The Great Western Tour: Part 7

 Zion National Park

   From the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, the obvious route as we gradually make our way home is up to Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, and Arches. The latter is just off I-70, which surprisingly for an interstate, is a scenic road in its own right.

   There are other places worth a visit in Utah--Monument Valley, Glen Canyon, and Grand Staircase Escalante for example--but we visited them on other trips. Utah is so incredible you can't go wrong no matter which route you choose or where you go. 

  Zion is the Hebrew word for refuge or sanctuary. It is said that Isaac Behunin, the first settler in Zion Canyon, gave the area that name in the expectation that it could be a sanctuary for Mormons fleeing religious persecution in the East. Many of the placenames in the park might seem to share that sort of Mormon heritage but, in fact, most do not. Major John Wesley Powell conducted the first scientific exploration there in 1872 and named the highest point West Temple (7,800 ft) and its neighbor East Temple (7,110 ft.) Other places were named by a Methodist preacher, Frederick Fisher: The Great White Throne, Angels Landing, The Three Patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob), and The Watchman at the entrance to the canyon. The Temple of Sinawava is named for the Paiute Indian coyote spirit. The Virgin River that flows through the canyon may have come down for Spanish explorers honoring Mary, the mother of Jesus. Or, it might be for fur trapper Thomas Virgin who traveled with Jedidiah Smith.

   Even if you never learn their names, you will certainly learn to love the grandeur of Zion. This is desert country but it was shaped by water. The colorful sheer cliffs continue to be eroded and shaped by the Virgin. Usually this occurs quite slowly but, following unseen storms far outside the park, flashfloods come roaring through narrow canyons carrying many tons of boulders, gravel and debris. And an occasional unwary hiker. Rangers caution against entering any canyon without knowing what the weather has brewing. That water also supports abundant animal and plant life all along the river. 

The trail to the Emerald Pools passes behind misty waterfalls.

Limited space for parking in a narrow canyon resulted in the use

of shuttle buses. Get off at any stop and another bus will be along

every 15 minutes.

Some trails, such as Angels Landing and Hidden Canyon, come equipped 

with chains because that first wrong step can be a doozy.

The "trail" at Gateway to the Narrows is the bed of the Virgin River.