I love the red rock of the Zion and Bryce National Parks, and its permutations of yellow or white, depending on which mineral leached into the porous sandstone over the millennium. I also love seeing how the Parks and the local communities work these local building materials into the landscape and garden design.
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Photo op of the Virgin River - the red stone retaining wall
blends with the surrounding landscape. |
We saw many examples of this in both Parks. The roads in the park are colored red (very useful for determining when you are in or out of the park); and red rock is worked into the landscape as rocks, bricks, drainage ditches, retaining walls, and bench supports. I have seen this done well in other regions as well. In Alaska, folks use slate and granite; in the San Francisco Bay Area we use volcanic rock; in Spokane, they use basalt columns and polished river rocks.
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| Red rock retaining wall. |
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| Freestanding red rock wall. |
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| Red rock bricks around a drainage ditch in Springdale, Utah. |
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| Red rock bricks used on a bench in Springdale. |
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The rocks and bricks come from a small local quarry, providing employment and building materials with a sense of place.
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| Chisel markings for a large rock brick. |
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| Large rock bricks waiting for use or further sculpting. |
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