This is one big sandbox! Don't faint from the heat!”
— Instruction manual description • Kirby's Dream Land 3
Sand Canyon is a level in Kirby's Dream Land 3. It is an arid desert land with many craggy rocks and sandy deserts. There is also a volcanic crater and even a bizarre pyramid that looks like it came from another world. This becomes obvious when Kirby enters inside it.
Kirby, Rick, and Coo are batting Gooey around like a ball. Gooey lands behind on the flower ChuChu is gazing at, and she turns around and scolds everyone. Everyone feels sorry, so Gooey decides to lighten her up by tickling her with his tongue from behind. A startled ChuChu turns around and instinctively punches an astonished Gooey who flies into a wall, making everyone, especially herself, embarrassed (and somewhat shocked) by her temper.
Sand Canyon is the third level in Kirby's Dream Land 3. It is one of many deserts of Dream Land. Its rough terrain may seem inhospitable to plant life, but this isn't the case. There are three separate musical themes associated with it, the second is a remix of the Gourmet Race theme. A remix of the third theme was used for the research facility in Stage 4 of Patched Plains in Kirby: Planet Robobot.
Etymology
Sand Canyon's name may be based off of the name of the Grand Canyon, a real-life landmark in the North America.
Trivia
The level is very similar in appearance to the planet Rock Star in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards. The black pyramid here is very similar to the one visible in the landscape in Rock Star, which is later entered right before the boss fight.
The monolithic structures that appear in the backgrounds of Stages 3, 4, and 6 are based off those of Stonehenge, a well-known, ancient monument.
The pyramid's black exterior may have been inspired by the black mineral the ancient Egyptians used to cover the Great Pyramid of Giza centuries ago in the real world.[1]
