Checkerboard Mesa

Checkerboard Mesa sits just southwest of Zion's east entrance, a 6,520-foot sandstone dome rising about 900 feet above the Zion–Mount Carmel Highway. It's one of the most photographed formations in the park, thanks to a pattern that looks almost engineered.

The pattern explained

• Horizontal lines are cross-bedding — fossilized layers of ancient sand dunes, later cemented by calcite and iron oxide into Navajo Sandstone.
• Vertical and near-vertical cracks formed later, from repeated freeze-thaw cycles and temperature swings expanding and contracting the rock.
• Together they create the grid pattern that gives the mesa its name — best seen from the roadside pullout on the highway.

There's no dedicated trail up Checkerboard Mesa; most visitors take it in from the highway viewpoint on their way to or from the east entrance.