Isolated red rock buttes dot the landsape at Utah's 'Valley of the Gods'. As beautiful billowy clouds pass overhead casting their shadows, the rocks take on a particularly deep red color. Valley of the Gods is a smaller version of the larger and better-known Monument Valley which is located 40 miles away. It is a seldom-visited backcountry area north of the town of Mexican Hat and northwest of Bluff. The rocky valley lies at the base of Cedar Mesa, and the rocks were deposited by the invasion of a shallow sea about 250 million years ago. Over time, the water retreated, and the ancient sandstones and shales gradually turned red or purple as the iron in the rocks mixed with oxygen to form rust.

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Make:	NIKON CORPORATION
Model:	NIKON D300
Exposure:	0.005 sec (1/200)
Aperture:	f/13.0
ISO Speed:	250
Focal Length:	35 mm
Lens:	17.0-35.0 mm f/2.8-4.0