The Tepees North Pullout

The Tepees North Pullout is a roadside viewpoint 14 miles from the park's north entrance. It looks over a cluster of conical badland hills striped in gray-blue, purple, green and rust. I'd make it a short stop for a close look at the Painted Desert without a trail walk; look past the nearest cones, too, to take in how the formations rise from the open plain.

For a photo, use a wider frame with part of the road or open plain so the cones sit in their landscape. A tight crop loses how sharply they rise from the flat badlands.

This is the park's best exposure of the Blue Mesa Member, a thick layer of mudstone with minor sandstone beds, about 220 to 225 million years old. Its bands are ancient soil horizons. Iron in oxygen-rich soils turned reddish; where groundwater left less oxygen, iron stayed greenish or bluish. The broader Chinle Formation was laid down by rivers during the Late Triassic, more than 200 million years ago.

The conical shapes were named for their resemblance to tipis, though tipis are not part of this region's culture. Some Navajo people have also said one hill resembles a male hogan.

The north stop has auto and bus/RV parking, interpretive exhibits and a scenic view. It's a viewpoint, not the trailhead for the Historic Blue Forest Trail; that walk starts at the separate Tepees South Pullout.