We've been at Zion for four days. You could easily spend a week here and not see everything. We entered into the park at the east entrance(coming from Bryce) and made our way through the park on Utah Highway 9 to the west side where we were staying in Virgin, Utah. Utah 9 is very narrow and winding on the eastern side of Zion; there were several times when I was glad we weren't meeting another RV. We also had to go through two tunnels. The first was no big deal, but the second tunnel is a mile long and only has enough clearance for a camper if you drive through it centered on the center line. After discussing it with the family and saying a quick prayer, we decided to go for it and slammed the gas pedal to the floor.
Just kidding! They have Park Rangers stationed at each end of the tunnel to stop traffic to allow RV's to get through the tunnel (and charging $15 for the favor).
Once we got settled into our campsite, we returned the following morning for a day at the park. One of the best things about Zion has to be its hiking trails. There are dozens and dozens of trails that range from easy to moderate to strenuous to "technical". I'm not sure what "technical" means; I think if you have to ask then you should probably stay off the trails so labeled.
We hiked a few trails. They usually start out nice and wide with a gentle slope.
Eventually, you start encountering switchbacks and steps as the climb gets steeper and steeper.
At some point, the trails become a narrow path that is literally chiseled out of the side of the mountain. I'm not particularly afraid of heights, but I have to admit that I was pretty uncomfortable by the time we got to this point (not to mention out of breath).
But if you stick with it, you are rewarded with some absolutely breathtaking views.
Another of the most notable features of Zion is the Virgin River that flows through the center of it (and presumably carved the canyon). The River Walk is a nice level trail that follows the river about a mile upstream. When the trail stops, hikers are allowed to continue hiking in the river. When we were at Zion, the temperature varied from the high 90's up to about 104 Degrees. The prospect of hiking up a cold mountain river was very appealing.
The hike in the river starts out fairly wide with few rapids.
The canyon walls close in quickly, forming what is called "The Narrows". This is another one of those places you don't want to be in a flash flood.
Eventually you wind-up on your rear-end being pulled upstream by your little brother.
Of course you're soaking wet at the end of all this, but not to worry as they have a very effective system for drying out your hiking shoes.
We went on a short trail ride on the second day.
It was interesting seeing how these horses interact with one another. When the trail guide saw that we were from Georgia, he looked at me and said "I'm going to let you ride Maynard". Maynard, now that's a nice Georgia sounding name. It turns out that Maynard has lots of gastro-intestinal issues. Sorry, no photos.
Other stuff...
Hannah and Kendall have had an on-going argument for the last 4 weeks because Kendall wants Hannah to "fix him up" with the girls that she meets while we're on out trip (what does "fix me up" mean when you're 12?).
Anyway, this argument has been escalating for the last few days. Today, Hannah finally relented and agreed to fix him up with a friend she made this afternoon.
Another thing...
I haven't mentioned this before, but since we got to southern Utah, we have been in the extreme minority here as Americans. Most of the people in the campgrounds and at the parks are from Europe. They're real easy to spot because the men like to wear women's pants when they go hiking.
They also like to wear women's bikini bottoms at the pool (and when they go to and from the pool, and basically any other time that they feel like it). I'm trying to keep this blog G-Rated, so if you don't want to see a man in a Speedo, whatever you do
DON"T CLICK HERE.
And lastly...
You know the old saying "When in Rome...". It occurred to me as we are getting ready to leave Utah, that perhaps I have been a little close-minded toward some of their customs here.
Mom and Dad discussing Dad's idea to take on another couple of wives before leaving Utah.
Not quite done. No post would be complete without a couple of pics of interesting wheels. Here are a couple from the area around Zion.
Even though the North and the South Rims of the Grand Canyon are about 10 miles apart "as a crow flies", it is over 200 miles to get from one to the other by road. For this reason, we went to the North Rim on our way to California and we'll be visiting the South Rim on our way back from California.
It turns out that this little bugger is quite elusive, and difficult to get a photograph. I did find this close-up on the web:
Sensing our disappointment at missing good shot of a Silver Ghost, this little guy approached Hannah and agreed to be photographed.
Eva snapped this shot of a dandelion. What you can't tell from the photo is that it is as big as a tennis ball. Beautiful.
Between our 4-wheel-drive trip to the North Rim and the regular drive into the Park the following day, I think we got a pretty good taste of the Grand Canyon. We're looking forward to our stop at the South Rim in a couple of weeks.
While at the North Rim, we learned that a wild fire was burning near Yosemite, which was our next destination. We have re-routed our trip to Las Vegas, where we'll try to regroup.
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