Dave Daniel Photography

South Coyote Buttes – January 26, 2008

A recent business trip to Phoenix afforded me the opportunity for a photo shoot at south-coyote-buttes in Arizona’s Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. The Buttes are located about five hours north of Phoenix, near Page, Arizona, adjacent to the Utah border near Lake Powell.

South Coyote Buttes is very remote, and requires a permit from the Bureau of Land Management to control the delicate environment. I had commissioned Charly from Overland Canyon Tours to act as a guide to take me to the site. He did all the leg work to get the permit, make a great thermos of coffee, and setup an excellent high desert tailgate lunch complete with table and chairs. I think he was somewhat amused with my photo style, which ranged from wide-angle vistas to a closeup of a convoluted desert shrub. His 4×4 Suburban was essential to manage what amounted to no more than a sugar sand fire trail through the desert. It took us a solid 2 hours to go from the hotel to the sunrise shoot location, with most of the time on dirt and sand trails. I would recommend Charly to anyone wanting to visit the area – tell him I sent you.

We were absolutely remote of any sight or sound of civilization. The only sounds heard were the remote Coyote songs, and an occasional falcon piercing the cobalt sky. Oh, the sky! Ranging from midnight blue to vivid turquoise, the sky was amazing. On the drive out at night, I could not believe the number of stars that could be seen without the familiar light polution. The images simply do no justice to the scale and beauty of the area.

I hope you enjoy the pictures! During the same day, we went deeper into the plateau to visit White Pockets, a very different type of geological formation. Images for White Pockets will be posted later.