A close image of the color bands and undulating strata of the Fire Wave illuminated under orange twilight skies a few minutes after sunset, the Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.

This is the first post from the past week’s photography trip to the southwest with good friends Josh Krasner and Sky Matthews. We had a great time working our way through inspiring winter landscapes in the areas between Monument Valley and Death Valley National Park, and we learned a lot from each other and together in the unending quest to try to become better photographers. Really enjoyed the outing and hope we can all hit the road again sometime.

Thanks for visiting!

Tags:   Valley of Fire State Park Nevada Landscape Sunset Nikon Strata Bands Color Geology Travel Rocks Red Rocks Southwest photobenedict Beautiful Scenery Twilight Desert Fire Wave Wave Formation Layers Las Vegas

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I often feel like there are countless beautiful places to see, but nowhere near enough time to see them all, much less to experience those environments as fully as I'd like. I felt this poignantly during a too-brief visit to the intricate badlands of Cathedral Gorge State Park near Panaca, Nevada.

The formations at Cathedral Gorge are unlike any other 'badlands' I've ever seen. Most of the better-known badlands in North America are borne of ancient sedimentary formations composed of accumulated prehistoric muds and sands formed into soft rock, and thus have that familiar rough, jagged, crumbly and sloping appearance. But the badlands at Cathedral Gorge are heavily infused with bentonite clay of volcanic origin, and as a result, stand in formations and maintain finer details not yet seen elsewhere at any scale in my experience.

Cathedral Gorge's long, winding escarpments are faced with what you could almost describe as ornate detailing, with countless nested shapes and spires, like architecture from centuries past when monarchs, prelates and the like were always trying to outdo the splendors commissioned by others of their ilk. Even more fun, these landscapes here are laced with very many very narrow slot canyons, most with clay walls rising so straight up and often smooth-surfaced that it almost defies the mind to understand that this isn't an elaborate art installation--the work of a mad sculptor on a great scale--rather than the ongoing simple erosion of this bentonite clay of fortunate constitution.

Thanks for viewing!

Tags:   Cathedral Gorge State Park Nevada Lincoln County Sunset Beautiful Night Nikon Landscape Travel photobenedict Badlands Slot Canyon Color Autumn Fall Evening Bentonite Volcanic Interesting Geology

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