Getting folks to pose is getting tough. We have been here for a few hours now and everyone is getting anxious to get going. It is getting warmer and we also still have a long way to go to reach our destination for day's end. Fortunately, this is the last of the overlooks at which we stop. Ironically, it is one of the first we encountered when we entered the park. It is also one of the most spectacular. If you ever visit the park, you might have the urge to just stop at a few of the overlooks for the sake of saving some time. I would suggest that you make the time. It is worth the effort.

  If you look closely, you will see small lines that wiggle around the base of the cliffs in the right middle of the picture. These are horseback and ATV trails. I spotted several tour guide places outside the entrance to the park. If we had the time, I'd love to take a horse back tour of this area. The view looking up at these spires must be impressive!

  This is a view that simply boggles my mind when I first step over the rise and it comes into my line of sight. There is simply no way for a picture to convey the enormity of the formations. These spires are known as the HooDoos. Don't ask me, I didn't come up with the name! I am fascinated by the regularity and consistency of their shape and height.

  As teenagers, we often spent summer days at the beach in Galveston, Tx. There I first saw what is known as a "plop plop" sand castle. The craftsman scoops up a handfull of wet sand and then lets it dribble out into a pile. As the water settles out of the sand, it leaves behind small spires that look very similar to these. However, the average plop plop spires could only reach a height of a few inches before they'd collapse. I was always fascinated by the texture of the castles as compared to the stale stereotypical sand castle built with inverted pails as forms for the sand.

  It may be hard for you to see, but at about the middle of the right side, there is a trail that cuts across to the base of the HooDoos. While we are here, I spot several horse riders climbing up to the base of the HooDoos. That has to be fun.

  I wonder if the birds that fly over this area have any aesthetic appreciation for the landscape? Or do they just ignorantly fly over in search of food without any regard whatsoever for the scenery? Imagine soaring down among the cliffs on the cool breeze with only the sound of the air rushing under your wings. There are no sounds of freeways, jetliners, or any of the other hustle and bustle of civilization. There is only the wind.

  This is truly one of the most stunning sights I have ever personally visited. What can compare? How can you describe this to someone and have even a glimmer of a hope that they'd have any real clue what it was you were attempting to convey? Fuggitaboudit!