Zion National Park (Utah)

Ever since our trip to Vegas last year, Rebecca and I have planned on returning for an extended trip to Zion National Park. This year we were fortunate enough to score free airfare from my job to attend Conexpo in Las Vegas. I flew out for the show on Monday and Rebecca arrived on Wednesday night after I'd toured the event for two days.



The next morning we headed North on Interstate 15, arriving at the Zion Canyon Visitors Center around 10am. After grabbing our backcountry permit, we drove to the Weeping Rock parking lot to organize our backpacks and set off toward the East Mesa Trail.



The hike was roughly 2000 feet of elevation gain over 4 miles - through a series of switchbacks winding up the sides of the Echo Canyon. Once we'd reached the top of the mesa, we began searching for a suitable site to pitch our tent. Eventually we'd established a site and were heating our dinner while we watched the sun set over the spines of distant ridgelines.



The next day's hike was a breeze, although Rebecca had a sizable blister to deal with as we stomped down the trails we'd trudged up previously.



Since our progress was so quick, we took the opportunity to take in the sights during our descent, even stopping to filter some water to refill our canteens.



We celebrated our hike at the car before heading to The Park House Cafe in Springdale for our compensatory coffee.



That afternoon we checked into our AirBnb in Hurricane, UT before returning to the park to explore the Riverside Walk, which approaches the beginning of the Narrows "trail." The Narrows are not an actual trail, but a hike along the North Fork Virgin River. We terminated our exploration at the point that dry land ends, choosing not to dunk our boots in the cold water.



The next day we drove to the Kolob Canyon to check out the other side of the park.



We drove until snow covered the road, then turned around and headed to the Taylor Creek Trail. The 5-mile roundtrip hike terminates at the Double Arch Alcove. It is also a trail created by the flow of water, zigg-zagging along the middle fork of the Taylor Creek. By my count, the trail crosses the shallow creek 59 times.



Satisfied with our exploration of the park (given the time of year), we said goodbye to the rocky cliffs and drove back to Las Vegas for our second AirBnb reservation just south of downtown. In the morning we packed up and headed into the city for food and last-minute relaxation at Sunset Park before returning the rental car and flying home overnight.

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