Canyonlands NP

This is my second post on this national park in Utah. I visited there in 2011 with Howard Dingle on a trip home from Scottsdale, AZ. Again, I was on my way home, this time with Rolande and made an overnight stop at Moab, UT. I arose early for a photo tour with a local photographer/guide, Jon Fuller.

I really wanted another look at Canyonlands and I was not disappointed. I was very satisfied with the photographs I was able to get and very much appreciated some tips I got from Jon. The weather was excellent, albeit a little chilly at 6:30 am.  I was  fortunate to have partly cloudy skies, to cast some nice shadows and to complement the scenes at sunrise.

Here’s the first picture, a sunrise scene taken from Buck Point facing eastward. Interestingly, the white rim you see around the edges of Buck Canyon is White Rim Sandstone, a naturally occurring rock found extensively on canyon rims throughout the park.

For the next picture, I turned my attention southward at 90 degrees to the direction of the first picture. The sun has risen by this time and I’ve captured the direct sunlight striking the canyon wall.

From Buck Point we moved on to a great location, Candlestick Tower Overlook, facing westward with the sun behind us. This scene is beautifully complemented by the clouds blowing in our direction.

Of course, I couldn’t show pictures from this location without including one showing its namesake landmark, Candlestick Tower, seen to the right just beyond the canyon wall bordering that side of the scene.

While at this same location, I couldn’t help but notice an ancient Utah Juniper. It stood alone on a small pinnacle and was a very striking tree. It’s trunk spirals upward, completing two complete rotations. As Jon observed, its trunk completes a full 720 degree turn. You’ll also note the reddish reflection from the adjacent rock on the bottom of the trunk.

My favourite picture of the day was another Utah Juniper, this one perched on the canyon’s edge. It’s very picturesque by itself but I really like it with the stunning background of the canyon and the clouds.

I completed my excursion with a visit to Dead Horse Point State Park, adjacent to Canyonlands and featuring a dramatic overlook of the Colorado River and the national park.

Canyonlands covers a vast area, 527 sq. miles (1,366 km²), ranking it among the larger U.S. National Parks. In two visits I have barely scratched the surface, confident in the knowledge there remain many great photographs yet to be taken. I look forward to the opportunity to return.