De-Na-Zin Wilderness - a photo on Flickriver

            Intense light of the midday sun deep in the De-Na-Zin Wilderness.

We hiked far into the De-Na-Zin Wilderness, also knowns as the Bisti Badlands, in search of exotic formations - trying to find 'The Alien Egg Hatchery' amongst other things - but we took a wrong turn only to find other fascinating geology. 

Hoodoos are impossible looking rock formations where erosion wears away lower, softer layers faster than higher, harder layers, leaving what appears to be large rocks precariously balanced on slender pillars - as if put there by giants building sand castles.

They are also called tent rocks, fairy chimneys, and earth pyramids. There are several in this image!

Over time, the pillar gives way, and the hoodoo cap tumbles to the ground below. I used this one as the focal point of a 16 frame focus stack. Interestingly, even though the conditions appeared extremely bright to my eye - with what I thought must be a huge dynamic range - I did not have to bracket...!

A hike into the Bisti Badlands is not to be taken lightly - it's 45,000 acres with no trails. This extreme wilderness has many potential hazards - heat/sun, snakes, scorpions, no water, TOO MUCH water (flash floods), no trails/tracks, and no cell service! It's easy to get turned around and lost once you get very far into it. Bring a compass/navigation device if you go!

I was a bit worried when, as we were leaving, I encountered a couple that was clearly not prepared for a badlands hike - no water, no map, etc. They seemed pretty cavalier about it - all I could do was advise them to stay in sight of the large white awning next to the parking lot. I think they were not going far - I hope they made it back out :)

Definitely on the 'must visit again' list!

And Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Taken in: United States / New Mexico / Tsaya (show map)

Taken on: August 3, 2021

Tags:

USA

2021

August

Noon

Light

New Mexico

De-Na-Zin

Wilderness

Bisti

Badlands

Shadows

Dark

Rocks

Erosion

Hoodoo

Sky

Clouds

Rays

Lines

Curves

Sharp

Contrast

Dramatic

Striking

Drama

Orange

White

Blue

Black

Green

Yellow

D850

Nikon

Nikon D850

Nikon DSLR

DSLR

Nikon 70-200mm

700-200mm

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8E FL ED VR

Nikkor

Zoom

Tripod

Edge

Lumenzia

Vignette

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Burn

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Stack

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Sets appears in: • Epic Road Trip 2021 • Explored

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Camera: Nikon D850, f/5.6, 1/800 sec, 102mm, ISO 64 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon D850
Lens:	70.0-200.0 mm f/2.8
Aperture:	f/5.6
Exposure Time:	0.001 sec (1/800)
Focal Length:	102mm
ISO:	64
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	No Flash
Exposure Program:	Manual
Exposure Mode:	Manual
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Sharpness:	Hard
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop 21.2 (Windows)
Show full info

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