#devils garden

[lemonlimekodkod]

[thomaswaynewolf]

[rabbitcruiser]

Devils Garden, Arches National Park (No. 3)

The Devils Garden Trail meanders between sheer walls of sandstone fins. The fins were created when vertical cracks in a thick layer of sandstone were eroded and widened by water—either scoured by runoff from rainfall and snow melt, or pried and exfoliated by ice expansion. These stone formations may only last a few thousand years—a short time on the geologic time scale. The events that led to the arches, fins, and other rock shapes began about 300 million years ago, when seas periodically covered the area. The seas became trapped in low-lying areas and then evaporated, leaving salt beds up to 5,000 ft (1,524 m) thick in some places. Sand, silt and clay subsequently accumulated on top of the salt deposits over millions of years. The uneven weight and pressure of these overlying sediments squeezed the salt into an anticline (a domed ridge). Overlying horizontal rock layers bulged upward and cracked vertically allowing rainwater to trickle down and dissolve the salt away.

As the salt receded, the overlying rock burden sank with it. Salt Valley, located to the immediate southwest, is an example of the resulting landform. At the edges of the valley, where Devils Garden is located, the cracked rock was slightly pulled apart. Rain and snow soaked into the vertical cracks, which dissolved the cementing minerals and loosened grains of sand to be carried away by running water. As the cracks widened, tall fins were left standing. Weak zones in fins were either dissolved by naturally occurring acids in rainwater or wedged apart by freezing and thawing water, and openings developed into the various arches seen presently.

Source: Wikipedia

[jmpphoto]

Metate Arch View by James Marvin Phelps Via Flickr: Metate Arch View Devil’s Garden Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Escalante, Utah April 2023

[thorsenmark]

Silence is the Way Some Feel Grief (Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: Silence is the Way Some Feel Grief An empty quietness that seems so hard to fill Distractions can help to fill in that void It seems for a time, mainly Then I look at these wonders Ages and eons have passed They stoically watch as time moves by Winds and floods have they have witnessed They stand and my troubles seem to naught Another work of short poetry or prose to complement the image captured one afternoon in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument while walking the Devils Garden. The setting is looking to the west across a grassy field to eroded sandstone formations present in this part of the national monument and Utah. My thinking in composing this image was to have a balanced, leveled-on view looking to the horizon. From a high ground perch that I was standing on, I would be able to angle my Nikon SLR camera to create a sweeping view across the grassy field leading up to the formations. I decided to keep them a little off centered as I felt the cliffs off in the distance added a balance the image. The blue skies and clouds would be that color contrast to complement the earth-tones in the lower portion of the image.

[lionfloss]

The Devil's Garden (Karen Portin)

[moonipulations]

THE WATCHER – Photography by Edgar Erglis

Full moon rising over the Devils Garden at Escalante area, Bryce Canyon, Utah.

Devils Garden is a natural playground located in Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument about 17 miles southeast of Escalante. This surreal high desert landscape is accented by natural sandstone arches, hoodoos and monoliths colorfully sculpted over 170 million years by wind, ice, and thermal erosion. Distinct layers of red and white sandstone, blended with erosion-resistant caprock, create some of the area’s most notable rock formations such as Metate Arch, Mano Arch, Gnome Rock, the Marching Trolls, and the Four Wise Men.

[christophermfowler]

Devil’s Garden | Escalante, UT | October 2019