Pastel Paradise

April 16, 2012 by rodeonexis

“The most arid, most hostile, most lonesome, most grim, bleak, barren, desolate, and savage quarter of the state of Utah — the best part by far.” –Edward Abbey Though there are a LOT of breathtaking vistas to be seen in Utah, Mr. Abby definitely has a point. 337,570 acres of standing, tilted, and broken red rock lay homage to ancient times, but also ancient inhabitants as well. Even during the harshest of summer heat, the Anasazi people chiseled life into […]

Categories: Desert, Sunrise/Sunset • Tags: arches national monument, badlands, broken desert rock, buttes, Canyonlands National Park, colorado plateau, famous scenery, fingers of rock, HDR, Henry Mountains, Island in the sky, landscapes of the southwest, massive canyon, mesas, nature, outdoors, painted clouds, pastel colors, pink light, redrock, sunset visions, towers, travel, Utah photography, vacation, water and gravity, white rim trail

Buckled Rock

November 27, 2011 by rodeonexis

“The world of the Waterpocket Fold stretches 100 miles—and beyond” —Park Ranger “Many layers of originally horizontal sedimentary rock make up Waterpocket Fold. The layers formed from sediments deposited over hundreds of millions of years in seas, tidal flats, deserts, and other ancient environments. Regional mountain building bent, or flexed, rock layers into a huge fold (of the Earth’s crust). Many upper layers…have eroded away, leaving only a hint of the earlier Waterpocket Fold’s enormous size.” Read more through the […]

Categories: Desert, Sunrise/Sunset • Tags: Anticline, boulder, buckled sandstone, canyoneering in southern Utah, capitol reef national park, desert vista, early morning hike, Fremont River, HDR, Henry Mountains, Henryville, jeremy weir, Notom Bullfrog Rd, NP, NPS, OHV, Road to lake Powell, rocky wash, Rodeonexis Photography, sheer forces of nature, sunrise colors, tectonic plate movement, Upper Muley Twist Canyon, utah, water and erosion, Waterpocket Fold

Ain’t the San Rafael Swell?

May 19, 2011 by rodeonexis

Early settlers who encountered the San Rafael Swell considered it a reef, due to it’s blockage of their trail through the West. Even to this day, it stands as a massive 75 x 40 mile obstacle to through the heart of Utah canyon country.   Though peppered with desert towns such as Green River, Price, Hanksville, and Torrey, the expanses of the San Rafael Swell are mostly uninhabited. Only miles of high desert, sandstone buttes, and sparse cottonwood trees call […]

Categories: Desert, Mountains, Sunrise/Sunset • Tags: caineville, capitol reef, capitol reef national park, desert sunrise, eerie desert, Green River, Hanksville Utah, Henry Mountains, Henry mtns, high desert, Lake Powell, Mojave sandstone, rock erosion, rock features, san rafael swell, sunrise in the desert, Torrey Utah, Utah photography, watercolor sunrise

Sunrise, Sunset Point

May 11, 2011 by rodeonexis

“This is the least visited National Park in all of Utah, I recon” – Anonymous Old Timer You might have heard these words before, but little can prepare you for the rugged, yet simplistic beauty of Capitol Reef NP, outside of Torrey, Utah. Not only is the terrain challenging to the meanest mechanized vehicles, but you will see fewer than a handful of visitors during your whole journey throughout the vast park. This portion of canyoneering counrty offers some of […]

Categories: Desert, Mountains, Sunrise/Sunset • Tags: capitol reef, desert sunrise, Green River, Hanksville Utah, Henry Mountains, Henry mtns, high desert, Lake Powell, Mojave sandstone, rock erosion, rock features, san rafael swell, sunrise in the desert, Torrey Utah, utah, utah desert, watercolor sunrise