The Flickr Whitepocket Image Generatr

For World Photography Day- a word of thanks. Thankfulness for a wide world of wonders to capture in the shutter of my camera and thankfulness for having my art appreciated.

One of my favorite qualities of sandstone is how it catches ANY type of light- daylight, sunset, blue hour, and just glows. The color explodes out of the rock.

Vermillion Cliffs is a dream.

One of my favorite qualities of sandstone is how it catches ANY type of light- daylight, sunset, blue hour, and just glows. The color explodes out of the rock.

Vermillion Cliffs is a dream.

Taken this shot during the winter trip to White Pocket, AZ. The magnificent cloud made the sunset dramatic.

I think White Pocket would look fantastic under any conditions but it’s truly spectacular with a bright sunset peaking over the rocks and the brilliant sun truly illuminating the deep colors and hues of the landscape.

This is not a drone shot; it was taken from the slopes of Clam Butte on the norh side of Buckskin Gulch. The view looks across the Utah-Arizona state line. It shows the south end of Wolf Knoll, a collection of domes and formations rarely visited, then farther to White Pocket (top left) and White Pocket Butte (monument at right horizon).

White Pocket has become an internationally popular attraction and photographer's paradise since it became publicized in 2005. Few photographers, though, explore the formations at Wolf Knoll made of the same Navajo sandstone. That's because there are no good roads to it, and it's a 3-mile hike from White Pocket to the nearest part, and Wolk Knoll extends for over a mile. I hiked around most of it in 2017, including the areas shown. See the wolfknoll tag for some of the things I found there.

“Don’t shoot in bright sunlight and with intense shadows!!!”

Okay, but then how do you accurately capture the intensity of the desert? And these colors? And this light?

Do what you want.


A Utah and Arizona, you are in the Navajo Nation. In Navajo, sacred land is referred to as Diné Bikéyah. This land belongs to the people. Hopitutskwa, Pueblos, and Núu-agha-tʉvʉ-pʉ̱ (Ute) land is also found across these two states and at archeological sites and natural sites. It is an honor to see them. White Pocket is most closely associated with Southern Paiute land.
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- @sonyalpha #sonyalpha7riv, #kfconcept. Edited with #lightroom @lightroom #lightroommobile #lightroommobilecontest. Full version posted to @flickr #flickrfeature #flickr

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Who needs The Wave when you can have a sunset here and not worry about permits?

Buried deep in the wilderness of Arizona and down wild dirt roads that require a 4×4, White Pocket is a surreal and ethereal wonderland of carved and sculptural sandstone, stretching and undulating almost as far as the eye can see. It’s impossible to go to this amazing place and not be spellbound and to not let your imagination wander and try and make sense of the exquisite colors and textures at your feet. Places like this are a gift and a challenge. This is what is so vital and what needs to be protected at all costs.

Out of everything on this trip, and usually, on most trips, what I look forward to the most is an experience with pure wilderness. On this trip, that came in the form of Vermillion Cliffs National Monument and White Pocket.


Coincidentally, it’s also the Bureau of Land Management’s anniversary, today. The BLM is under The Department of the Interior, but is managed differently than The National Park Service. With this in mind, public land usage on BLM land can include grazing, fracking, mining, and could even be sold off by the federal government, which is currently a possibility. On the anniversary of this arm of The Department of The Interior, it’s an apt time to remember what their mission statement is: “to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.”


To me, that reads no differently than 1916 Organic Act that created The National Park Service and protects the wonders of the American landscape. And when you consider places like White Pocket, nestled in the wilderness of Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, it should be apparent that no matter what branch of Interior is caring for it, the importance of saving and protecting these landscapes is paramount.


Buried deep in the wilderness of Arizona and down wild dirt roads that require a 4×4, White Pocket is a surreal and ethereal wonderland of carved and sculptural sandstone, stretching and undulating almost as far as the eye can see. It’s impossible to go to this amazing place and not be spellbound and to not let your imagination wander and try and make sense of the exquisite colors and textures at your feet. Places like this are a gift and a challenge. This is what is so vital and what needs to be protected at all costs.


THIS IS WHAT WE ARE FIGHTING FOR. Speak up and defend what is yours.

Where White Pocket is subtle and graceful and intimate…. Coyote Buttes South is vibrant and adventurous and grand. These two well known parts of Vermillion Cliffs National Monument are two sides of the same amazing coin and compliment each other in every wonderful way. And that’s to say that while White Pocket wasn’t easy, it was a much calmer experience than Coyote Buttes. Coyote Buttes is a CHALLENGE. Located down Cottonwood Cove Road, which is a wilderness desert road in every sense of the word, (4X4/AWD/offroad vehicles only!!) getting to Coyote Buttes is not for the faint of heart. Nor is hiking through this fantastic region. Where White Pocket lets you wander and climb freely as soon as you reach the sandstone, Coyote Buttes’ trailhead will deposit you at the base of the butte…. And the rest is up to you. After scrambling up the edge of the butte a veritable wonderland of sandstone sculptures and bizarre shapes presents itself to you. Between the exertion of climbing up, the blinding light, and the hot sun… Coyote Buttes is the very definition of the intensity of the desert. We hiked and climbed and slid and sweated our way through about three miles of this wild landscape. This was one of those experiences in the wilderness that is emblematic of what wilderness truly is- challenging, remote, and wild. I only think I’ve ever experienced this once before, and that was last year, in Capitol Reef. Experiences like this are a gift. Wilderness is a gift. We must fight for this at every turn. Places like this must be preserved even if we can’t always get to them and getting to them and experiencing them is hard. Vermillion Cliffs is a National Monument that’s managed by the Bureau of Land Management, not the National Park Service. Places like this are under threat. Places like this need to be spoken up for and preserved. The wilderness is essential to everyone, even when you’re not out in it. Just knowing it exists and is waiting for you and your adventures is a balm to the soul and a call to action and challenge and adventure.

Out of everything on this trip, and usually, on most trips, what I look forward to the most is an experience with pure wilderness. On this trip, that came in the form of Vermillion Cliffs National Monument and White Pocket.

Coincidentally, it’s also the Bureau of Land Management’s anniversary, today. The BLM is under The Department of the Interior, but is managed differently than The National Park Service. With this in mind, public land usage on BLM land can include grazing, fracking, mining, and could even be sold off by the federal government, which is currently a possibility. On the anniversary of this arm of The Department of The Interior, it’s an apt time to remember what their mission statement is: “to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.”

To me, that reads no differently than 1916 Organic Act that created The National Park Service and protects the wonders of the American landscape. And when you consider places like White Pocket, nestled in the wilderness of Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, it should be apparent that no matter what branch of Interior is caring for it, the importance of saving and protecting these landscapes is paramount.

Buried deep in the wilderness of Arizona and down wild dirt roads that require a 4×4, White Pocket is a surreal and ethereal wonderland of carved and sculptural sandstone, stretching and undulating almost as far as the eye can see. It’s impossible to go to this amazing place and not be spellbound and to not let your imagination wander and try and make sense of the exquisite colors and textures at your feet. Places like this are a gift and a challenge. This is what is so vital and what needs to be protected at all costs.

THIS IS WHAT WE ARE FIGHTING FOR. Speak up and defend what is yours.

Out of everything on this trip, and usually, on most trips, what I look forward to the most is an experience with pure wilderness. On this trip, that came in the form of Vermillion Cliffs National Monument and White Pocket.

Coincidentally, it's also the Bureau of Land Management's anniversary, today. The BLM is under The Department of the Interior, but is managed differently than The National Park Service. With this in mind, public land usage on BLM land can include grazing, fracking, mining, and could even be sold off by the federal government, which is currently a possibility. On the anniversary of this arm of The Department of The Interior, it’s an apt time to remember what their mission statement is: “to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.”

To me, that reads no differently than 1916 Organic Act that created The National Park Service and protects the wonders of the American landscape. And when you consider places like White Pocket, nestled in the wilderness of Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, it should be apparent that no matter what branch of Interior is caring for it, the importance of saving and protecting these landscapes is paramount.

Buried deep in the wilderness of Arizona and down wild dirt roads that require a 4x4, White Pocket is a surreal and ethereal wonderland of carved and sculptural sandstone, stretching and undulating almost as far as the eye can see. It’s impossible to go to this amazing place and not be spellbound and to not let your imagination wander and try and make sense of the exquisite colors and textures at your feet. Places like this are a gift and a challenge. This is what is so vital and what needs to be protected at all costs.

THIS IS WHAT WE ARE FIGHTING FOR. Speak up and defend what is yours.

White Pocket
Vermilion Cliffs National Monument
Arizona

White Pocket is located geographically in the Grand Staircase Escalante Monuments, Arizona and geologically on the Colorado Plateau. The Navajo Sandstone is exposed on the plateau as mounds and ridges. These are mostly reddish erosional remnants, but those remnants in White Pocket are blanketed with a white layer appearing as "Cauliflower Rock" (see figure). This white layer makes this area unique and thus being called the White Pocket.
Source: Wikipedia

White Pocket, Vermillion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona.

White Pocket Monochrome
Vermilion Cliffs National Monument
Arizona

White Pocket, tucked within Vermilion Cliffs National Monument in northern Arizona, is a hidden gem of swirling sandstone, with otherworldly rock formations sculpted into domes, ridges, and brain-like textures over time. Adventurers are drawn to its alien beauty, where each turn reveals a new geological marvel. Its remote isolation enhances the mystique.