Valley of Fire During the Solar Eclipse

by Jeff Goulden

White Domes

Nevada's Valley of Fire State Park is located near the town of Overton, 56 miles northeast of Las Vegas.  The park is named for the fiery red sandstone formations found throughout its landscape.  Established in 1935, Valley of Fire is Nevada’s oldest and largest state park. Ancient trees and early man are represented throughout the park by areas of petrified wood and 3,000 year-old Indian petroglyphs. 

On May 20, 2012 there was an annular solar eclipse in which the sun forms a ring around the moon; a spectacular phenomenon to view.  Since it had been advertised that Nevada's Valley of Fire State Park was an excellent place to see this event, I was extremely fortunate to be there in the late afternoon when the event occurred.

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Rainbow Vista

Viewing a solar eclipse without proper protection can be damaging to the eyes,  so I concentrated on photographing the surrounding landscape.  Several other photographers with welding goggles and other eye protection looked skyward to record the actual eclipse.  However, the real action was on the ground.  As the sun passed behind the moon, the land acquired an other-worldly glow, providing me the opportunity to capture some brightly colored and radiant scenes, including the two shown here.

Early morning and late afternoon/evening are the best times of day to photograph the Valley of Fire.  The entire park with its red rock is quite colorful, but the multi-colored Rainbow Vista and White Domes areas are especially beautiful.  More images of this picturesque state park can be seen in my Valley of Fire Gallery at Istockphoto.com.  Signed fine art prints from many of my photographs are available for purchase on Fine Art America.  For special offers and to follow my photographic journey please Join My Email List​.​

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