Tiptoeing through Slickrock

Wandering is a big part of my work. Looking for scenes to photograph, I spend considerable time poking around Arizona's less-frequented corners. The country in the far northern part of the state where Navajo sandstone is exposed is such a place. Here, because of its delicacy, I feel the need to tiptoe gently across the rock surfaces. Navajo sandstone is naturally sculpted into sweeping forms. From one visit to the next, the rockscape transforms itself, as though living, impacted by wind, rain, and, unfortunately, human disregard. Photographing this fluidlike landscape absorbs me. Awareness of time dissolves, and I feel as though I'm photographing sculpture. I follow wherever the lithified dunes seem to lead. But when the chill of evening begins creeping in, I know I must leave . . . or I'll never find my truck in the dark!

Coby Jordan is a Rockville, Utah-based photographer who concentrates on landscapes of the Colorado Plateau.

Portfolio by Coby Jordan

Sand dunes lithified into sandstone and then transformed by eons of wind, rain, and ice into frozen waves (PRECEDING PANEL, PAGES 20 AND 21) evoke wonder at the infinite artistry of Nature. Held in thrall by the elements, the lithified formations mutate endlessly. Only time will reveal how these buttes (RIGHT) were altered by the force of a passing squall. The dramatic swirling effect (FOLLOWING PANEL, PAGES 24 AND 25) indicates that erosion occurred at an angle, perhaps as a result of a large sand slide.

Sculpted over millenia, these spires (LEFT) gradually are weathering away, their unique shapes undergoing a transformation back into grains of sand, continuing a cycle that repeats endlessly. The pace of this erosion hinges in part upon the amount of iron in the rock. The darker iron-rich, erosion-resistant layers of sandstone protect the softer layers in between. The yellow cast in these formations comes from the presence of limonite. (FOLLOWING PANEL, PAGES 28 AND 29) Framed by an eroded window, sandstone needles form an ever-changing image no earthly artist could create.