What created the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone pink and yellow colors? Mineral stains mark the locations of hot springs and steam vents in the canyon walls. For thousands of years, upwardly percolating fluids have altered the chemistry of the rocks, turning them yellow, red, white, and pink.
The 308-foot Lower Falls at Yellowstone National Park may have formed because the river flows over volcanic rock more resistant to erosion than the downstream rocks, which are hydrothermally altered. The 109-foot Upper Falls flows over similar rocks.
Past and current hydrothermal activity at Yellowstone National Park altered and weakened the rhyolite, making the rocks softer. The Yellowstone River eroded these weakened rocks to deepen and widen the canyon, a process that continues today. The current canyon begins at Lower Falls and ends downstream from Tower Fall. Here is a view of the Lower Falls.
While flowing water in a river bed seems normal, if you observe closely the rocks and pebbles create nature’s mosaic
Spectacular rock formations at the Upper Linville Falls, North Carolina
After the gushing torrent from Price Lake Dam, water gently flows over the rocks going down the stream
A simple image of shadows of palm trees on textured rocks reveals yet another design of nature
Someone has expressed their love for the Charleston skyline by painting a heart on a rock at Fort Moultrie, Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina
The glow of moss on a rock and tree trunk at Roan Mountain
An artistically formed rock sculpture creates a natural anchor for a landscape image at Roan Mountain Bald
Nature adds elements, a bush and rock, for a landscape composition at Roan Mountain Bald
A tiny waterfall on a small stream of water surrounded by moss covered rocks makes an interesting composition
Even a trickle of water falling between the rocks creates a striking image
Among its varied collection of sculptures at Brookgreen Gardens, there are quite a few of animals.
“Lioness and Cub” by Hope Yandell – A female lion with her young cub. The lioness is standing, front left paw raised slightly. Her head is turned in the direction of her cub. They are positioned in a natural setting on a rock formation over a small pool.
Prowling in the Jungle
“Brown Bears” by Anna Hyatt Huntington is a bronze sculpture of a group of three bears
Brown Bears
Low tide reveals the rocks and algae at Paignton Harbor in England
Paignton Harbor on the English Riviera
Located near Beech Mountain, Banner Elk and the small town of Elk Park is the impressive Elk River Falls (formerly called Big Falls) in Pisgah National Forest. This 50-ft. North Carolina mountain waterfall cascades over a rock cliff and into a picturesque oval pool.
Elk River Falls
The geologic history of Acadia National Park, Maine stretches back in time through millions of years to the formation of the oldest rocks on Mount Desert Island and continues to the present with the persistent forces of erosion. Evidence of this rich geologic past can be seen across the island, along rocky shorelines and atop windswept mountains.
Acadia National Park – Rocky Shoreline
Continuing posting of images converted from slides, now images from United States.
Devils Tower is a laccolithic butte composed of igneous rock in the Bear Lodge Mountains in northeastern Wyoming. Image circa 1985.
Monolith Rising
A rock formation in stark contrast to the clouds and mountains on Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina
A Rocky Silhouette Against the Blue Ridges
The low clouds in the background seem to be in the same formation as the rocks in the foreground …..
Clouds Imitating Rock Formation
Photos by Ravi 