Typical of retreating escarpments on the Colorado Plateau, the Book Cliffs are a prominent feature that runs 250 miles from Palisade, Colorado to Helper, Utah. These photos were taken north of Fruita, Colorado. The first image was shot using the 24mm (equivalent) camera. The other two were taken with the 70mm camera. All were shot at or near my maximum selected altitude limit of 395 feet above the launch point in the valley below. The geologic strata exposed here are the heavily dissected Mancos shale, below, and the more resistant sandstones of the Mesa Verde formation above. Both units are of Cretaceous age.





