Road Trip to Zion Day 4

On our last full day in Zion Mary and I rented dry pants, neoprene socks, and wading shoes to hike the Narrows of the Virgin River.

Initially the canyon is relatively wide with many deciduous trees which were in full color.

Mary in Narrows hiking attire.

In short order there's a delightful waterfall.

and more brilliant trees.

We spied this nice buck grazing fresh grass at the base of the cliffs and presiding over our activities.

The canyon then narrowed.

These seeps form fantastic patterns on the walls.

We took a nice detour into Orderville Canyon which is quite narrow. Stunning and well worth the time although progress is soon blocked by boulders.

 Back in the main canyon the "Wall Street" section begins.

Mary eddies out on a sand bar.

We loved the water sculpted rock.

Above Wall Street and a mile or so before Big Springs the canyon widens and large boulders slowed our progress, so we called it good and turned around.

Hiking downstream in the river was much easier than the trip upstream!

Unbelievable hike! We were incredibly fortunate to have great weather, clear water, and relatively moderate crowds.

Road Trip to Zion Day 3

I brought my gravel bike out to Utah instead of the mountain bike so I'd have the option of doing a little road cycling with Mary if she was so inclined. 

I really did not want to drive very far to ride, so the only nearby dirt road option is the Smithsonian Butte Back Country Byway out of Rockville.

The road starts out with a rude climb straight up out of the Virgin River Valley but mellows as it nears Smithsonian Butte.

The gradual descent to Highway 59 held a lot of washboard but not too miserable if you put it in a big gear and "give er". The wide plains out there are nice.

I had planned on crossing 59 and riding up onto Little Creek Mountain but once I got to 59 that option just didn't seem too inviting, so I headed back up the Smithsonian Butte Road to explore.

I found pleasant riding on the road out Grafton Mesa.

 Wonderful views from the edge of Grafton Mesa.

Next I cruised out on Wire Mesa to the end of the dirt road.

From there I hopped on the Wire Mesa mountain bike trail which was good fun although a bit much for the gravel bike in spots.

 More fine views up toward Zion Canyon.

The little draws and hollows off the mesa were splendid too.

Turned out to be a great ride!

Road Trip to Zion Day 2

After a little research Mary and I elected to hike the Observation Point trail. The trail was rated as moderately strenuous with a few sections of exposure (i.e. big drop offs) and I would say that rating is spot on.

After switchbacking up from Weeping Rock in the shadows we emerged into sunlight above Echo Canyon.

 A bit farther up is the most exposed section which offered great views down the canyon.

At the top of the trail the scenery changes completely as you are now on top of a large mesa with sand dunes and scrub.

Quickly we reached Observation Point and boy did we observe!

Heading back down the trail we took our time and soaked in the scenery a bit more than we did on the ascent.

There's Mary!

Lower down there was more sun to highlight the fall colors than there was early morning.

 Couldn't pick which of these was best, so I included all three of them.

Finally down on the valley floor we relaxed with a stroll among the stately cottonwoods.

A fantastic hike!

Road Trip to Zion Day 1

Mary and I just returned form a fantastic road trip to Zion National Park. It's a fairly long drive so on the way out we spent the night at Cathedral Gorge State Park near Panaca, Nevada. The facilities there are great and the nearby rock formations are fascinating.

Unfortunately we arrived at dark and left early, so the lighting wasn't the best but we surely enjoyed the otherworldly scenery.

The caves just east of the campground are especially worth exploring.

From Cathedral Gorge we drove to Zion, arriving mid afternoon, and then set up camp. Sweet spot!

From camp we hiked up the relatively easy Watchman Trail to work the travel out of our legs.

The gentle climb and the amazing scenery cured us of our travel weariness.

 We hadn't anticipated the amazing fall colors! 

Of course the fine views delighted us too.

The towering Watchman is on the right.

Springdale in fall splendor.

Just amazing!

 Feeling revived and inspired we returned to camp for dinner and planned our next day's adventure.