Zion is zion

I have come to the conclusion that this is the most beautiful place I've ever seen. S didn't believe me on the phone but it really is. "Pictures?" he asked. Nope. They can't capture it.

Actually, they can try, but it's so much more than visual. It reminded me of the sweat lodge. An experience that leaves you quiet and calm afterwards. It's very hot and dry here, yet as you go into the canyon, it gets cooler and cooler. You have to get into the water to walk the trail (why there are no pictures--I'm too wimpy to risk my camera), and then it unfolds. The shear scale of it, the age, the amazing color (all the rocks are orange or red, the water is blue-green), the texture of the sandstone (it's crumbly and sand, but also stone!). This unassuming river has carved it over 3 million years. And it continues to carve it. But only our great (times 150) grandchildren will even see the slightest change.

I had more to say but it is time to get back on the road unfortunately.

Zion hiking

Zion isn't a place for a trailer like Alice. Most of the park is cut off to traffic and can only be accessed by shuttle. Don't worry; I did get some nice images of her before tucking her into her campsite for a few days. I'm planning on trying a "difficult" trail today. When I asked a ranger at the visitor center if there were any trails I shouldn't do alone, she smirked at me. "Why? Are you afraid to be alone?" I said, "no, I'm used to hiking Yellowstone, where lone hikers are mauled by bears and never found." Later, I asked another ranger about a trail I was thinking of taking. Here's what she said. "The Narrows is at the top of the canyon, formed by the Virgin River. Take the shuttle to the last stop, then there will be a one mile paved trail along the river. When that trail ends, prepare to enter the Virgin." Entering the Virgin at her Narrows? With so many visitors, I don't think she's a virgin any more. I walked the one mile trail last night. This is what the end looked like.