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Thursday, April 30, 2015

Z: Zion Canyon

 



Hey, it's the letter Z, and the last day of the A to Z Challenge! I have managed to post every day, and only had to fudge a little bit to make each post match its letter and/or my theme. I apologize right now for having done less well at visiting other bloggers, but I promise I'll keep right on working through the list. I'll never get to everyone, but I'll visit a lot before the next challenge rolls around.

And now, to our last Mountains and Valleys feature, one of the great ones, Zion Canyon, the heart of Zion National Park. I had the privilege of visiting Zion just this month (while my first week of posts were on auto-pilot!), not for the first time and I hope not for the last time.

Some basic info:
Zion Canyon was carved by the Virgin River. But the history of this desert canyon is water all the way back. The spectacular red cliffs are sandstone--laid down by an ancient sea. The canyon bottom is around 4000', with cliffs of 2000' or more leading up. And at the head of Zion Canyon, you enter the Virgin River Narrows, a slot canyon where you can see on any day the power of water--and a reminded to stay out of there when thunderstorms are in the region!

The park is located about 40 miles east of St. George, Utah, and was named by early Mormon pioneers. If it had been Norwegians, it would be Valhalla Canyon, because it's just that sort of place--it makes you figure it must be the home of the gods.

Without further ado, because a picture is worth a thousand words:
Overlooking Zion Canyon from the West Rim area (off Kolob Terrace Road).
Zion Canyon from the Observation Point trail.
Zion Trails are often not for the faint of heart. This is one of the more unnerving parts of the famous Angels Landing Trail.
One of the most beautiful things in the world is a cottonwood in leaf against the red canyons of the Colorado Plateau (the Utah canyon country). A ray of light hit just as we entered the Virgin River Narrows.
Hiking the Narrows. The water is very cold feeling in the morning, and deliciously cool by noon on a June day! You can see why you don't want to be here during a flash flood.

 ©Rebecca M. Douglass, 2015


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14 comments:

  1. Billy Blue EyesApril 30, 2015 at 1:39 AM

    Awesome place, well doen getting to Z

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    1. Rebecca M. DouglassApril 30, 2015 at 8:18 AM

      Thanks! I totally tanked on visits, but that's what the Road Trip is for, right? And I have a bunch of great book reviews queued up, but I'll be back with more photos, too.

      Delete
  2. UnknownApril 30, 2015 at 4:56 AM

    So beautiful. My father-in-law has been there many times--he can't say enough about it.

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    1. Rebecca M. DouglassApril 30, 2015 at 8:19 AM

      One of my favorite places on earth. Though I admit I have a lot of those :)

      Delete
  3. CharlotteApril 30, 2015 at 5:50 AM

    Zion Canyon - impressive place! It looks like a refreshing walk in the waters of the Narrows.
    Congrats Rebecca - you made it!

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    1. Rebecca M. DouglassApril 30, 2015 at 8:20 AM

      Refreshing when the air heated up! We started up those waters at about 6:30 a.m. and it was cold! Especially for the boys, who were still short then. At one point water was up nearly to their chests. It took some talking to get them past that.

      Delete
  4. Jemima PettApril 30, 2015 at 8:03 AM

    That's absolutely gorgeous! What a great place to finish. Well done for completing, and I didn't notice any fudging, even when you absconded for a week :) And I haven't visited nearly enough people, either. I haven't even revisited the people I wanted to revisit as much as I'd like. There's still the rest of the year, of course!

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    1. Rebecca M. DouglassApril 30, 2015 at 8:21 AM

      Well, X is always a bit of a cheat, but since I invented Xavier Xanthum, I always have a fall-back :)

      You've done a much better job of keeping up with people than I have. This week has been especially bad for me. I'm spending all my time either at work, or sorting books for the library book sale, or lying on the couch moaning about how my feet hurt (should be visiting then, but my brain is pretty well shut off too, so solitaire and a book on tape seems easier....).

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  5. UnknownApril 30, 2015 at 8:48 AM

    Zion canyon has such a unique landscape! I love the water-carved gorges (not so much the fear of a flash flood...). This is on my list when I get around to visiting Utah!
    Congrats of making it to Z. :)

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    1. Rebecca M. DouglassApril 30, 2015 at 2:35 PM

      Oh, yeah. Can't visit Utah without it! Arches and Zion...A to Z :)

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  6. LA NickersMay 1, 2015 at 2:46 PM

    Breathtaking photos on this wonderful Z Day post.
    Congratulations on completing the A to Z challenge for 2015.
    We made it! (I did 5 blogs this year for the series - all on different topics. Whew.)
    Thanks for stopping by at
    The Mane Point: A Haven for Horse Lovers . Hope you will visit again.

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    1. Rebecca M. DouglassMay 1, 2015 at 10:18 PM

      Thanks! We did, indeed make it...though I'm still back on Z when we've moved on to May 1st...almost 2nd :) I can't believe you do 5 blogs--just the one took all the spare time I had.

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  7. DeniseMay 5, 2015 at 4:22 PM

    I love this park. I have a beautiful photograph that I bought at an art fair years ago that inspired my trip to the canyon.

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    1. Rebecca M. DouglassMay 6, 2015 at 9:14 AM

      Those canyon walls just inspire great art! In fact, if I'm recalling correctly what they said on the bus up the canyon, art also inspired the creation of the park, though some early painters weren't believed--folks back east thought they were making it up.

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