Copper Canyon

Copper Canyon (Spanish: Barrancas del Cobre) is a group of canyons consisting of six distinct canyons in the Sierra Madre Occidental in the southwestern part of the state of Chihuahua in northwestern Mexico. The canyons were formed by six rivers that drain the western side of the Sierra Tarahumara (a part of the Sierra Madre Occidental). All six rivers merge into the Rio Fuerte and empty into the Gulf of California. The walls of the canyon are a copper/green color, which is where the name originates.

The New Spanish arrived in the Copper Canyon area in the 17th century and encountered the indigenous locals throughout Chihuahua. For the New Spanish, America was a new land to explore for gold and silver and also to spread Christianity. The New Spanish named the people they encountered "Tarahumara", derived from the word Rarámuri, which is what the indigenous people call their men. Some scholars theorize that this word may mean ‘The running people'. During the 17th century, silver was discovered by the Hispanic in the land of the Tarahumara tribe. Some were enslaved for mining efforts. There were small uprisings by the Tarahumara, but to little avail. They eventually were forced off the more desirable lands and up into the canyon cliffs.

The alpine climate of the mountainous regions of Copper Canyon has moderate temperatures from October to November and March to April. The bottom of the canyons are humid and warm and remain that way throughout the year. During the warmest months, April through June, drought is a chronic problem with little rainfall until July when the rainy season begins.

The Sierra Tarahumara Occidental region contains some twenty-three species of pine and two hundred species of oak trees. Mexican Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga lindleyana) trees cover the high plateaus in altitudes over 8,000 feet (2,400 m), but due to deforestation in the area, many species of wildlife are endangered. Cougars live in the remotest of regions and are rarely seen. After the summer rainy season these upper regions blossom with wildflowers until October.

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