How long and deep is the Grand Canyon?

The Grand Canyon was formed by the Colorado River, so most people measure the canyon’s length in Colorado River miles. The Grand Canyon starts at Lees Ferry and ends at Grand Wash Cliffs, which makes the canyon a total of 277 miles long. At the South Rim, near Grand Canyon Village, it’s one mile (about 5,000 feet) straight down to the river or seven miles along the trail. It takes a whole day to walk or ride a mule from the top of the canyon to the bottom. At its deepest, the canyon is 6,000 vertical feet from rim to river.