Out West Adventure: Part 2--Zion Days 1 & 2

Wed.-Thu. May 8-9: Jan Bernsten generously offered to pick us up at 6:15AM to get us to the Michigan Flyer to Detroit Metro. We flew back to Las Vegas on Wednesday morning to pick-up the truck and camper from Apache RV Repair. Everything was just as we left it and we were relieved that the truck started right up after Marv reconnected the battery. Both vehicles were really dusty, inside and out. Marv had made a reservation for Hitching Post RV Park on the north side of town and the GPS took us there without a hitch. We set up and immediately flushed bleach and then clear water through the system and vacuumed out the camper and the truck. A swim and relaxing by the pool was supposed to be our reward and then we realized that Marv hadn’t brought his swimsuit. So instead we walked over to the Hitching Post Saloon for $2.95 draft beers (and one was free with a coupon from the RV park) and their wonderful ½ pound burgers with sweet potato fries, eaten on their outdoor patio, which we had to ourselves most of the time. Then we went shopping to restock the camper and get Marv a swim suit. When we had transferred everything from suitcase to camper and extra/winter clothes from camper to suitcase we made ourselves stay up until 10:00, which was 2:00 as far as our bodies were concerned, after arising at 5:15. We slept well and stayed in bed until 7:00 Las Vegas time, when Marv got up to start the coffee. The coffee maker had once again dislodged its valve so it was making a terrible racket. But we managed to get it put back together and enjoyed coffee as we broke camp. We found a really cheap self-wash place where we could scrub both vehicles on the outside and then we were on our way to Zion National Park.

         We traveled the same part of I15 that we had taken in early March to drive to Valley of Fire and continued on to the north and east. As the elevation rose, we were thrilled to see some small Joshua Trees and other yuccas in bloom. I15 cuts across the NW corner of Arizona for about 30 miles. Part of it goes through a Virgin River canyon with spectacular rock formations. It is hard to imagine that what is barely a trickle of water, which one could easily wade across, could do all that eroding. As we drove, the sun came in and out, we drove through some rain showers, and the temperatures varied between 65° and 75°. After a quick stop in Hurricane at the Utah Welcome Center, we drove on to Zion National Park. Along the way we passed an ostrich farm and then through the artsy town of Springfield.

Cut rock in Virgin Canyon, AZ

Part of Virgin Canyon, with the Virgin River trickling below

          Despite searching the truck thoroughly we couldn't come up with our National Park Senior Pass (which we were both sure we had left in the driver’s side door) so we shelled out $10.00 and bought another one—still an incredible deal for a lifetime of National Parks and Monuments!! As expected, because it was after noon, the two campgrounds were full so we drove about a quarter mile south of the entrance and set-up for a night at an RV park on the river. We made lunch and then took the free Springfield shuttle to the park gate. Much has changed since we visited Zion in 1976! There is a new Visitors Center; a lovely building that is full of passive heating and cooling features. We watched a short video about Zion and found that the river that has cut the amazing canyon is the same Virgin River that made the little canyon we had just driven through in Arizona. The scenic drive through the park is closed to cars from March until November. An efficient system of free shuttles, with a main bus pulling an equal-sized “trailer” bus, runs every 7-10 minutes to nine stops along the drive. There is a recorded message explaining the features and history of the park and announcing each stop as the shuttle goes up the canyon floor, along the Virgin River. Travelers can get on and off the shuttles at anytime. We rode to the Court of the Patriarchs and got off there to hike up a steep, short trail to a viewing point for the three pinnacles named Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We caught another shuttle and rode up to Temple of Sinawava, which is the endpoint of the scenic drive. From there we hiked a mile up the Riverside Trail to the gateway of “The Narrows”. It’s a pretty easy, paved trail past spectacular, soaring, multi-colored rock walls and the sun came out for part of the hike, affording some nice pictures. At the end of the trail the canyon narrows to sometimes only 20-30 feet wide and the only way to hike it is IN the river. It would have been wonderful to try part of it in hot weather, but with the temperature in the mid-sixties and the water temperature of 48° we decided against it. After lingering a bit and enjoying our time there, we headed back down the trail in an increasingly heavy rain shower. We saw two mule deer as we walked along. By the time we got back to the shuttle bus we were pretty happy we had worn our rain hats and jackets, because they were dripping wet, while we were dry inside. We rode all the way back to the now closed Visitors Center and walked over to get the Springfield shuttle. But we realized that the Zion Brewing Company pub was right there so we stopped in for a pint of their IPA (Marv) and Stout (Peggy). Then we took the shuttle back to the RV Park, where we enjoyed a $4.00 rotisserie chicken bought the night before. We’ll have enough for two more meals! The light rain continued on and off for a few hours. The evening was spent doing dishes and planning for the next few days at Zion. 

The Watchman, behind RV Park

South Entrance

Court of the Patriarchs

The Virgin River, cutting through Zion Canyon

Golden Columbine growing out of rock face along the River Trail 

Small waterfall just below the beginning of The Narrows