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AfamousAmericanJohnMuirsaidin1898:TheGrandCanyon...asunearthlyinthecolorandasgrandeurinthequantityofitsarchitectureasifyouhadfounditafterhumanbeing'sextinctiononsomeotherstar.一个注明的没过人约翰·缪尔曾在1898年说过：”科罗拉多河的大峡谷......它的色彩和构造的宏伟多样是时尚所没有的，就像是人消亡以后在别的星球上发现的东西。”LikeMuir,thoseofuswhostandalongtherimarepromptedtowonderabouttheunearthlinessandtheforcesitcreatedandarestillchangingthisplace.和缪尔一样，站在大峡谷边缘的人们顿时对这里的炒饭脱俗，对那种创造并仍在改变这个地方的神器力量感到惊奇。Aftermorethan100yearsofstudy,manythingsarestillobscure.Todayvisitorscomebythousands—nomatterthecommonpeopleorthegreatones—allinaspiritofmarvel.TravelerscomefromeverystateoftheUnion,fromeverycountryinEuropeandAsia,pilgrimstoashrinethatisthesameasthecreed.经过了100多年的研究，有许多事情仍然十个谜。今天，数以千计的游客--不管是普通人还是大人物--都怀着一种好奇的心情来这里。他们来自于美国的第一州，来自欧洲和亚洲的每一个国家，就像朝圣者一样虔诚地来到这座神殿。Fromthedepthofthecanyoncomeswellingsilence.Seldomcanyouheartheroaroftheriver.Youcannotcatchthepatter.Likeapplause,fromtheleavesofthecottonwoodsontheshelf-likeplateaubelowyou,forallsoundsareswallowedinthisgulfofspace.Itmakesonewanttomurmur.Awomanoncewhisperedtohercompanion.Thissilenceisnotthesilenceofdeath;rather,itisapresence.Itislikeagreatpieceofmusic.Butmusicmadebymanworksuptoaclimaxandceases;theGrandCanyonisallclimax,achordechoingintoeternity.峡谷深处静寂无声。我们很少听见喝水的咆哮声或下面壁架式高原上三角叶杨树发出鼓掌般的啪啪声。因为这一切声音都在这深渊的空间被吞没了。一位女游客对同伴说，”它让人禁不住的低声细语“这种寂静不是死一般的沉寂；相反，它是万物存在的宁静。它就像一曲伟大的乐章。人类创作的乐曲逐渐进入高潮，但也有终止的时候，而大峡谷则高潮迭起，是永远回荡不止的和音。PerhapsthemostspectacularfeatureoftheGrandCanyon,itsRedwalllimestonecliff,standsabouthalfwayupthechasmandispracticallyvertical.Itsaverageheightis550feet—almostexactlythatoftheWashingtonMonument.Thoughitisactuallygray-bluelimestone,thesurfaceofthecliffhasbeenstainedtoasunsethuebyironsaltswashingoutoftherocks.AbovetheRedwallcomealternatinglayersofredsandstoneandshale1,000feetthick,thencomesthenextpale-bluelayer.Thetopmostlayersareayellowishlimestone.也许大峡谷最引人注目的风貌特色是“红墙”石灰石悬崖，它耸立在裂口半中，几乎是垂直的。它的平均高度为550英尺--几乎和华盛顿纪念碑一样搞。虽然它实际是灰蓝色的石灰石，但是从岩石里渗出的铁盐却把悬崖表面染上了晚霞般的色彩。在“红墙”的上方，是红色的砂岩和1000英尺厚的页岩交替层，然后是浅蓝色的砂岩层，最上层是淡黄色的石灰石。Now,visitorstotheSouthRimalonemaynumber18,000inasingleday.SomeofthemwilltravelbymuletraindownBrightAngelTrailtothecanyon'sfloor,crosstheragingriverbyasuspensionbridgeandamounttotheNorthRim.现在，每天来大峡谷南边观光的有课大概有18000名。其中有的会乘坐小型电动机车沿着“光明天使小道”来到谷底，穿过波涛汹涌的河道上方的吊桥，然后到达北边。Thoughthetworimsfaceeachotheracrossonly12miles,itisajourneyof214milesbycarfromonetotheother.NorcanyouvisittheNorthRimexceptinsummer;some1,200feethigherthantheSouthRim,itissnowcoveredmuchoftheyearexceptinJulyandAugust.尽管南北面对面相隔只有12英里，但是坐车从一边到另一边的距离却是214英里。北边只能在夏天参观；它比南边高出1200英尺左右；除了7、8月份外，其他大部分时间都为冰雪覆盖。ButthereisnotimethatyoumaynotvisittheSouthRimandfindthesunwarmonyourfaceandtheairperfumedwiththeincenseofsmokefromanIndianhearth.TheGrandCanyonisanunearthlysight.NowonderanAmericanwriterandjournalistsaid,Icamehereanatheistanddepartedadevoutbeliever.然后南边任何时候都欢迎人们的来访，在那里温暖的阳光照在人们的脸上；空气中弥漫着印第安香炉中发出的香烟气。大峡谷是一道超凡脱俗的风景。难怪一位美国作家兼记者说：“未来这里时还是个无神论者，离开时却是个虔诚的信徒了”