Castleton Tower

This photo was taken a couple of weeks ago near Moab, Utah in the Castle Valley area of the La Sal Mountains. The spire of rock in the photo is the famous Castleton Tower, a 400-foot Wingate Sandstone tower standing on a 1,000 foot Moenkopi-Chinle cone above the northeastern border of Castle Valley. The Tower is world-renowned as a subject for photography and for its classic rock climbing routes.

Much of the land in Castle Valley is or has been owned by Utah's School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA). The SITLA is a state land trust which auctions and-or leases lands to private interests in order to fund Utah schools and related state institutions. In the spring of 1999 SITLA auctioned off one or two parcels of land extending to between 60 acres and 120 acres (depending on the referenced report) that included the Castleton tower. The land initially went to an Aspen, Colorado land-developer with a local partner who planned to subdivide the land creating lots for residential housing. This plan would have eliminated the Tower's camping ground and reduced recreational access to the Tower's base. In response the Castle Rock Collaboration (CRC) formed to prevent commercial development. Over the next two years the CRC and partners were able to raise the money necessary to purchase the land initially bought by the developers and then work with SITLA to secure more land as open space. Thus far 221 acres of the land that encompass the Tower have been protected, and is now held by the Utah Open Lands, a nonprofit land trust. Win one for the environmentalist wackos! :)

On this particular day I was exploring the La Sal Mountains and driving the La Sal Scenic Loop road (highly recommended, but not for the faint of heart). As I came down into Castle Valley I saw this spire (hard to miss, really), and decided it was time I became more acquainted with it. After some off-road exploring -- in which I treated my poor Xterra as an ATV, not an SUV -- I realized there was local access through a maintained trailhead. I hiked through a drainage (with a very cool slot canyon) and arrived at the base of the Castleton Tower trail. I hiked up to the base of the tower, which was an awesome experience. If you are ever in this area, don't miss this awesome spot!
http:--utahopenlands.org-castleton-slider-
https:--www.mountainproject.com-v-castleton-tower-105716850
http:--www.discovermoab.com-la_sal_mountain_loop_road.htm
Please visit my photography website at http:--sundershots.smugmug.com- where you will find prints available for purchase in high quality resolution with no watermarks
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