Imaging USA 018: Another view of the Amphitheater, BRYCE CANYON (UT)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

018: Another view of the Amphitheater

One of the most impressive natural must-see scenes can be found in Bryce Canyon. Although not really a canyon, but a collection of amphiteaters on the eastern slope of the Pauntsaugunt Plateau, it provides several locations for amazing scenic of the amphiteaters. These amphitheaters are composed of a large number of multi-colored rock pinnacles, the so-called hoodoos. They are the silent witnesses of long-term exposure to high and low temperatures and to wind. At the time of my visit, in May, there was still some snow left in shadowy locations, out of reach from sunlight. It was quite cold when walking in the shadow and being exposed to wind. In contrats, walking in the sun was a real pleasure, while we got amazed by the beautiful light combinations of the hoodoos. It was as these hoodoos were the motionless spectators of a long-lasting spectacular event, a natural wonder.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 1999, 2017

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Imaging USA 017: Amphitheater, BRYCE CANYON (UT)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

017: Amphitheater

For me, Bryce Canyon National Park in Southwestern Utah is one of the most impressive locations in the word that I’ve visited. Despite the name, Bryce Canyon is not really a canyon, but a collection of enormous amphitheaters on the eastern slope of the Paunsaugunt Plateau, that contain so-called hoodoos, cliffs and castles. Hoodoos are tall but narrow stone colunms, which were formed by continuous erosion by water, ice and wind. The ongoing erosion make these hoodoos disappear gradually, although it will take roughly tens of thousands of years when the last intact hoodoos will have collapsed.  Meanwhile, the Amphitheater is being photographed and filmed by millions of tourists, especially during sunrise and sunset, when the quality of light is rich. At the time of my visit in 1999, I didn’t have a digital camera, but I managed to create a composition of no less than seven printed photographs, in order to show the greatness and splendid beauty of this spectacular natural theater. The picture here is not a composition however, but a single photograph.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 1999, 2017

Imaging USA 016: Hoodoos, BRYCE CANYON (UT)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

016: Hoodoos

Bryce Canyon National Park is located in  the state of Utah, roughly between Lake Powell and Zion Canyon. The 145 square km park receives less visitors than Grand Canyon or Zion Canyon National Parks, but the more  than two million visitors wonder the colorful amphitheater-shaped structures that consists of pinnacles that are called hoodoos. These hoodoos can reach a height of more than sixty meters. The pinnacles are a result of ongoing penetration of rainwater into the cracks of the rocks. Water freezes during the cold nights and cause expansion that breaks the rocks. Initially, holes are formed that eventually result in the creation of the bizarre hoodoos. We were told that this process is still going on, and they joked that we had to be fast to witness this natural wonder. It is to be expected that all hoodoos will have broken down in a period of ten thousand years.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 1999, 2017

Imaging USA 015: Mount Carmel Highway, Zion Canyon

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

015: Mount Carmel Highway

When we were driving through Zion National Park, we suddenly were driving on red asphalt. The road was reddish brown with bright yellow marks. This 45 km curvy highway, with some hairpins, went to an almost 2 km long tunnel – the Mt. Carmel Tunnel –  that was constructed between 1927 and 1930. The Mount Carmel Highway was designed to connect the parks of Bryce Canyon and Grand Canyon through Zion Canyon. The tunnel has windows cut through the face of the cliffs, allowing natural light to enter. The red asphalt contains an upper layer of oil and red volcanic cinders. Along this scenic highway, there are several turnouts, where tourists can stop their cars for taking pictures or going for a short hike. In the background are the peaks of the Altar of Sacrifice and the Sentinel, if I remember correctly.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 1999, 2017

Imaging USA 014: Great White Throne, Zion National Park

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

014: Great White Throne 

When driving the scenic drive in Zion National Park, you can clearly see a massive white rock towering over the trees. This monolith, believed to be the world’s largest sandstone monolith, is called the Great White Throne. In 1916, when Methodist minister Frederic Fisher visited this region, he exclaimed: Never have I seen such a sight before. It is by all odds America’s masterpiece. […] This mountain is the Great White Throne. The two km high monolith, consisting of red navajo sandstone at the base and white navajo sandstone at the top, provides inspiration for scenic landscape compositions of Zion National Park.  

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 1999, 2017

Imaging USA 013: Lush green, Zion Canyon

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

013: Lush green 

Zion National Park was on our route between Monument Valley and Las Vegas. From Monument Valley, the distance is just 250 km, but the driving route is almost double: 450 km. The region was inhabited by indigenous tribes; the first European setters came around 1860: they were Mormons from the Salt Lake area. The name Zion refers to a place of peace and safety. The name of the nearby Kolob region exists in the Mormon Scripts, in which Kolob refers to a place near God. Zion National Park is indeed a place where you can feel yourself united with nature, untied from human infrastructure. When I visited the park in May, spring had just started. The plants, trees, and shrubs had recently been sprouting; therefore, almost everything around us was green, a lush green, giving us a happy feeling of newborn energy. 

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 1999, 2017y

Imaging USA 011: Castle Rock in Lake Powell, Page (AZ/ UT)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

011: Castle Rock

Lake Powell, on the border between Arizona and Utah, is the result of submerging the Glen Canyon in 1963. The artificial lake, which is hundreds of meters deep at certain points, now attracts about two million tourists a year. The large majority of tourists join a boat tour on the calm water, past the pastel-covered sandstone cliffs, which reveal millions of years of geological history. The tour boats can be found in Page, a town that was founded for the housing of the workers who participated in the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam. One of the most striking rocks in Lake Powell is Castle Rock. The photo almost seems to have an optical illusion, if you look closely at the rock in the middle. It looks as if there is a stone arch.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 1999, 2017