Buckskin Brainrocks

In extreme southern Utah and northern Arizona, between Page, AZ and Kanab, UT is the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument and the Paria Canyon – Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness.

That designated wilderness is home to Coyote Buttes and the now world-famous “Wave” formation, Cottonwood Cove, Paw Hole, and White Pocket. These are all areas with concentrations of unique Navajo sandstone formations. Buckskin Gulch also is part of that wilderness area and the lower 12 miles of that gulch is considered one of the world’s longest “slot” canyons down to where it joins Paria Canyon.

The upper section of Buckskin Gulch is a wide open, usually dry, sandy wash surrounded by colorful sandstone domes and cones fractured into hexagonal, pentagonal or similar shapes that seem to compare to photos of an intact brain, hence we and others call them “brain rocks.” There are also areas of colorful, cross-bedded layering and fins that create protruding layers from the surrounding sandstone at various angles. These too can provide very interesting photography. We first discovered these quite a few years ago, before internet photos were being posted and had long planned to get back and photograph some more. We finally made the return trip April 2021 and spent an entire day exploring more of this extraordinary locale.