THE PAINTED DESERT .....

The Painted Desert is a United States desert of badlands in the Four Corners area from the Grand Canyon National Park and into the Petrified Forest National Park.

Now.....here's where we have to get technical....so take a deep breath and pay attention.....!!!

The desert is composed of stratified layers of easily erodible siltstone, mudstone, and shale dating back to the Triassic Period (several millions of years ago). These fine grained rock layers contain abundant iron and manganese compounds which provide the pigments for the various colors of the region. Thin resistant limestone layers and volcanic flows cap the mesas. Numerous layers of volcanic ash occur in this Chinle Formation region (named for the nearby Navajo town of Chinle) and provide the silica for the petrified 'logs' of the area. The erosion of these layers has resulted in the formation of the what is called "the badlands" topography of the region.  (whew!!).
The bottom line is these stratified layers of stone provide multiple colors and can appear to change quite dramatically at various times of day due to how they are lighted by the sun.

The park has decent, albeit narrow, roads and very good pulloffs, thus allowing us to drive through and see the petrified logs and the painted desert with the motorhome and without having to unhook the Mini.....makes life a bit easier when these circumstances present themselves......here we are at a pulloff stop

This is a good time to note that Photos in this blog are courtesy of Pam....since I was driving she clicked away....and during the few times we stopped, she kept on taking photos.....a good job, eh?

And she clicked this one as I very patiently waited for her to finish up her photo session......!

An explanation of The Badlands Topography....(print is small but it is readable)

 

 

Enjoy these following photos of the Painted Desert........

 

 



The Painted Desert is yet another example of Nature at work....in the natural world art is everywhere....we simply have to keep our eyes open and notice it........

Next Issue....the Petrified Forest.