Golden Gate Photo - Canyonlands National Park Gallery

Golden Gate Photo - Canyonlands National Park Gallery
Fine Art Photography from Canyonlands National Park, Utah.

Canyonlands National Park is 527 square miles of wilderness. The park is situated in the Colorado Plateau and is separated by the carving action of the Colorado and Green Rivers into three districts:

To the north is the Island in the Sky District, named for the higher mesas wedged between the Colorado and Green Rivers. Here lies the classic southwestern landscape with cliffs dominated by the Jurassic-age Wingate Sandstone above the sloping Triassic-age shale and sandstone of the Chinle and Moenkopi Formations.

To the east is the Needles District. Here, underlying salt deposits of the Paradox Formation flow like toothpaste under the pressure from overlying strata. This warps and cracks the strata above, which subjects them to erosion. The result is a region of needles and spires formed in the Permian-age Cedar Mesa Sandstone.

To the west is the more remote Maze District. Formed similarly to the Needles District, this area contains numerous converging side canyons and slot canyons, fins, and standing rocks.

	Buck Canyon Overlook This view is towards the west from the Island in the Sky District. A stratus cloud left over from a summer monsoon thunderstorm looms mesa-high in this primordial scene. Print No. A97SW-22-3
	Grand View Sunrise Taken from Grand View Point Overlook. As the summer sun rises, it illuminates the southern edge of the Island in the Sky District. Print No. A97SW-20-7
	Upheaval Dome Nested within the Island in the Sky District, the formation of this amphitheater of tilted sediments was caused by a meteorite impact according to some, or an ancient salt dome according to others. The judge is still out, but with the surrounding evidence of salt deposits deforming overlying strata, my bet is with the latter explanation. Print No. A97SW-22-9
	Needles District Hoodoos This view near Big Spring Canyon Overlook shows several hoodoos. The hoodoos are flat-topped spires created as relatively soft strata erode below a more erosion-resistant cap rock. These hoodoos range from tens to hundreds of feet tall. Print No. B96-18

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