Zion National Park -The Kolob Canyons

There is this magnificent stretch of Interstate 15 between Las Vegas and St. George than my brother told us about.  I think it's the prettiest Interstate drive we've ever made!  Cutting through the mountains of Nevada, Arizona, and into Utah we simply want to stop every ten feet and take pictures!

But, alas, it wouldn't do any good.  You just have to see it for yourself!  You just have to!

Another six days off, another road trip.  Don't cha just love it!  We're headed to Zion National Park this time.  We were there years ago on one of our visits to Bryce - but we weren't greatly impressed. I've been studying maps, though, and there are a couple of entrances to Zion, too, so we're willin' to give Zion a second chance just like Yosemite.

There's this north-western entrance at Kolob Canyon, but it doesn't take us very far into the Park.  It's about ten feet off of the Interstate though, so we'll give it a shot.  Then we'll drop down to Hurricane, Utah and Highway 9 to get to the southern entrance - and come out the eastern exit.  I'm thinkin' that'll pretty well cover everything they have to show us!

It has some pretty stuff to show us:

I would love to hike back into there.  That is what Zion is probably best for - the serious hiker.  I mean, they have over a dozen marked trails that are rated "moderate" or "strenuous."  They sound wonderfully romantic:

Kayenta Trail connects The Grotto to the Emerald Pools;

Taylor Creek Trail (4 hours) is limited to 12 people per group and takes you past two homestead cabins to the Double Arch Alcove -- often snow covered;

Kolob Arch (8 hours) again limited to 12 people and takes you to one of the world's largest freestanding arches -- often snow covered...

And a few sound plum dangerous!  For example:

Hidden Canyon Trail (only 2.5 hours) long drop-offs, not for anyone fearful of heights.  Follows along a cliff face (!) to the mouth of a narrow canyon -- may be snow covered and icy!

Ah, to be young and foolish again!

The Kolob Canyons and Hurricane Cliffs are at the western edge of the massive, uplifted Colorado Plateau (and the south-western corner of Utah.)  Encompassed in Zion you will find Navajo sandstone, Kayenta mudstone (full of dinosaur tracks) Moenave deposits, Chinle shales containing petrified wood, and conglomerate that is composed of Moenkopi rubble.  There are slot canyons that resemble the Antelope Canyons near Page, Arizona (see our post:  http://thetravelerstwo.blogspot.com/2013/10/upper-antelope-canyon.html )...  Just an endless variety of things to see!

Above, you can see from the contrast between the vertical shafts of rock and the tilted rock in the foreground that massive geological changes have gone on here, not to mention the volcanic residue at the top of the formation.  The always gorgeous blue sky does tend to make a pretty picture.

Here we have one of the Cheetos Indians (left over from lunch) admiring the scenery around him.

(Lil' feller really gets around, doesn't he!)

As you can see there are days and weeks and even months worth of places to climb!  But we're moving on to the south entrance to Zion, so it's back to the Interstate for us.