2012_05_06 Shiprock

Shiprock, in Navajo Tsé Bitʼaʼí, or "rock with wings" is an inselberg, or volcanic plug or neck, that stands rising nearly 1,600 feet above the surrounding desert. The long dark ridges are volcanic dikes. Both the spire and the dikes are all that remain of a volcano that stood as a high broad cone after it formed about 27 million years ago. Today Shiprock is a sacred mountain of the Navajo Nation, in San Juan County, New Mexico, USA. Its peak elevation is 7,177 feet. Here are shots from a later flight over Shiprock, from almost directly overhead, late in the day.