Traveling along scenic highways 160 and 89, we visited un-named rock formations as well as the Wupatki and Sunset Crater Volcano National Monuments. Early in the morning the sun shone then clouds built. A cold rain storm accompanied us and painted the clouds in the colors of bruises and saturated the orange sedimentary and black volcanic rocks. It reminded me of a visit to Pompeii on a rainy day, where a community was engulfed in an volcanic eruption.
In Northeastern Arizona along the scenic highway160 two sandstone towers emerged from the grasslands. I was puzzled that there was no sign, naming them.
A closeup of one of the towers reveals the layers of sediment that forms the structure
A cold rain storm passed through the Wupatki National Monument saturating the deep orange sandstone used to build this ancestral Puebloan village
A neighboring house has a beautiful view
A closer view of the ancient Puebloan home
The Sunset Crater Volcano gave the ancient Puebloan people new challenges for cultivating crops
The volcanic rock hosts new plants and makes for a treacherous hike
Northern Arizona looking west from the grasslands to the forest to the San Francisco Peaks