0:23

In an age when the world is at

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our fingertips, swiped and scrolled

0:28

in bytes and pixels, the

0:31

true scale of nature's grandeur

0:33

remains an enigma, elusive

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to our digitalized perceptions.

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Humans by nature grapple with

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comprehending the enormity of the

0:45

natural world. The

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Grand Canyon's abyss, the towering

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sequoias of Yosemite, the vast dunes

0:51

of the great sand dunes, and

0:54

the impenetrable depths of Carlsbad caverns.

0:59

These natural wonders are

1:01

not just sights to behold, but

1:04

puzzles that challenge our perspective.

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Scientific research suggests that our

1:11

difficulty in grasping such scales

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isn't just a matter of sight, but

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of context. Without

1:19

a familiar reference, our

1:21

minds falter in truly

1:23

understanding the magnitude

1:26

of what lies before us. I'm

1:29

Jason Epperson, and on this episode of

1:32

the America's National Parks Podcast, we

1:34

embark on a journey not through

1:36

trails and vistas, but through a

1:38

comparison of scales, juxtaposing

1:41

the colossal features of

1:43

America's National Parks with

1:45

the man-made marvels that

1:47

dot our skylines and histories. We

1:51

invite you to see these natural wonders

1:53

through a new lens, one

1:55

that scales down the immense

1:57

to the comprehensible. Join

2:00

us as we uncover the unseen

2:02

giants among us, revealing

2:04

the true scale of what

2:07

it means to stand in the

2:09

presence of nature's most magnificent

2:11

creations. Ah,

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the verdant expanses of California,

3:19

nature boasts its most

3:21

grandiose trees, giant

3:23

sequoias, and coastal redwoods.

3:26

These ancient titans, standing

3:29

as natural skyscrapers, reside

3:32

within the serene realms of

3:34

Yosemite, Sequoia, and Redwoods National

3:36

Parks. Their existence

3:38

is a marvel, a testament to

3:41

the awe-inspiring complexity and

3:43

resilience of the natural

3:45

world. The

3:48

giant sequoias, Sequoia dendron

3:50

giganteum, and coastal redwoods,

3:53

Sequoia sempervirens, thrive

3:55

in California due to the

3:57

region's unique climate and topography.

4:01

Giant sequoias are found on the

4:03

western slopes of the Sierra Nevada

4:05

mountain range, where the soil is

4:07

rich, the winters are cold, and

4:09

the summer days are dry. These

4:13

conditions, combined with periodic wildfires,

4:15

are crucial for the reproduction

4:17

of sequoias, as fire

4:19

releases seeds from their cones and

4:22

clears the ground for their growth.

4:25

Conversely, coastal redwoods prefer the

4:27

moist, fog-laden air of the

4:30

Pacific coast, extending from southern

4:32

Oregon to central California. The

4:35

fog provides a critical source of

4:38

moisture during the dry season, allowing

4:40

these trees to grow to staggering

4:42

heights. These

4:45

forests are not just collections of

4:47

trees, they are living legacies.

4:50

Some of these giants are

4:52

over 3,000 years

4:54

old, predating most of

4:57

the world's civilizations, predating

4:59

the rise of the ancient Greeks. They

5:03

have survived natural disasters, climate changes,

5:05

and human activity, though we have

5:07

put a good dent in them.

5:10

Standing as silent witnesses to

5:12

the passage of time, their

5:15

immense longevity and durability make

5:17

them invaluable for scientific research

5:20

and environmental conservation. To

5:23

truly grasp the enormity of these

5:25

natural giants, let's compare them

5:27

to a symbol of human achievement.

5:30

The Statue of Liberty Standing

5:33

tall with her torch, the

5:35

Statue of Liberty reaches a height of

5:37

about 305 feet from the ground to

5:39

the tip of the flame. In

5:42

contrast, the tallest known coastal

5:44

redwood towers into the sky

5:46

at a staggering 379 feet, dwarfing

5:51

Lady Liberty. Imagine

5:54

if a few were planted right next to her, or

5:57

if she were hidden amongst the

5:59

great forests. of the West. It

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is one thing to admire the Statue

6:03

of Liberty, a marvel of human engineering

6:06

and creativity. It is another

6:08

to stand at the base of a

6:10

giant sequoia or coastal redwood, looking

6:13

up at a living entity that has

6:15

stood tall for millennia. A

6:17

being whose very existence challenges

6:20

the bounds of our imagination.

6:31

The Great Lakes Amidst

6:40

the arid landscapes of northern

6:42

Arizona, the Grand Canyon

6:44

carved a mile-deep gash through the

6:46

heart of the Colorado Plateau, stretching

6:49

over 277 miles from end-to-end. This

6:54

colossal chasm, visible from

6:56

space, is a

6:58

profound lesson in geological history,

7:01

revealing nearly two billion years

7:03

of the Earth's evolution through

7:06

its layered bands of rock. The

7:09

Grand Canyon's formation is a narrative

7:11

of erosion, powered by the relentless

7:13

force of the Colorado River. Over

7:16

millions of years, the river has sculpted

7:18

the landscape, carving deep into

7:20

the plateau and revealing the stratified

7:23

layers of Earth's crust. Each

7:26

layer tells a story, from

7:28

ancient Vishnu Shist at the bottom

7:31

to the relatively younger Kaibab

7:33

limestone, tapping the rim. To

7:37

comprehend the immense scale of the Grand

7:39

Canyon, one might compare

7:41

it to a human-made structure known

7:43

for its grandiosity. Here

7:46

the Burj Khalifa in Dubai,

7:48

the tallest building in the world, reaching

7:51

a staggering 2,717 feet into the sky.

8:00

It would be dwarfed if you placed it at

8:02

the bottom of the Grand Canyon, which

8:05

plunges to depths of over 6,000 feet

8:08

at its deepest point. You'd

8:10

need to stand two Burj

8:13

Khalifas on top of each other

8:16

to come close but still not

8:18

reach the rim. And

8:21

to think, people hike rim to rim, heading

8:23

all the way down to the river and

8:25

back up the other side. Not

8:28

for me. And that's

8:30

just its depth. The state of

8:32

Indiana stretches about 140 miles

8:35

from east to west at its widest point,

8:38

almost exactly half the

8:40

length of the Grand Canyon. The

8:44

Grand Canyon is more than just a spectacle of

8:46

size. It's a mosaic of

8:49

ecosystems, a refuge for endemic wildlife,

8:51

and a cultural heritage site from

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Native American tribes who have inhabited

8:55

the region for thousands of years.

8:59

Its immense walls and vast expanses

9:01

have witnessed the passage of time

9:03

from the earliest explorers to the

9:05

millions of visitors who stand at

9:08

its rim each year. Nestled

9:26

in the southwestern corner of Utah,

9:28

Zion National Park is a sanctuary

9:31

of towering cliffs, deep canyons, and

9:33

the serene beauty of the Virgin

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River. The park is

9:37

renowned for its soaring rock formations

9:40

which rise dramatically from the canyon

9:42

floor, presenting a stark contrast

9:44

to the sky above. Zion

9:47

is a bit different from the Grand

9:49

Canyon as you don't really

9:51

gaze into its abyss when you arrive,

9:53

rather you enter at the canyon

9:56

floor. But

10:00

how tall are those cliffs, really?

10:03

Tall enough that rock climbers take

10:06

two days to summit their sheer faces,

10:09

opting to overnight intents suspended

10:12

off the side of the cliff walls.

10:15

Zion's iconic cliffs are composed

10:18

of Navajo sandstone, sculpted

10:20

by the forces of erosion over millions

10:22

of years. This sandstone,

10:24

known for its high iron oxide

10:27

content, glows with hues

10:29

of oranges, reds, and whites, changing

10:32

with the light of day. The

10:34

great white throne reaching 2400

10:37

feet above the canyon floor and angels

10:39

landing with its summit at 1488 feet

10:41

above the

10:44

Virgin River are prime

10:46

examples of this geological artistry.

10:49

Their formation tells the story of

10:51

ancient deserts, compacted sands,

10:54

and the relentless work of water and

10:56

wind. To grasp the

10:59

scale of Zion's rock walls, one

11:02

might look to something like the Empire

11:04

State Building, a symbol of human

11:06

aspiration rising 1454 feet into the New

11:08

York skyline, about the same height

11:13

as angels landing. But

11:15

you'd have to plop a Chrysler building on

11:18

top of the Empire State Building to

11:21

get up to the great white throne. In

11:26

the heart of Colorado's San

11:28

Luis Valley, Liza landscape seemingly

11:30

borrowed from another world, the

11:33

Great Sand Dunes National Park and

11:35

Preserve. This remarkable site

11:37

is home to the tallest

11:39

dunes in North America, a

11:42

sea of sand at the foot of

11:44

the Sangre de Cristo Mountains that

11:47

also challenges our perceptions of scale.

11:50

The dunes definitely feel like they

11:52

don't belong in Colorado or

11:55

even North America, more like Northern

11:57

Africa. They owe their existence.

12:00

to a unique combination of

12:02

geological and meteorological conditions. Sediments

12:05

from the surrounding mountains have been carried

12:08

by water to the valley floor for

12:10

thousands of years. Here

12:12

opposing wind patterns trap the

12:14

sand, piling it into

12:16

dunes that rise over 750

12:19

feet from their

12:21

base. The star of

12:23

this sandy ensemble is the

12:25

star dune, the tallest of them all.

12:28

Imagine if you will surrounding

12:30

Mount Rushmore in the Black Hills

12:33

of South Dakota with these great

12:35

sand dunes. Mount Rushmore

12:37

stands around 500 feet high,

12:40

impressive in its own right, but

12:42

the president's eyes would barely be

12:44

halfway up the dunes. The

12:47

great pyramid of Giza would look

12:49

like one of the smallest dunes.

12:52

Just a bit of the Eiffel Tower would

12:55

surpass the top of Star Dune. Looking

12:58

upon the great sand dunes offers

13:01

an immersive experience into an environment

13:03

that continually shifts and evolves under

13:05

the forces of nature. Climbing

13:07

these dunes is a journey through

13:10

soft yielding sands that challenge every

13:12

step, rewarding the persistent

13:14

with panoramic views that bridge

13:16

desert sands and mountain ranges.

13:22

In the Chihuahuan desert of New

13:24

Mexico beneath the rugged landscape lies

13:27

a hidden world of wonder, Carlsbad

13:30

Caverns National Park. This

13:33

subterranean giant is

13:35

a complex of more than 119 caves formed

13:38

from limestone and sculpted by

13:42

sulfuric acid, not merely water

13:44

erosion. The grandeur of

13:47

Carlsbad Caverns is not just in

13:49

its vast chambers and intricate formations,

13:52

but in the profound silence that echoes

13:54

through its ancient halls. The

13:57

centerpiece of Carlsbad Caverns is to be a part of the

13:59

world of the world. big room, a

14:01

natural limestone chamber so large

14:04

that it could house six football fields.

14:07

At over 4,000 feet long, 625 feet wide, and 255 feet high

14:09

at its highest point, the big room

14:16

is one of the largest cave chambers

14:18

by volume in North America. This

14:21

underground expanse is adorned with

14:23

stalactites, stalagmites, and an array

14:26

of other formations that present

14:28

a fantastical cathedral formed

14:30

over millions of years. Let's

14:33

consider it in relation to a

14:35

modern architectural marvel, the

14:38

Sydney Opera House. Known

14:40

for its distinctive sail-like design, the

14:42

Sydney Opera House is one of

14:44

the world's most famous and distinctive

14:47

buildings and a masterpiece of 20th

14:49

century architecture. It has three

14:51

venues and a capacity of 5,700 people. You

14:56

could fit at least two

14:59

Sydney Opera Houses into

15:01

just the big room of

15:04

Carlsbad Caverns. Venturing

15:07

into Carlsbad Caverns is

15:09

akin to stepping onto another planet.

15:12

The path into the big room descends more than

15:15

750 feet below the surface, leading visitors through

15:19

narrow passageways that open into the

15:22

vast chambers of breathtaking experience. The

15:25

experience is surreal, a

15:27

journey through time and elemental force

15:30

where every drip of water continues

15:32

to sculpt the cave's features ever

15:35

so slowly, even today.

15:49

From the towering sequoias and redwoods of

15:51

California to the deep chasm of the

15:53

Grand Canyon, which dwarfs our

15:55

tallest skyscrapers in both scale and history,

15:58

these comparisons the

16:00

natural and the man-made serve not

16:03

only to illustrate the immense scale

16:05

of these natural features, but

16:08

also to highlight the unique value

16:10

and irreplaceable beauty of the natural

16:13

world. While

16:15

human ingenuity has given rise

16:17

to marvels of architecture and

16:19

engineering, the works of nature

16:22

sculpted over millions of years illustrate

16:25

the power and artistry of

16:28

the earth itself. Our

16:31

national parks protect these wonders,

16:34

ensuring that they remain untouched and

16:37

available for future generations to

16:39

explore. They remind us of

16:41

our responsibility to preserve the

16:43

natural world, not just

16:45

for its beauty and the joy it brings to

16:47

our lives, but for its

16:49

crucial role in sustaining

16:52

the ecosystems we rely

16:54

on. This

17:08

episode of America's National Parks was hosted by

17:10

me, Jason Epperson. If you enjoyed the show,

17:13

please consider leaving us a rating and a

17:15

review. If you're new here, make sure to

17:17

subscribe to the podcast to get

17:19

new episodes delivered to your feed. If

17:22

you're looking for photos and tips

17:24

about visiting national parks, check out

17:26

our America's National Parks Facebook group

17:28

and if you're interested in RV

17:30

travel, we hope you'll also check

17:33

out our RV Miles podcast and

17:35

YouTube channel. Today's show

17:37

was sponsored by Solo Stove. Use

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