area ( AHRA ) and daily user fees are required to launch at all of the recreation sites upstream of the gorge . There are many commercial rafting companies which are licensed by AHRA to run the gorge and summer weekends can see hundreds of rafts packing the river . BASE jumping , bungee jumping and rock climbing are generally not permitted at the Royal Gorge . Occasionally , during special events such as the GoFast Games , bridge jumps have been allowed by the city and the lessee of the bridge and park . Gallery ( edit ) Gorge and bridge from south rim Train and Hanging Bridge Looking east from bridge Gorge and bridge from north rim References ( edit ) Jump up ^ Gregory , Lee ( 1996 ) . Colorado Scenic Guide . Boulder : Johnson Books . ISBN 1 - 55566 - 144 - 0 . Jump up ^ The American Military on the Frontier , by James P. Tate , copyright 2002 , The Minerva Group , Inc . Jump up ^ `` Encarta article about Canon City '' . Jump up ^ Court , United States Supreme ( 22 January 1879 ) . `` United States Reports , Supreme Court : Cases Argued and Adjudged in the Supreme Court of the United States '' . Little , Brown -- via Google Books . Jump up ^ A Builder of the West : The Life of General William Jackson Palmer , by John Stirling Fisher and Chase Mellen , copyright 1981 , by Ayer Publishing . Jump up ^ Osterwald , Doris ( 2003 ) . Rails Thru the Gorge . Hugo : Western Guideways , Ltd . ISBN 0 - 931788 - 15 - 3 . Jump up ^ Dexheimer , Eric ( 1999 - 04 - 29 ) . `` The Royal Grudge Bridge '' . Denver Westword , LLC . Archived from the original on 2016 - 01 - 20 . Retrieved 2016 - 01 - 21 . Jump up ^ Stafford , Jeff . `` Articles link '' . tcm.com . Retrieved November 9 , 2015 . Jump up ^ `` Royal Gorge fire to be fully contained Sunday evening '' . 16 June 2013 . Jump up ^ `` Royal Gorge Park reopens Saturday , 14 months after fire damaged the park and bridge '' . 2014 - 08 - 29 . Retrieved 2016 - 01 - 18 . External links ( edit ) Wikimedia Commons has media related to Royal Gorge and Royal Gorge Bridge . Royal Gorge Region - Official Visitors Guide to the Royal Gorge Region . Royal Gorge Bridge National Park Service : Royal Gorge ( archive ) Coordinates : 38 ° 25 ′ 52 '' N 105 ° 16 ′ 08 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.43111 ° N 105.26889 ° W ﻿ / 38.43111 ; - 105.26889 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Royal_Gorge&oldid=821779465 '' Categories : Atchison , Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Canyons and gorges of Colorado Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad Landforms of Fremont County , Colorado Landmarks in Colorado Tourist attractions in Fremont County , Colorado Arkansas River Hidden categories : CS1 : Julian -- Gregorian uncertainty Coordinates on Wikidata Talk Contents About Wikipedia Cebuano Edit links This page was last edited on 22 January 2018 , at 16 : 05 ( UTC ) . Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply . By using this site , you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy . Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation , Inc. , a non-profit organization . 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