Where Age and Beauty Converge!

…The landscape everywhere, away from the river, is of rock –

cliffs of rock;

plateaus of rock;

terraces of rock;

crags of rock –

ten thousand strangely carved forms.

                                                                Major John Wesley Powell

Welcome to the Canyonlands—a geology showcase where age and beauty converge; a place where the Green and Colorado Rivers meet and common landforms (mesas, spires, canyons, buttes and arches) are plenty.

As best explained by Edward Abbey, "The most weird, wonderful, magical place on earth—there is nothing else like it anywhere.” The Canyonlands are divided into three distinct districts—”Island in the Sky” (a mesa that towers above the Canyonlands), “The Needles” (a group of tall rock spires) and “The Maze” (named for its many confusing canyons and gorges) covering over 337,000 acres in southeastern Utah. Each district is accessed from different areas and Venzaliner Journey highlights included a trip up Deadhorse Point to peer upon the Island in the Sky, a four-wheel drive jaunt down potash road compliments of Geologist John, several pictograph (painting on rock) and petroglyph (carving on rock) viewings, a few nights at Indian Creek BLM campground in “The Needles” district, an exploratory hike to what I deemed the "Hamburger Sliders", and a hike around Elephant Canyon with CPA John and Geologist John. 

 

Isaac Newton once said,"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." This is almost my thoughts exactly but maybe better said by Bernard of Chartres, “We are like dwarves perched on the shoulders of giants.” Ah, here I am, perched high above on Deadhorse Point…what do you think?

For movie buffs—this is where one of the most iconic scenes in movie history was created by BFFs Thelma & Louise—(approximately frame 1:16 you can see Deadhorse point in the background).

For those interested in geography and history, know that it was impossible to stand atop this point without wondering how and when this beautiful expanse was created.  Here’s a basic chart of the Canyonland geology layers which date back 150 – 300 million years ago from the Jurassic to the Pennsylvanian periods.

With the geology layers in mind, click here to see where age and beauty converged over several days in the Canyonlands, on the Venzaliner journey.  

Yes, Utah Rocks and Thelma and Louise live on!