Painted Desert

Scott Thybony heads into the Painted Desert for a much-needed reality check. After spending time among the wind-carved cliffs and hoodoos, he renews his appreciation for the real world with all its strangeness and wild beauty.

Before the summer rains arrived, the winds blew relentlessly across the Colorado Plateau. They heightened drought conditions and increased fire danger. But wind isn’t always a destructive force. Sometimes it’s an artist. In his latest Canyon Commentary, Scott Thybony takes a look at the positive side of wind by exploring a spectacular wind-carved landscape.

In this month’s Canyon Commentary by Scott Thybony, he shares the story of his journey to the Dinosaur Dance Hall; a remarkable tracksite in the Painted Desert.

A project to conserve murals inside a historic watchtower near the Grand Canyon's east entrance is complete. The 1930s murals in the Desert View…