Canyonslands National Park

We have still been getting rain and heavy clouds every day here in Moab.  We decided that as long as it was no worse than showers, it would be a good day to drive the 40 minutes into Canyonlands.  We got some short hikes in and the rain held off, but the pictures were a challenge.

Canyonlands is the Green River's version of the Grand Canyon.  It is astounding to see how much rock and dirt a river can erode if you give it a few million years.

The patterns and shapes are on such a massive scale that it is hard to capture them effectively.

Sometimes, when the weather is cloudy and dark, the most interesting pictures come from looking down.  This plant hadn't started to leaf out yet, so this is its winter appearance.  The little branches were incredibly intricate.

As the day wore on, more and more blue sky started showing up.  Here we have Julie without Jasper because the national parks are spiteful and don't let dogs on the trails.  At least it was a cool day and he was able to hang out in the car.

Sandstone "dunes" are everywhere in the park and they made a nice contrast with the clouds.

As I was processing the pictures, I started getting bored with all the grey clouds.  I cranked this one up in more of an HDR style photo of Julie at the top of Whale Rock.

I'm typing this blog on Friday morning and there isn't a cloud in the sky. The high pressure system has taken over and the rain is gone.