This entire area is phenomenally gorgeous. It’s one beautiful vista after another. Imagine the red rocks of Sedona, Arizona on super steroids. The entire length of the canyon/park is special. Springdale, Utah is the town surrounding the park’s entrance. The Virgin River runs through the park. Our campground, Zion River Resort, was located in Virgin and the river runs through the back of the property.

The drama of the Grand Canyon was about the vastness looking outward and down. The drama at Zion is about the vastness looking outward and up. All of the major points of interest in the park had been given biblical-inspired names by the Mormons who settled in the area, including the river’s name (wink, wink). It’s easy to interact with your surroundings here with many suggested hikes from easy to difficult. Some are even handicap accessible. During the main tourism season, the scenic canyon drive is closed to vehicular traffic and shuttle buses provide the mode of travel from vantage points to hiking trails and visitor’s services. I shot so many photos, I want to share them all. Ken also went on a more strenuous hike than what I could do so he will share his separately.

Are you getting the feeling that this place is paradise? Well, here are more photos to help convince you if you haven’t made up your mind yet:

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Ken’s Hike

“I  decided to take one of the hikes labeled as the Watch Tower. The following view is from the top. The difficulty was listed as medium. The path is very clearly marked and it was a perfect challenge for me. It was steep enough to give me a sense of accomplishment without exhausting me. The drop offs are steep and a misstep could be fatal, although the path is wide enough that it should not be a problem. Building this trail must have been difficult. Erosion of the trail by the occasional violent storms was part of the planning. Along the path stones are placed diagonally across to the path and angled downward to channel rain water to careen down the cliff rather than down the trail.

Note how the rocks on the trail form a shelter almost resembling a prehistoric bus stop.

Zion is a study of erosion. Most of the rock is jagged, but some are smooth, caused by moving water. This gives the rock the look of melted plastic or exotic pottery.

And then there is the contrast between the comical commercial aspect of the area and the almost ethereal beauty. This is outside the park. Much praise to the National Park Service for their care, maintenance and passion for educating the public of the beauty of this area.”

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Each day at the park, we were able to park our car in town and grab the shuttle to the Park’s Visitor Center. Ken enjoyed some brews (a flight) at the local brewery in Springdale. I found a beautiful necklace and earring set for Jen’s birthday at an artist’s gallery in town, made from cyan blue butterfly wings (Costa Rican butterflies).

Our only regret is that we hadn’t pushed further to the east to get to see Bryce Canyon. But, it would be a two and a half hour drive away (each way); too far for a day trip.

The drive up to Zion from Williams was interesting passing through multi-colored desert scenery and miniature red rock canyons. We had two scenic/tourist stops, one in Cameron, AZ, home of the Cameron Trading Post, and the other at the Navajo Bridge over the Colorado River. The Navajo Bridge experience was a crazy one. We pulled into the driveway towards the parking area for the visit only to find out that there is no place to park our rig and tow! We had to disconnect the car, move both vehicles, parallel park, and re-hook up before leaving. This is a first! We had always worried about this happening. It’s kind of like worrying about a knockdown on your boat and once when you experience it, it’s like, okay, no big deal.

And Cameron is a small town wrapped around the Trading Post:

From Zion we head to the Lake Mead area and then on to California and the Pacific mid-coast. More posts to follow of course!