Factory Butte

When picturing a desert in your mind the colors of the sand usually stay around a light tan to orange or red. But have you ever seen a desert with sand as black as night? There’s a portion of Central Utah that is dominated by large butte formation made of a deep black shale. As it erodes it covers the surrounding landscape with waves of dark sand.

These Blacks and Browns gave a beautiful sense of movement across the horizon. The sun glinted off the sparkles in the sand from the crystals that covered its surface. The tall towers that stuck out of the ground like castles built long ago.

One particular tower surrounded by cliffs on all sides reaching out like fingers stood out to me with how it reached out of the sands that surrounded it. A place called The Dark Spire stands tall surrounded by its wall of stone on all sides. A beautiful view from up top the stone platforms

Escalante

After wandering the dark landscapes of Hanksville I drove further south where the sands were petrified into the landscape. Driving around the edge of Boulder Mountain you can see far out into the distance. White and red sandstone peak above the grasslands with strong shrubs and trees hold on to anything that they can

As you get deeper into the park there is a place hidden among the hills of white sandstone. A hole filled with bright orange sand and purple streaking through the walls of rock. To see this hill of undisturbed sand was a treat to capture

With all the wide open spaces there must also be cramped winding tunnels. When rain does come through these lands the water pools inside these slot canyons and carves them deeper and deeper over time. Squeezing through the tight spaces you get to see how the water erodes away the rock and creates beautiful patterns to get lost in.

Utah’s Favorites

Out of all the parks and beautiful nature in Utah there are two that are the most favorite among its residents. The high walled canyons of Zion National Park show the sands through the ages. From the tall white topped mountains and across the canyons covered in many different colors of red each layer contributes to its beauty. The view from the top of Angels landing across a thin line of land shows the best of this ravine

Higher up in the hills of Easter Utah sits Arches National Park and the icon of the state ,Delicate Arch. Dunes frozen in time and rocks stacked on top of one another. Arches being held up high in the mountains