What's the Solution?

As we have wandered and hiked throughout the sandstone canyons of the Colorado Plateau, we have often found areas that exhibit an extreme form of what could be classified as “differential erosion.”

In the various layers of sandstone, there are areas of rock that are more resistant to erosion and some that are less. Frequently in the Navajo layer, we find cliffs that are filled with numerous cavities where a combination of water, chemical and wind erosion have created pockets that may give a cliff face a “honeycomb” appearance. Where the softer sandstone has eroded away, a labyrinth of harder sandstone may be left behind. These “solution pockets” are especially evident in the lower canyons of the San Rafael Swell. 

This photo is an example of extreme solution pocket activity. The photo is just a small segment of a much larger cavity that we found in “Granary” canyon outside of Moab, UT. The entire cavity was laced with solution pockets to such a degree that its appearance reminded us of the pattern often shown of connected neurons in the human brain. 

Photo taken November, 2010.