Be still my heart.
While there were more people visiting than would normally be to my liking, we found many ways to strategically avoid the crowds (and heat). Go us! When we got to Zion, we checked in at our campsite, set up the tent & sleeping bags, had dinner in town at Amigos Mexican restaurant, and then watched sunset at Watchman/the bridge.
As you may or may not know, I am a sunrise, sunset, and star-chaser. But Zion isn't really known for its sunrises or sunsets, and I think that's mainly because it's situated within a valley of sorts - in fact, one of the rangers at the visitor center suggested going outside of the park to view both. Still, we actually had some really good sunsets right at/near our campsite:
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| South Campground |
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| The Watchman |
And the hiking did not disappoint. On our first full day, we did the Narrows. (We opted for this because there can be chances for flash floods, which prevents visitors from hiking the Virgin River, and on our first day we were in the clear.) I had read in the guidebook that you can beat the crowds at the Narrows by going early, as many people opt for the afternoon. (It turns out that the river is a great place to cool down and combat the heat!) So we got on one of the first tour buses of the day. (Many on our bus got off at Stop 6 (Angels Landing), which is another one to do early - we did this our last full day there.) All the way to the final stop (#9) we went. There were several other folks and groups around us, but we got to experience some wonderful serenity while being relatively people-free...until our way back near the very beginning. We got back around 1pm - it's a long hike, and can be even longer depending on how far you choose to go; we made it nearly to the Hanging Gardens.
It was definitely on the cooler side, but hiking against the current was hard work! At some points, the water was up to our waist and mid-chest. And, believe it or not, I found that going with the current on the way back was even harder in terms of keeping my balance because the rocks on the bottom are super slippery (and some are bigger than others, which you can't tell!). I definitely fell in 2-3 times (only up to my shoulders - I managed to keep my head dry!) and got a few bruises/scrapes. I consider them my battle scars. ;) It was such a unique and wonderful experience - the Narrows was my favorite hike of the trip! After that, no other hike really had a chance...
As you can imagine, the Narrows left us quite worn out, so we went back for lunch in the park at the "fast food" joint at the Lodge and then relaxed/napped at the campsite. It was still hot when we wanted to get moving again, so we went to the visitor's center for a quick stop (and so my friend could stamp her NP passport) before taking the shuttle (God bless the shuttle system in Zion! It's actually required in the summer/busy months when they restrict private car access past shuttle stop 5) into Spring Lake, the neighboring town, for dinner at a cute place called Bit & Spur. It was definitely a full day, but we had a little bit of daylight left, so we headed back to our campsite for wine and some card games. I learned how to play Mille Bornes!
The next morning, my friends slept in (and by sleeping in I mean like 7am) while I walked the perimeter of the campsite. We took the shuttle into town again for breakfast and coffee(!) at Meme's Cafe and then planned out our morning. We ended up doing a series of shorter hikes: Weeping Rock, Grotto Trail (linking Angels Landing trailhead with Zion Lodge), and the Lower Emerald Pools Trail. (Sadly, the Middle & Upper Emerald Pools Trails were closed due to recent rockfall.) While at the Lodge we had ice cream and checked out the gift shop.
It was time to beat the heat yet again, so we got in our rental car and headed up the Zion-Mt Carmel scenic drive. We ended up doing the Canyon Overlook hike, which turned out to be pretty neat. We really weren't expecting to enjoy it so much!
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| Checkerboard Mesa |
After the hike we were back in the car and driving the scenic path back to our campsite.
Shower-less for over 2 days, it was time to pay up ($4 for 4 minutes) and get clean - the showers were right outside the park. YES!!!!! It felt so good. One friend needed to charge her phone with the outlet in the shower area, so my other friend and I headed to the brewery, which was right outside the park too. Our friend soon joined us, and we ended up just doing dinner at the brewery, as we were running tight on time to make the ranger talk at 8pm: "Canine and Feeling Fine." (It was about coyotes, and it was quite entertaining - Ranger Kyle was great and full of humor.)
And, we saw stars! Absolutely breathtaking and incredible. So, so wonderful.
(full) Day 3: Angels Landing. This was it. This is considered THE HIKE at Zion, especially if you make it all the way to the top. We got up super early this day to make the first shuttle bus. Success! The hike starts off with some steep switchbacks (so I'm glad we decided to bring the hiking poles)...
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| view looking back at how we came up |
We hiked our way to the spot where we were .5 miles from the very top. This is where there was a bathroom and where I stowed my hiking poles (which I had read about doing on a blog). Onward!
Now, .5 miles may not seem like a lot, but that half mile turned out to be pretty long and strenuous. My two friends started with me but ended up turning back and waiting till I came back down due to some moderate fear of heights and the fact that you needed to use chains to pull yourself up at some points. So, I was on my own. I scrambled up pretty fast, surprising even myself. (Though, admittedly, I felt sore in my legs and arms for the following 2 days.) And I made it to the top! It was so invigorating, and I felt truly alive. Highly recommend that one, even with the steep drop-offs. (Just be smart!)
Yes, it was worth it - I soaked it in for a little bit before turning around. But going down was actually harder, as there were other hikers coming up the narrow path with the chains, so it was a game of stop and go (and, when possible, moving to the side) to allow for passing both ways. Amazing! Heading down the switchbacks with my friends was much easier than going up, and we soon found ourselves at the bottom and on the bus back to the Lodge, which was just one stop up. We ate there - it turned out to be the tail end of the breakfast buffet - and then headed to the museum to watch the 22 minute orientation video (which all of the parks have).
We then decided to make the drive to Kolob Canyons, which is the northwest-most part of the park. In fact, we had to exit the park and re-enter to get there. There was some construction on the driving path up, so we had to wait for a vehicle to lead us, but we made it, did a short hike (Timber Trail Overlook), took in some more scenery, and then headed back for showers and dinner (at the Brew pub again). More wine and games happened before we turned in - we needed to get up early (yet again) to drop our friend off at the shuttle back to Las Vegas, for this was where her time with us ended. (She needed to fly out to a Baptism, where she was the godmother.) So, the next morning, once we dropped her off, my other friend and I hit the road for Bryce, aiming to get there early so we could get a campsite (which was first come, first served).
But this is quite enough for one post...so Bryce will just have to wait for another entry...
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