Fire Valley glimmers in brilliant crimson hues and vivid colors spread about the desert in the early morning sunlight. These are some of the oldest natural rock formations known to mankind.
Valley of Fire derives its name from the fact that the very rocks in the formation often appear to be on fire when reflecting the sun's rays.
These are incredibly rough, stark red sandstone formations, formed from great shifting sand dunes during the age of dinosaurs, 150 million years ago. Complex uplifting and faulting of the region, followed by extensive erosion, have created the present landscape.
Valley of Fire is considered Nevada's oldest state park, opening in 1935. The park covers almost 36,000 acres and gets its name from its fiery multi-red colored sandstone. These ragged and harsh formations are the result of fossilized sandstone and sand dunes which formed 150 million years ago. They were created by a dramatic shift in the Earth's crust, then complex uplifting and faulting and followed by extensive wind and water erosion over time, has sculpted what we see today. (Research Source)
I lensed this while flying and filming in the Mojave Desert area southeast of Mesquite, Nevada looking for interesting formations. The vivid splashes of vibrant colors filled the entire area with a bright glow which from the air had a soft warm quality to it.
This is an unusually harsh environment yet ancestral First Nations tribes are thought to have migrated to the region about 300 B.C. and survived on a vegetarian diet consisting of all kinds of cactus and plants including yucca, mesquite tree, prickly pear and beaver tail. Eventually, they learned to plant corn and beans and hunt animals like rabbit, sheep and antelope.
Prehistoric users of the Valley of Fire included the Ancient Pueblo Peoples, also known as the Anasazi, who were farmers from the nearby fertile Moapa Valley. Their approximate span of occupation has been dated from 300 BC to 1150 AD. Their visits probably involved hunting, food gathering, and religious ceremonies, although scarcity of water would have limited their stay. Fine examples of rock art (petroglyphs) left by these ancient peoples can be found at several sites within the park. (Research Source)
These days only wild animals dwell in Valley of Fire year-round. Rattlesnakes, kangaroo rats, kit foxes, coyotes, bighorn sheep and the white tailed antelope ground squirrels are just a few of the animals that inhabit the area. (Research Source)
On the other side of the valley in this image lays the First Nations Moapa Indian Reservation. These are the descendants of the original people who occupied these lands for so long.
In the background is the Las Vegas Mountain Range on the left and the Arrow Canyon Range on the right of the horizon.
This is from "Where Eagles Fly - The American Wilderness Expedition" my personal project of exploration in the North American Wilderness.
I am on a mission to raise awareness of our Iconic, Natural Heritage Treasures of North America. If you wish to help spread the word and share these images of our amazing planet, vote if you are so inclined and please resteemit! Yehaw!!
Magnificent again! I love these aerial pictures and the educational aspects of your posts you share with us all. Thanks again and namaste :)
Namaste to you as well Eric... I am glad you enjoy these... sometimes I wonder if I am going to far and posting too much with these? But people do seem to enjoy reading about it and it allows me to work through the material I want to present in my project.
Reminds me of home!
Ahh you must be a Las Vegan LOL!
Nice content .i will defntly resteem to spread ur mission...keep it up sir....
Thanks so much, I really appreciate the support.
Planet Earth is so amazing,would be nice to have possibility visit all that beautiful places of the world.
It is our very special blue green rock in space and I love to call it home!!!
Wow! I have been to the Bryce National Park which has the same kind of deal - the sun falling on the rocks completely transforms the colour of the rocks. Thanks for sharing!
You are most welcome, glad you like it. And yes you are correct in that this area shares a great deal of geologic similarity with the entire Escalante Grand Staircase - which encompasses the entire area from the Grand Canyon up through Zion and including Bryce Canyon. The Valley of Fire depicted above is not too far geologically from that area and share a great deal of the same formation background.
Ah, I see! I didn't know that. I love that name - Escalante Grand Staircase... Beautiful.. Have a great day, my friend.
amazing photography.......and nice post
Thanks ! Glad you like it