The Colorado Plateau has held my interest for most of my life, and because of that fascination, I haven’t strayed too far from this varied and fantastic region. And staying nearby has meant I’ve been able to return to many of the same locations on the plateau dozens of times to catch them under the best and most interesting conditions, such as during stormy weather, under dramatic clouds, in different seasons or with better light. At times, I’ve even photographed these places in the aftermath of a destructive storm.
I can think of about 15 such locations. In each case, usually over several months or a few years, I concentrated on the site until I felt I had done all that I could, within reason, to portray it as well as possible. When I believed I had gotten everything out of the location that the laws of probability would allow, I moved on.
One of these locations is at the Page city limits. It’s a place with no name, no easy access and almost no visitation, and it offers an interesting view of the Colorado River where it still flows through a section of Glen Canyon. In 2020 or so, I drove out to this place 30 times to catch it at sunrise, at sunset, in different seasons and during lightning storms. The visits gradually produced a group of strong photos.
The best image, though, came this past January, when fog and mist were drifting into and over the canyon. Sometimes the mist was too thick, sometimes too thin, sometimes poorly distributed. But a couple of shots were just about perfect. After more than 40 trips and several hundred miles of driving, I was given what I consider a nearly unbeatable portrayal of Glen Canyon in a state of visual mystery.