Lots of Grand Canyons | The Institute for Creation Research

Lots of Grand Canyons

On the seminar trail, I and other ICR speakers often use Grand Canyon as an example of Flood-caused geological features. We frequently run into opposition from people who’ve been taught that it took millions of years for the canyon to be carved out. We counter with studies that lead us to believe that each of the pancake-like layers was rapidly deposited by catastrophic hydraulic forces, and that the igneous and metamorphic deposits were caused by events quite unlike anything we see in modern times. The continent-wide coverage of the layers clearly speaks to an unimaginably devastating flood. The rates, scales, and intensity of the forces involved dwarf those of our experience.

The carving of Grand Canyon itself was likewise due to rapid, dynamic erosion that either occurred late during the Flood as the continents rose, or soon afterward when immense volumes of water rushed back into the ocean basins. Furthermore, the strata give evidence of having still been in a soft, not-yet-fully consolidated condition at the time they were gouged out.

Additionally, the sedimentary layers, the volcanism, and the erosion must have occurred recently—consistent with the timescale of Scripture. The evidence indicates that the strata were deposited rapidly by Flood waters, uplifted by monumental forces later in the Flood, and eroded by retreating Flood waters before they had time to harden—all within the one-year timescale given in Genesis. ICR speakers often remark that Grand Canyon is “Exhibit A” for the great Flood of Noah’s day, and photos taken during our many research trips and study tours into the canyon’s depths frequently grace our lectures.

But if the canyon’s cause was the runoff of waters from the Flood, and the deluge was worldwide, why don’t we find many such canyons around the globe? Impressive canyons sometimes form today through natural disasters such as excessive rainfall, a dam breaking, or a tsunami event, but Grand Canyon is far bigger than these. Obviously, in any set of examples, there must always be one that is the biggest, but a fuller answer may surprise you.

Grand Canyon is unique in that erosion has exposed its remarkable stack of layers on both sides of the river, and the strata are clearly visible, not covered by vegetation. Its accessibility and stunning grandeur have earned it a place among the world’s great geological wonders. The canyon’s dimensions are staggering: 277 miles long, up to 19 miles wide, and one mile deep, but it is not the biggest canyon on Earth.

Many canyons are hidden underground or underwater, and oddly enough some are too big to see. Recent news coverage describes a hidden canyon underneath the glaciers of Antarctica. Ice-penetrating radar studies have revealed evidence that this canyon is at least 200 miles long, 15 miles wide, and two miles deep.1 Similarly, the Bering Sea between Siberia and Alaska is home to many of the largest submarine canyons in the world. An impressive canyon, often enjoyed by scuba divers, lies just offshore of San Diego. The space between England and the European continent is also a canyon, for at one time the British Isles were part of the mainland. Some consider Hudson Bay to be an Ice Age “canyon” feature. And isn’t the mid-continent space between the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains a huge canyon split by the Mississippi River drainage systems? Its erosion was initiated at the end of the Flood by runoff waters and has continued throughout the Ice Age and modern calamities.

Those who believe the earth to be billions of “uniformitarian” years old occasionally consider modern rates of erosion to be greater than average. But the evidence appears to support the opposite—past processes occurring in one rapid, enormous, Earth-altering episode, just like we’re told when we go “Back to Genesis.”

Reference

  1. Ross, N. et.al. 2014. The Ellsworth Subglacial Highlands: Inception and retreat of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. Geologic Society Bulletin. 126 (1-2): 3-15.

* Dr. Morris is President of the Institute for Creation Research and received his Ph.D. in geology from the University of Oklahoma.

Cite this article: John D. Morris, Ph.D. 2014. Lots of Grand Canyons. Acts & Facts. 43 (6).

The Latest
NEWS
August 2025 ICR Wallpaper
"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart." (Galatians 6:9 NKJV) ICR's August...

NEWS
Quietly ''Devolving'' Tomatoes?
Apparently, evolution (and natural selection) can do almost anything: If new forms appear, the credit goes to creative natural selection; if old...

CREATION PODCAST
Five Unforgettable Lessons Learned from the Scopes Trial | The...
The Scopes Trial is one of the most famous court cases in American history, and this year marks its one hundredth anniversary....

NEWS
Yet Another Revised Age for the Land-Animal Ancestor
An allegedly vital piece of animal evolution was first discovered in 1984 in Scotland. Conventional scientists suggested the fossil of Westlothiana...

NEWS
Dr. James S. Johnson Goes Home to the Lord
Dr. James S. Johnson, chief academic officer and associate professor of apologetics for ICR’s School of Biblical Apologetics (SOBA), joined his...

NEWS
Pluto’s Largest Moon Looks Young
When the New Horizons space probe captured images of Pluto and its large moon Charon as it flew by in 2015, conventional scientists were surprised by...

NEWS
55-Million-Year-Old Tree Frog…Is Still a Tree Frog
In the 1990s, Australian paleontologists discovered fossil frog bones during a dig in Murgon, Queensland.1 This new species of frog—Litoria...

NEWS
Pastor and Longtime ICR Supporter Dr. John MacArthur Now with...
Faithful ICR supporter and pastor Dr. John MacArthur went home to be with the Lord on Monday, July 14, 2025, completing his 86-year pilgrimage.1...

CREATION PODCAST
Setting Sights on Scopes: The Truth Behind the Infamous Monkey...
The Scopes Trial is one of the most famous court cases in American history, and this year marks its one hundredth anniversary. Often,...

NEWS
Did Earthworms Rewrite Their DNA to Survive on Land?
An earthworm news story was recently posted that openly questions Darwin’s gradual and slow evolutionary progress in the living world.1...