Capitol Reef is so beautiful. It doesn't take long to be reduced to "holy cow, look at that." There will be a lot of red rock photos in the coming days.
We drove out Hwy 24, turned on Notom, and then went down a dirt road so we could see this. It's unfortunate the sun was not out.
Erosion does all of this. Different sedimentary layers were deposited when this area was under water. The layers compressed, the water receded. And then erosion started and made all of this gorgeous rock. Different layers erode at different rates.
A canyon at the end of Notom road. Notice the rain in the distance.
After Notom road we continued down Hwy 24 towards Hanksville. It's an amazing drive. The scenery out there exceeded expectations.
I love how these shapes are revealed as the various rock layers erode.
An art installation in Hanksville. I think it's a dinosaur museum.
On the way back from Hanksville there was more rock to be photographed. Look at the precision of the layers here.
This is Factory Butte. The pioneers named it that because it reminded them of a woolen mill in Provo.
Here is some rock being revealed in the vertical.
I love this, look at the gracefulness of the curves in the rocks.
Here we are back near the park. It rained a lot there while we were gone. You can see the monocline here. A monocline is a is a step-like fold in rock strata. There's a lot of geology in this park. I keep reading the articles and not really comprehending it. Basically it's upthrust due to clashing tectonic plates.
Chimney Rock. It looks like a chimney.
Is this not staggeringly beautiful?
Since we were last in Torrey the RV Park has upgraded their wifi - it's very usable. It comes and goes, but when it's up it's good.
Holy cow, look at that!" is all I've ever been able to say about the west. I'm bred and born Ohio, pure mid western. But my mother had a wandering foot, as she said, and several summer vacations were west, north to Washington, south to Arizona. There was no en-suite entertainment back then, just the scenery. I never quit watching. The shadows of the clouds on the mountains mesmerized me. Couldn't live there, at least not without a lot of acclimatization, but it sure is great to look at.
ReplyDeleteI think those are some of the most beautiful mountains in the west, and it's all because of erosion. I love that they have named everything ... teapot, chimney, the factory ... VERY cool place!! Great pictures!
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful place, even under cloudy skies. Happy hiking!
ReplyDeleteHow free you are, modern day explorers. It's wonderful to witness.
ReplyDeleteit is so beautiful. I remember one of the river trips I was on as a guide through the Lower Canyons of the Rio Grande and by the second day we ran out of words to describe the beauty.
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