Desert Scenes

These are assorted scenes I took in the desert on a recent trip to Las Vegas.  At Valley of Fire State Park, a friend and I went up a canyon with a lot of  neat rock formations and an abundance of petroglyphs.  These folks were holding hands and doing a dance of some sort...maybe.  

The red rocks at Valley of Fire have been eroded into all sorts of fantastic formations by wind, frost, and rain.

The Lizards loved the red sand.

The next several pix were taken at Death Valley.  Heavy, damaging October rains set the stage...then periodic winter rains produced a fabulous flower year...the best in the valley since 2005.  These desert sunflowers are known by a different name in Death Valley.  They were everywhere.

Desert chicory.

Desert five-spot...a real gem!

Aside from the flowers, most of the valley is still totally barren, with stark landscape lines.

View from Zabriskie Point.  The land is laid bare.

Hillside contours near Zabriskie Point.

The valley carpeted with flowers.  The juxtaposition of lush beauty with stark barrenness is fabulous.

Sand dunes in waning light near Stovepipe Wells.