[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 18]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 26571]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



TRIBUTE TO THE BLACK CANYON OF THE GUNNISON NATIONAL PARK AND THOSE WHO 
                            MADE IT POSSIBLE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. SCOTT McINNIS

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 21, 1999

  Mr. McINNIS. Mr. Speaker, it is with an overwhelming sense of pride 
that I now rise to pay tribute to a truly historic event in the proud 
and distinguished history of the great State of Colorado: the 
establishment of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.
  As the House sponsor of legislation that redesignated the Black 
Canyon as a national park, it gives me great joy to describe for this 
esteemed body's record the beauty of this truly majestic place. In 
addition, I would like to offer my gratitude to a community of 
individuals instrumental in the long process that ultimately yielded 
the establishment of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.
  Mr. Speaker, anyone who has visited the Black Canyon can attest to 
its awe-inspiring natural beauty. Named for the dark rock that makes up 
its sheer walls, the Black Canyon is largely composed of what 
geologists call basement rocks, the oldest rocks on the earth estimated 
at 1.7 billion years old. With its narrow openings, sheer walls, and 
scenic gorges that plunge 2000 feet into the clear blue majesty of the 
Gunnison River, the Black Canyon is a natural crown jewel second to 
none in its magnificent splendor. Though other canyons may have greater 
depth or descend on a steeper course, few combine these attributes as 
breathtakingly as does the Black Canyon.
  If ever there was a place worthy of the prestigious status that only 
national park status can afford, Mr. Speaker, it is the Black Canyon. 
But as you know, national parks don't just happen. In this case, it 
took nearly 15 years, several Congressional Representatives and 
Senators, innumerable locally elected officials, and a virtual sea of 
committed citizens in western Colorado.
  Included in this group are the good people of the Forest Service. 
During this long and at times difficult process, the Forest Service has 
given tirelessly and beyond measure in the hopes of making the Black 
Canyon a national park. Again and again these great Americans rose to 
the challenge, doing everything in their power to fulfill this dream. 
Without the Forest Service's leadership and perseverance, none of what 
we have accomplished would have ever been possible.
  It is with this, Mr. Speaker, that I give my thanks to the people of 
the Forest Service who played a leading role in making the Black Canyon 
of the Gunnison National Park a wonderful reality for Colorado, 
America, and the world to enjoy.

                          ____________________