A Little Bit of Utah’s Bryce Canyon Comes to Conroe
Sand mining is turning parts of Conroe into areas that look a little bit (a very little bit) like Bryce Canyon in Utah.
Hoodoo Magic
On March 6, I flew over the Liberty Materials Moorehead Mine in Conroe and captured this image.
It struck me as similar to the hoodoos in Utah’s Bryce Canyon National Park.
Bryce Canyon Hoodoos
Hoodoos are tall, thin spires of rock that have usually eroded from the edge of a drainage basin. Hoodoos typically consist of relatively soft rock topped by harder, less easily eroded stone that protects each column from the elements. In the case of the Conroe hoodoos, the vegetation at the top of the pit helps provide that protection.
Of course, the hoodoos in Bryce Canyon formed over the last 40-60 million years, through the relentless forces of erosion. The Conroe hoodoos formed in the last two years. They’re not quite as spectacular or as tall. And they’re made out of sand, not sandstone.
Sandstone is formed when sand is cemented by such materials as silica and calcium carbonate. Most sandstones form through the accumulation of river sediments on seabeds. They are then compressed and uplifted to form new lands. Bryce Canyon was uplifted 8,000 feet, Conroe about two hundred.
Liberty Materials vs. Mother Nature
Here are some more pictures of the Liberty Materials mine in question.
And to give equal time to Mother Nature, here are some more pictures of Bryce Canyon.
Liberty looks a little sloppier than Mother Nature. But then, Mother Nature takes her time.
It may take a few more years before 2 million people a year start visiting the Liberty pit.
Posted by Bob Rehak
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Note: Unlike the other images on this site which are public domain, please refrain from copying or distributing my images of Bryce Canyon. To see more of my photography, visit BobRehak.com.
The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.
