The Twisted Forms and Many Colors of the Red Cliffs. Or, Maybe You Want To Skip This Post if You Don’t Want to Look at Rocks.
After returning from Grand Staircase-Escalante, we ventured back to the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area for a hike. Upon our arrival I decided we should head southwest from the Cottonwood Canyon Trailhead towards one of my favorite areas of petrified dunes. As with our past hikes in the Red Cliffs we crossed open country, this time roughly paralleling one of the larger canyons to the west for a couple miles until we reached the plateau where twisted forms of sandstone capped with iron oxide lay scattered about and clusters of Liesegang rings were imprinted in rock. From here we roughly followed our route from last March south climbing up the petrified dunes, walking their ridge lines, and exploring more of the patterns, tie-dyed swirls, and stripes of the Red Cliffs. It’s a really interesting and beautiful area, and one I was happy to explore again. Though we were in the same general area as a previous hike, we definitely did not follow the same path, allowing both Tom and I to see new formations, plus our return route followed a different wash which provided new climbing opportunities over some small dry falls.
Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Spotted rocks, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Pine Mountains from Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Abbs and I at snack time, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Twisted sandstone and iron deposits, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Mineral blooms of iron oxide, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Iron oxide deposits with red cliffs and Pine Mountains in background, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
More twisted iron deposits, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
The patterns and many colors of the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Petrified dunes, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Petrified dunes, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Petrified dunes, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
More iron oxide in the sandstone, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
More iron oxide, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Petrified dunes, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
A UFO rock? Concentric circles in the sandstone, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Hiking across the sandstone, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
More petrified dunes, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Stripes, Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, Utah
Such beautiful photos!
Thanks so much, Holly!
Love rocks. Pretty sure most of those are the result of Extraterrestrial Mayan Templar Sasquatches however. Did they smell like cabbage?
I have it on good authority that these rocks were deposited here as a part of a Free Mason Conspiracy, David, but I’m not ruling anything out at this point.
Beautiful photos! Looks like a great place.
Thank you, ErinJoelle! It’s an incredible place and one I love to hike at.