White House Ruin Canyon de Chelly

White House Ruin Canyon de Chelly MG_2713, originally uploaded by E=mcSCOW.

White House ruin in Canyon de Chelly

The canyon walls are comprised of the De Chelly Sandstone of the Cutler Group/Formation. The brown vertical streaks are good examples of "desert varnish" weathering phenomena.

The De Chelly Sandstone member of the Cutler Group are aeolian sand dune deposits from a large dune field (called the DeChelly Erg) that occupied the area of western New Mexico and eastern Arizona around Chinle and the 4 corners area during the Permian