Millions of Years in the Making

September 05, 2017

Clear Creek Az.  9-28-12 - 1200 pxl

Photographer: George Higginson
Summary Author: George Higginson

Floating Island? A bridge to eternity? Imaginary fantasy-scape?  Actually, something more down to earth, but spectacular none the less. It's the Mogollon Rim in central Arizona.

About 80 million years ago, the western side of the North American continent began the work of building the Rocky Mountains as the North American tectonic plate began to be pushed up. A large slab of sedimentary layering was lifted up as one solid piece, becoming what is known today as the Colorado Plateau. The Mogollon Rim, the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau, is an escarpment that was formed 15 to 20 million years ago.

Featured above is Clear Creek, one of the rivers that flow off the Mogollon Rim, located a few miles south of Winslow, Arizona. The Creek, as it's known to the locals, was calm and still on this lazy afternoon, resulting in an amazing natural canvas of color and light. Photo taken on the little reservoir behind a nearby small dam on the Creek, during a float trip on September 28, 2012.

Photo Details: Camera Model: Canon EOS 7D; Focal Length: 28mm; Aperture: ƒ/13.0; Exposure Time: 0.013 s (1/80); ISO equiv: 200; Software: Adobe Photoshop 7.0.