Zion National Park, October 14-16, 2019

Mary Ann and I have been talking about going to Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks for many years, and we finally went. They are gorgeous – why did we wait so long? This post is for Zion, and I’ll follow up with another one for Bryce Canyon.

On Monday, October 14th, we drove up to the town of La Verkin, Utah (about a 6.5 hour drive), which is about 30 minutes from Zion NP. We stayed at the Best Western Plus, which was very nice, and much cheaper than staying at Zion, or the town attached to it, Springdale.

We decided that this is a good time of year to go. It was crowded, but not nearly as crowded as what we’ve heard is there in the summer. The shuttles were full, but we didn’t have any 1-2 hour waits like we’ve heard about in summer time. The weather was cool, but comfortable.

Here is a brief travelogue, followed by pictures. The different rock formations at Zion NP are named, and I used those names below.

DAY 1:

The first day was our drive to La Verkin, Utah. We took a 1.5 hour side trip (longer because we stopped for the sights) to pick up my lost wallet. I lost it on my trip the previous week to the Grand Canyon, and it was returned to the Visitors Center. The cash was gone, but at least I got my cards, ID, etc back. We stopped at Lee’s Ferry and Lonely Dell Ranch, and we also got some pictures of the canyon from the Grand Canyon North Rim Lodge.

One week ago in my post, the aspen fall colors on the road to the canyon were at their peak. Now the colors were gone. What a difference a week makes!

DAY 2:

We got to the Virgin Narrows in Zion NP early. We only hiked a little way up the river. When the water got almost to Mary Ann’s waist, we decided to stop.

Next we went to the Temple of Sinawava and got some pictures.

Then we hiked the Lower Emerald Pool Trail.

Around sunset we went to the Canyon Junction bridge for pictures of the Watchman. It’s a popular sunset spot, and there were lots of people on the bridge. The reddish colors come out more at sunset.

DAY 3:

We arrived at the Towers of the Virgin in time for sunrise. The colors at sunrise were spectacular, and much brighter and more pronounced than with the sun directly overhead.

Afterward, we took the shuttle to the Court of the Patriarchs. We found a spot with a waterfall and nice views, and we were the only people there, which was surprising since there were so many people at the park. We saw an American Dipper, which is a fun bird to watch. It loves rushing water, and it sits in the water and bobs up and down before dipping in to catch its prey.

Next, we drove on the road going east out of the park, through the 1.1 mile tunnel, to the Canyon Overlook Trail. We hiked the trail which was beautiful, and a little scary in spots, due to the sheer drop-offs. We then went further up the road for more sites. On the way back, we saw Bighorn Sheep.