The Painted Desert

So, we're driving along seemingly on flat ground, but then we discover that we have been on a plateau all along!  This valley has been carved by eons of wind and the wanderings of the Little Colorado River - which has long since dried up.  It begins at the eastern end of the Grand Canyon and arrives here along a broad crescent of territory ending at St. John's, Arizona.

It's easy to see why the northern part of this National Park has been named the Painted Desert.

From here we follow the Park road south across Interstate 40 and on to the Petrified Forest part, but before we go, please try to imagine all of this, as far as the eye can see, full to the brim with an inland sea!

As it dried up an amazing treasure of fossils was left behind.

This guy is known locally as "Wild Bill."  I guess he died with his mouth wide open?  

Can you imagine the deserts of Arizona once crawling with critters like ol' Bill?

Looking back at the earlier pictures, you can realize the ancient water levels by the perfectly horizontal lines "painted" on the cliffs.  How long levels remained constant resulted in the different minerals leaching out of the soil and becoming permanent colors.  The strong lines of color would mean water levels were pretty consistent for a long time. The air-brushed looking colors would have meant the water levels went down pretty steadily.

I know that our current American President has said that climate change is the single most dangerous problem facing our country.  I don't discount climate change, but to my way of thinking, this planet has held itself together through eons of climate change.  In the day of the dinosaur we are made to believe that there were volcanoes dotting the surface of the entire globe, incessantly spewing carbon dioxide. For the life of me, I just don't think cows spewing flatulents, us puny human beings breathing in and out and burning a few tons of coal for power and heat can hold a candle (so to speak) to what incredible dynamics were going on then. Climate change, as global leadership calls it, in my opinion, is nothing but political hyperbole, and a way for former Vice-President Al Gore (amongst others) to make fools of the rest of us by creating imaginary "carbon credits" while flying his fuel guzzling, pollution-making jets around the world at his whim. At least, that's some of what these fossils say to me...