Zion National Park Autumn Scenes - # - Dan Violette photography - Fine Art Nature Photography of California and the American West

Dan Violette photography - Fine Art Nature Photography

Zion National Park, Utah

gallery pages: 1 2 3 >

< 1 of 23 >

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. Located along the edge of the Colorado Plateau in the American Southwest, Zion National Park encompasses 230 square miles (593 km). Here, colorful Navajo sandstone canyon walls and maple trees in autumn dress compete for attention. The dark stains on these canyon walls result from a combination of minerals (primarily manganese oxides) and decomposed organic matter.

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. Sunlit cottonwood trees (Populus fremontii) in a dry wash. Here, these native trees arch gracefully over this dry wash. Their heart-shaped leaves shimmer with an intense golden glitter at the slightest rustle of an autumn breeze.

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. The Big Bend area features a wide expanse of colorful sandstone canyon walls adorned by juniper, pine, cottonwood and maple trees in their finest autumn attire. The presence of iron oxides in the stone contributes to its rich red color.

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. The North Fork of the Virgin river begins north of Zion at Cascade Falls which comes out of a cave near Navajo Lake (elevation 9,000 feet). The East Fork of the Virgin River originates above Long Valley. Both the North and East Forks of the Virgin River run through the park and empty into Lake Mead and then into the Colorado River, which empties into the Gulf of California. In this Virgin River autumn scene, maple and cottonwood trees line the banks of this ribbon of life while blue-leaf asters (Aster glaucodes) grace the riverbank.

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. Emerald Pools area cliffs. The dark stains painted on these canyon walls result from a combination of minerals (primarily manganese oxides) and decomposed organic matter. Rich concentrations of iron oxides give the soft sandstone its red color, while white streaks are due to the presence of various salts (sodium bicarbonate, calcium carbonate, etc.).

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. The Big Bend area features a wide expanse of colorful Navajo sandstone canyon walls. By autumn the low waters of the now slowly-moving Virgin River amble leisurely under cottonwood and maple trees attired in autumn dress. Rock shelves on the wall face provide a root-hold for small deciduous and evergreen trees clinging to their lofty perch over a panoramic scene.

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. Decomposing mineral-rich rock at the foot of these Navajo sandstone canyon walls offer ample anchor for numerous plants that thrive here. Among these hardy residents are cottonwood, maple, pine and juniper trees.

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. The Checkerboard Mesa area in the eastern section of the Park occasionally displays groups of bighorn sheep perched on near-vertical hillsides. Utah is home to three subspecies of bighorn sheep: the Rocky Mountain bighorn (Ovis canadensis canadensis), the desert bighorn (Ovis canadensis nelsoni) and the California bighorn (Ovis canadensis californiana). The Rocky Mountain bighorn is the largest of the three subspecies; rams may approach 300 pounds in weight and live up to 15 years.

Zion National Park. Utah, USA. Located along the edge of the Colorado Plateau in the American Southwest, Zion National Park encompasses 230 square miles (593 km). Here, colorful Navajo sandstone canyon walls and maple trees in autumn dress compete for attention. The dark stains on these canyon walls result from a combination of minerals (primarily manganese oxides) and decomposed organic matter.