Phantom Ranch Tour - a block of sandstone along the South Kaibab Trail

This large block of sandstone lies along the South Kaibab Trail where the trail descends through the Supai Group. This view looking back up the trail toward Cedar Ridge shows the upper part of the Grand Canyon sequence. Some layers of the sedimentary rocks are more resistant to weathering and erosion than others, which results in the alternating ledge-and-slope profile of the canyon walls. The cliff-forming Redwall Limestone forms the prominent layer in the lower left part of the image. Shale, mudstone, and sandstone layers in the Supai Group are responsible for the alternating ledge-and-slope profile above the Redwall escarpment. The overlying Hermit Shale is completely masked by vegetation (and snow in this image). The Coconino Sandstone forms the massive white cliff, which is in turn capped by the slope-forming Toroweap Formation and caprock ledge-forming Kaibab Limestone (Beus, 1987).