(second in the Utah series)
Besides some of the more famous national parks, we decided to visit the Bentonite Hills outside of Capitol Reef National Park. Though not part of the park, the U.S. National Park Service maintains a page about them, which can give you a quick rundown of the interesting geology of the area.
For our purposes here, I’ll sum up the hills like this: imagine a billion sneakers, finely ground and poured in great, undulating heaps in a corner of southern Utah. The surface is oddly spongy, and becomes slick and gummy when wet.
I was a little disappointed at first, because they didn’t have the eerie polychromey that I saw in some photos online. But from looking over those photos, I think many of them were taken during the “blue hour” after sunset or before sunrise, which seems to bring out more contrast in these hills. We did not have the luxury of visiting at such a time, and contended with the mid morning light we had. But shooting the Bentonite Hills was quite fun nonetheless. The giant mounds of clay make for an otherworldy landscape to wander through, strangely quiet as they also muffle all sounds quite effectively.
On a final note: be mindful that the Bentonite Hills are very fragile, and visitors should stay on firm ground or follow already worn trails. I admit that I wandered away from my friends and likely bent these rules somewhat, for which I was rightfully scolded when we reunited. It may be for the best that getting here requires a high clearance vehicle and fording a river, because a few busloads of tourists could literally destroy it.
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Thank you for stopping by. There is more Utah to come!
T A B U L A R A S A photography 