Valley of the Gods Panorama
This trip to Bears Ears National Monument in the southeast corner of Utah was focused on nightscapes and Indian ruins. This area of Utah is extremely rich in historical artifacts, including some spectacular granaries and dwellings. Almost every canyon contains evidence of extensive native habitation dating back to 1200AD. This part of the state also has truly dark night skies.
To see more photos from this trip, please visit the Utah 2017-05 location gallery here. Click on any image below to see a larger version.
Two of the more well-known Indian ruins are located relatively close to each other in Road Canyon and Mule Canyon.
Valley of the Gods is a scenic backcountry area in southeastern Utah, near Mexican Hat. It is a hidden gem with scenery similar to that of nearby Monument Valley. Valley of the Gods has isolated buttes, towering pinnacles and wide open spaces that seem to go on forever. Valley of the Gods offers scenery similar to Monument Valley without the tribal restrictions; it is located on BLM land and is open for hiking, backpacking and camping.
Valley of the Gods has some of the darkest skies in the nation, which allow the stars and Milky Way to be very visible.
Adjoining the Bears Ears monument is the Natural Bridges National Monument. The three bridges in this monument are a testament to the power of water in creating interesting sandstone bridges. These bridges take on a very different appearance after dark.
Finally, I visited the San Rafael Reef area, with its towering bluffs that once presented significant obstacles to westward migration through this region
This area of the Colorado Plateau continues to offer amazing photo opportunities, and draws me back time after time. To see more photos from this trip, please visit the Utah 2017-05 gallery here.
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