Ham Rock - stage 1

Following on from "General Store" I thought that I would revisit the American South West and do a pure landscape using what I learnt from that previous painting. Ham Rock is in the Arches National Park in Utah and am hoping to get a good sense of space and depth to try and get across the dramatic landscape and Big Sky - yes it's another The Big Sky painting. 
Although I'm based in the UK I'm afraid that the British Landscape doesn't really interest me that much and much prefer the vastness that can be found in the USA and I suppose if I do more of these I could show it to galleries who sell this sort of work in the USA...
This stage was first "drawn" up with a small bristle brush using my usual mix of Burnt Sienna and Winsor Violet (Dioxazine) thinned with Liquin and Lukas Number 5 Medium so that it dried quickly enabling me to apply the tone with a rag using the same paint mix in the afternoon session.