MONDAY 26th
A fresh start to the day with the temperature around zero and the sky clear and blue. We drove north up to the head of the Zion Canyon to take the riverside walk. It was a beautiful half hour stroll up the banks of the Virgin River, which has cut a deep, sheer chasm in the colourful sandstone. There were still autumn leaves on the trees in the valley floor and the low sun angle gave some spectacular shows of colour. After the riverside walk we headed back south and walked the more strenuous Hidden Canyon Trail. The trail climbed in a zig-zag, about 1000ft up the main canyon wall, then branched off to the hidden Canyon. At times we were holding a chain as we traversed the cliff track cut into the canyon wall – there was no safety rail. The boys did really well and the views from the top were outstanding and well worth the walk. The light in the canyon was just amazing – the low sun strikes one wall while the other is in complete shadow except for the red coloured reflected light bouncing off the light side of the canyon. Great for photography if you can time your visit right.
After the walk we had to head to the Zion Lodge to arrange an escort through a tunnel. The initial section of road that took us east toward Bryce Canyon is an incredible drive but the one mile tunnel was built in the 30s for far smaller cars than those that use it today. The park service close the tunnel to allow large vehicles like our RV to drive through right on the centreline avoiding hitting the roof or walls.
Once out of Zion Park we drove off toward Bryce Canyon stopping for gas and then finally at an RV park in a town called Patch. The towns all look very dodgy out here – I’m sure you can hear the banjos as you pass through – but Patch looked reasonably OK and the camp was very basic but had electrical hookup which was a bonus.
Mark
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