Utah's Canyonlands

This will largely be a photo journal travelling some of the best of the canyons in the US located in National Parks in Utah from Saturday 18 September and 22 September 2010. We were fortunate to meet up with hikers in Glacier NP who were familiar with the NP's and recommended the areas visited.  We set out a selection of 659 photographs taken over the five days.

Zion National Park in the south-west, Utah.

A view from the information centre at Zion.  This was the first of the canyons visited and was such an incredible place.  However there was more to come.

The cooling tower cooled and hydrated the hot dry air naturally blowing through wet grills at the top then flowing down the tower into the building.  The cool air was very pleasant inside the building.  In winter warmth was provided from thermal walls on the south (sunny side) of the building from the low angle winter sun.

Another view from the information centre

Huge sandstone bluffs

A rugged landscape with trees on some valley floor and stunted trees on plateaus.

Every corner turned gave something different.  Here tallus slopes carry the sparse vegetation.

Bryce Canyon National Park.

Located 83 miles north east of Zion off National Scenic Byway 12 - Utah's All-American Road, an experience all of its own.

This and more in Bryce and Byway 12

Be amazed by the variety

Hoodoos atop massive sandstone buttes

It just gets better!

Conifers appearing on the canyon floor in some places were numerous but small, mostly P. ponderosa.

A wider view showing low scub vegetation in sandy soil above the pinnacles.

Hard caps on the pinnacles, referred to as "hoodoos", give protection from erosion until evetnually they also wear away the the structure weathers down.

A closer view showing the pine covered Paunsaugunt plateau behind.

Accentuated small Hoodoo clearly showing the hard cap.

Ampithearter of the wide variety within Bryce.

Following a day in Bryce we had to retreat to Hatch on Highway 89 where we had styed the previous night as accommodation was at a premium through the area.  However it gave us another chance to view Route 12 at a different time of day.  Hatch was a small community being a relic from an eary period.

Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument and Capitol Reef National Park.

This day gave us a chance to travel most of the Scenic Byway 12 as far as Boulder where we headed down the Burr Trail, named after one by that name who developed the road and set up cattle ranching, now little in evidence.  the trail had been recently sealed through the Monument area but gave way to a dirt road through the NP - definitely only dry weather.  It was however spectacular.

 

It was spectacular!

And kept getting better.

Off the plateau a steep dirt road wound down through a sandstone gorge

In the sand at the edge of the road.  We did not pester the resident.

There was some water in the park.  Part of an historic irrigation scheme still in use supplying water via dug channels and in this part a natural waterway.  Not too dissimilar to the new Kakahu scheme in South Canterbury, NZ.

The variety continues.

Get up high for that special photo.

The huge plateau goes on forever it seems.

A closer view of the woody vegetation.  The pine trees had changed to the Colorado pinyon pine,  Pinus edulis

producing edible seed kernels.  Handy for chipmunks.

Canyonlands National Park 21 September 2010

 

On Highway 24 from Hanksville to Canyonlands.  Both side the of the Highway fanced but grazing is sparse and no stock were seen but generally will still be on higher forest licence land.

Hoodoos on the grasslands

The open grasslands at between 5000 and 6000 feet ASL

Breakfast cookup at Horse Thief Campground on entering the park.  The motel as Hanksville had a sign behind the door "no cooking in the rooms" yet had a microwave in the unit ???

It is a hard existense, just hanging on to life.

Some don't make the grade but may be hundreds of years old.  Not referring to the one under the hat.

Others are very well adapted and flourish

Very few cactii.  The winter may be just too severe.

Canyonlands is central in the Colorado Plateau and this view clearly illustrates how the canyons have formed eroding down from the high plateau.

To become a tourist and recreation mecca.

With landscapes like this and it is not the remains of an abandoned castle.

Eating again.

Walking off the food along maked routes.

The plateau eroding to form the spectacular landscapes.



The last of Utah's canyonlands parks visited.  Located near the former mining prospecting town of Moab, now appears to be a tourist town after the demise of a flurry of oil and uranium proecting in the 1940's - 1960's.

The park is well named for the naturally eroded arches.

Kath had a perchant for taking these images.

After an almost cloudless few days puffs of cloud appear.

One of many towers. The hard cap is gradually weathering away producing the rounded top.

Balanced rock.  Not the only one that could claim the title.

Then what is this one?

Precarious columns

and this one!

 

Dinner plates!  Hoodoos forming.

The bit that fell off.

The plants have adapted to the climate.

Early morning sun created a mystique about the place.

It was not long before threatening thunderstorm clouds filled the arches as forcast.

A tropical warm air mass was due to be cooled by a cold polar blast.

Perhaps someone did once live here?

We left Arches about lunchtime aborting a side trip to Canyon Rims BLM recreation area overlooking the Colorado River and Canyonlands NP due to the threatening storm and continued through heavy rain to Moniticello where we caught up with BLM field staff and booked in early to accommodation before it was all booked up.  The storm came during compiling these photographs.  Good shelter is being appreciated.  We soon head due east to Kentucky for the World Equestrian Games leaving desert and canyons behind.