Vallis Goblinorum

Tucked away in northern Arizona, near the Utah border, White Pocket is one of the most surreal landscapes of the American Southwest.
Formed during the Jurassic Period, when this region was covered by shifting sand dunes like those of today’s Sahara, the sands slowly compressed and cemented into swirling layers of sandstone.

The dominant Navajo Sandstone is known for its vivid colors and fluid, wave-like patterns. The folds and twists in the rock were shaped by a process called soft-sediment deformation, where water-saturated sands collapsed, often triggered by ancient earthquakes.

Reds and oranges come from iron oxides, while white streaks consist of purer sands free of minerals. The surface is marked by mosaic-like patterns and polygonal cracks, created by erosion and drying of the upper layers.

White Pocket is a natural composition where desert, time, and geology converge to create a stone-carved spectacle of shape and color.