Canyon Country

Ever since Stephen Trimble worked as a park ranger at Arches and Capitol Reef national parks in the 1970s, the slickrock country of the Colorado Plateau has been his spiritual home.  

For fifty years, Steve has photographed intensely in these canyons spanning the Four Corners states.  This magical place has shaped his vision and nourished his soul. 

I was an enthusiastic and nerdy stamp collector in my youth, so I was thrilled when USPS used this photograph of golden mariposa lilies on a "Greetings from Utah" postage stamp. Capitol Reef, Utah.
Thousand Lake Mountain at sunset—looking very much like a Maynard Dixon painting. Torrey, Utah.
Twin Rocks (which evidently should be called Triplet Rocks), Capitol Reef National Park, Utah.
Yosemite Falls comes (briefly) to Capitol Reef National Park, Utah. It's thrilling to be in the right spot at the right time to see rimfalls like this after a summer thundershower.
Pueblo Bonito doorways, Chaco Culture National Park, New Mexico.
Call them potholes, waterpockets, or tinajas—these fleeting tanks of water cradled by sandstone are crucial to life in the desert. Torrey, Utah.
Islands in the sky rise from the Colorado Plateau—mountains that reach 12,000 feet. La Sal Mountains from Mill Creek, near Moab, Utah.
East Moody Canyon leads to the Escalante River deep within the Glen Canyon wilderness. I realized after my hike that famed Sierra Club photographer Philip Hyde photographed this same wall, which is why I always caption this image “Hyde's Wall.”
Deep in the canyons visible from Grandview Point lies the confluence of the Green and Colorado rivers—the heart of the heart of the Colorado Plateau. Canyonlands National Park, Utah.
Looking as deeply into yourself as you can anywhere. North Caineville Mesa, Utah.
Canyon Country wilderness is accessible, to anyone. Here, my family walks down Muddy Creek in the San Rafael Swell, Utah.
Tracks along Muddy Creek, San Rafael Swell, Utah.
When I lived in Capitol Reef National Park while working as a ranger, the deer came down off the mesa into the orchards every night. But only on this night did they come before dark—when I had my camera.
The story of Capitol Reef National Park in one image: pioneer barn and fields, mule deer, and the big red cliffs of the Waterpocket Fold.
Cattle drive, Smokey Mountain Road, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah.
The trail to Delicate Arch, Arches National Park, Utah.
My favorite Grand Canyon picture—sun shafts on the rims at Cataract Canyon, above Havasu.
Wingate Sandstone, Waterpocket Fold, Utah.
Some of the wildest places on the Colorado Plateau are the least known—and the most in need of protection. Here, I look out from the Dirty Devil wilderness toward the Henry Mountains. Greater Canyonlands, Utah.
Back roads lead to paradise: La Sal Mountains from Professor Valley, Utah.
I saw the cloud, moving fast with the wind. I chased it. Devil's Garden, Arches National Park, Utah.
I love the challenge of photographing iconic landmarks like Delicate Arch, in Utah's Arches National Park. I look for interactions with foreground, with sky, with clouds. I look for relationship.
My friend woke me: "You've got to come outside. The light is amazing." He was right—and launched this photo on a journey that ended with a Marlboro ad! Moenkopi Sandstone cliffs at dawn, Torrey, Utah.
I'd driven by New Mexico's Shiprock many times, but only this once when the sun set directly behind the great "Rock with Wings."
Lightning over the Waterpocket Fold, Capitol Reef National Park, Utah.
Spooky Gulch, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.
I was pretty excited to see this pair of ravens perched on a ledge at Delicate Arch, Arches National Park, Utah.
Dark night skies in Capitol Reef National Park are downright thrilling. Here, the Milky Way arcs over Chimney Rock on a summer night.
Utah Canyon Country is just one big wild national park-worthy landscape. Here, near White Canyon reaches the Colorado River, Bears Ears National Monument, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and Canyonlands National Park protect a maze of canyons.
This badger lumbered across the road, plopped in his burrow, and looked back at me. Capitol Reef National Park, Utah.
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Southwest Native Nations