A few days ago we had the chance to explore Providence Canyon (also known as Georgia’s “Little Grand Canyon”). Since it was going to be my first visit out there, I spend some time exploring the area in Google Earth. They have a few maps available on their website, so I took one of those and overlaid it on Google Earth.
If you’d like that file for yourself, you can grab this KML file.
Interestingly, while the Grand Canyon was formed over the course of millions of years, Providence Canyon only took a few hundred. The story of its creation is quite amazing:
Georgia’s “Little Grand Canyon” is a testament to the power of man’s influence on the land. Massive gullies as deep as 150 feet were caused simply by poor farming practices during the 1800s, yet today they make some of the prettiest photographs within the state. The rare Plumleaf Azalea grows only in this region and blooms during July and August when most azaleas have lost their color. The canyon soil’s pink, orange, red and purple hues make a beautiful natural painting at this quiet park.
In addition, here’s a fun 360 “photo sphere” that I took inside of the canyon:
You can learn more about Providence Canyon on the Georgia State Parks website.
About Mickey Mellen
Mickey has been using Google Earth since it was released in 2005, and has created a variety of geo-related sites including Google Earth Hacks. He runs a web design firm in Marietta, GA, where he lives with his wife and two kids.