Rock Patterns, Mosaic Canyon. Death Valley National Park, California. March 27, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.
Folded and twisted rock forms in Mosaic Canyon, Death Valley National Park, California.
Although this formation is found very near the entrance to the canyon, on this visit I also managed to wander further up the canyon than I have in the past, discovering very different and far more open terrain that what I had seen before. Mosaic Canyon, a short drive up the hill from Stovepipe Wells, is known for its very narrow and twisty lower section, its access to higher regions of the Mount Tucki area, and the striking and unusual rock formations laid bare by erosion from water traveling down the canyon in past floods.
In the lower canyon there is a section where this beautifully banded rock runs alongside the trail. Sometimes that patterns are a bit hard to see, but this time it appeared that recent rains and the soft afternoon shaded light brought them out a bit more. This section featured ribbon-like folds in the surface of the rock that must have been created by water erosion.
This photograph is not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.
G Dan Mitchell Photography | Twitter | Friendfeed | Facebook | Facebook Fan Page | Email
Technical Data:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM at 105mm
ISO 100, f/11, 1/8 second
keywords: death valley, national, park, california, usa, north america, scenic, travel, nature, desert, mosaic, canyon, trail, rock, pattern, fold, twist, geology, groove, curve, crack, pink, abstract, texture, nature, erosion, travel, scenic, stock
Hi Dan,
I stumbled on your site from FredMiranda. I am very impressed with your work and enjoyed reading the details about your recent shot here. This shot, especially caught my eye. Great work.
Gordon
Hi Gordon:
Thanks for dropping by, and thanks for your kind words!
Dan
Tom, thanks – that makes a lot of sense. My recollection is that there is little or no folding in these rocks. (What appears to be folding is actually the effect of the surface curved by erosion.)
Dan
As far as the rocks go, I believe they are playa deposits. The dark layers are mud and silt deposited by floods, the light colored beds are probably evaporites. Some marbles can look like this, but generally show the effects of metamorphism (like folded beds, beds that pinch out, etc). These appear pretty pristine.
Tom, I think of you every time I post any description of geology and hope that I get it correct. But I always appreciate your expert’s feedback on this stuff. Someone told me that this looks like marble – does that sound correct?
I do think your point about my description warrants some revision on my part since the term “ribbon-like” could easily be taken to refer to the pattern in the rock and not the “sculpting” of that rock. I think I’ll edit a bit….
Dan
I was having a little bit of trouble with your statement “This section featured ribbon-like folds in the rock that must have been created by water erosion.”
It is just hard to imagine how water erosion could produce folded beds (layers) in the rock. Then I realized that the lake beds were not folded, only appear to be folded because the rock face is sculpted and this sculpting is, in fact, the result of erosion by water.
Leave it to a geologist to get confused by terminology.