Mistaya and Sunwapta Falls

July 21

Another spectacle that we do not have in Kansas is large rivers that somehow merge into slot canyons.  We saw Misty Canyon when we returned from the Athabasca Glacier, and today we visited Sunwapta Falls.  Both are large rivers that have eroded through the limestone and now run under the limestone and into caves that it has created underneath.

The large river flows into . . . 

and through this slot canyon!

The violence of the falls leaves no doubt that water is a destructive force, capable of changing a landscape in quick fashion.  Because limestone erodes slowly, it has taken a long time for the river to eat through it.  It is a magnificent sight, however, that should not be missed if one has the opportunity to see it.