Clouds on the mesa

One hour before sunset in late July. Gray’s Pasture, Island in the Sky, Canyonlands NP, Utah.

MONSOON. The word conjures up images of driving sheets of heavy rain pummeling a coastal village, causing widespread flooding and general misery. Here in southern Utah, however, monsoons take a different approach. July, August, September are our months when thunderclouds can kick up, lightning arrives to make mesa-top living more interesting (and dangerous), and the clouds drape themselves in our skies like no other season of the year. We rangers love monsoon season.