2014 30 Valley of Fire Park, Nevada
Hello All,
Early the next morning we departed Moab, Utah heading south towards Arizona where we would spend Thanksgiving with family and friends in the greater Phoenix area. While still in southern Utah we passed Mexican Hat Rock and stopped to shoot a few photos. Easy to see how it received the name, as it resembles an upside down Mexican sombrero.
Early the next morning we departed Moab, Utah heading south towards Arizona where we would spend Thanksgiving with family and friends in the greater Phoenix area. While still in southern Utah we passed Mexican Hat Rock and stopped to shoot a few photos. Easy to see how it received the name, as it resembles an upside down Mexican sombrero.
We suspect that not too far in the distant future it will succumb to erosion.
After a wonderful week with family and friends over the holiday we said our goodbyes and started our return trek home. Our chosen route took us through northwest Arizona and then into Nevada. We passed through the Lake Mead National Recreation Area with a target destination of Valley of Fire State Park. It is the oldest state park in Nevada and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1968.
We’ve visited the park on many occasions and never tire of the scenic desert landscapes it offers. It is also a good winter destination when much of the rest of the country is dealing with the norms of the season. During the winter months it generally has clear blue sky with mild temperatures—unlike the triple digit heat the park endures during the summer season.
The park derives its name from red sandstone formations, formed from great shifting sand dunes during the age of dinosaurs--150 million years ago. Geologists believe there was complex uplifting and faulting in the region, followed by extensive erosion that created the present day landscape.
In our opinion if you make a quick drive through the park you are doing yourselves a disservice. There is so much to see that it requires exploring the entire road system—gravel and paved. We find the many varied landscapes, formations, and colors provided by Mother Nature to be awe inspiring!
First we will show you some of the red sandstone vistas you can see in the park. It is easy to understand the Valley of Fire naming of the park.
We’ve visited the park on many occasions and never tire of the scenic desert landscapes it offers. It is also a good winter destination when much of the rest of the country is dealing with the norms of the season. During the winter months it generally has clear blue sky with mild temperatures—unlike the triple digit heat the park endures during the summer season.
The park derives its name from red sandstone formations, formed from great shifting sand dunes during the age of dinosaurs--150 million years ago. Geologists believe there was complex uplifting and faulting in the region, followed by extensive erosion that created the present day landscape.
In our opinion if you make a quick drive through the park you are doing yourselves a disservice. There is so much to see that it requires exploring the entire road system—gravel and paved. We find the many varied landscapes, formations, and colors provided by Mother Nature to be awe inspiring!
First we will show you some of the red sandstone vistas you can see in the park. It is easy to understand the Valley of Fire naming of the park.
And Beehive Rock here is one of the most photographed rocks in the park. It is a popular stop for most tourists.
One of our favorites is Poodle Rock. It just seems to jump out at you once you see it.
We find Natural Arch to be a good photo stop. It is located off of one of the gravel roads within the park.
These were just a few of the red sandstone features in the park—there are many others. However, now we want to show you the many different landscape colors Mother Nature has made available to visitors. You just have to do a bit of exploring to find them. In our eyes some of the landscapes are simply mind boggling. Our advice is to checkout all the park roads you can work into your visit, as they will take you into many different and colorful landscapes.
Oranges, pinks, whites, yellows and reds are just a few of the colors that make up these landscapes. It is awe inspiring for those of us that enjoy landscape photography.
Our intent in this write-up is to let the photos speak for themselves. Around every curve in the road there is a different perspective.
Some areas are candy striped while others are solid.
It is a real hoot slowly working your way down the roads. You just never know what’s around the next corner.
Much of the area is solid rock in many different colors. It is quite easy to walk on as long as you watch your step. This makes it great for covering a lot of country with many different perspectives.
The only thing we can say about the following formations is wow!! We found them to be magnificent and out of this world. The many varied colors were enchanting! If an artist painted it you would say it was something from another world—when in fact it is right here in southern Nevada.
This is the same area with slightly different perspectives.
Valley of Fire is a state park that we highly recommend as being worthy of visiting. If you are an avid hiker and/or photographer a minimum of two full days would be required to really explore the amazing areas.
It is a truly fun place with good roads and facilities. As with any desert location extreme caution must be used during the summer months.
We will leave you with one of our favorite landscapes within Valley of Fire Park. From the dark magenta to gray shadowed mountains in the background, to the lightly candy-striped beige rock in the middle, to the soft salmon colored sand in the foreground it makes for an interesting landscape in our eyes.
This will be our final write-up for 2014. After getting a slow start at the beginning of the year, due to Dave’s heart surgery, we still managed to take in a few destinations. We certainly hope that you have enjoyed riding along with us and find the many varied locations we visit interesting.
We hope to see you on down the road. If not, have fun, stay safe, and remember there are no do-over’s in life--you only get one chance to enjoy it. So, get out there and follow your dreams and live each day the very best you can.
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns
We hope to see you on down the road. If not, have fun, stay safe, and remember there are no do-over’s in life--you only get one chance to enjoy it. So, get out there and follow your dreams and live each day the very best you can.
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns