“Canyon Trees, Layered Rocks, Autumn” — Layered rocks and small trees with the last leaves of autumn, Utah.
This was a magical spot at a deeply-shadowed bend in the canyon of an Utah River. A small group of us had spent the morning working our way slowly through a section of red rock canyon, alternating between sun in the straight sections and shade where the river inevitably made the next bend. At every bend we would peek around the corner, see something interesting, and say, “Just to the next bend.” Finally, we ran out of time at this point, photographed here, then turned around and started back.
“Autumn Tree, Sculpted Sandstone” — A cottonwood trree with autumn foliage grows next to a sculpted sandstone cliff.
A group of us ventured down into a narrow Utah canyon, lined with red rock walls and dotted with autumn trees. A creek flowed along its length, and the soft sound of its moving water was never far away. With the fall colors and the colorful rock faces there were photographs everywhere. Not surprisingly, our progress was slow… but very productive.
Although it might see counter-intuitive for a place like Death Valley National Park, these mountains typically are snow-capped in the winter. The highest point in the Panamint Range is Telescope Peak, at an elevation of just above 11,000′. That puts it in the alpine zone, and although moisture is usually scarce here, when it does come it can produce snow at that elevation. A cold storm had recently passed, and the snow level in the photo is lower than usual.
“Photographer, Canyon Country” — Photographer at work deep in a Southwest Utah canyon.
Deserts offer few clues about the scale of the landscape. Unlike forest scenes, where trees often provide a frame of reference, plants play a lesser role. Even when there are plants it can be unclear from a distance whether they are large trees or small shrubs. Here the inclusion of the human figure clarifies the scale of the grand Utah red rock landscape.
