Zion National Park

We spent our last two official days of vacation in Zion NP.  This park is beautiful and has lots of hiking trails so you are able to really see the canyon.  I think it might be my favorite because it has WATER!  Our first day we drove into the park and then drove out the eastern entrance through the tunnel that was built in the early 1900′s for access to Bryce and Grand Canyon.  They stop traffic if you are more than 7.5 feet wide as the tunnel was built before we had SUV’s!

Waterfall

Our second day we did a 3 mile hike up the canyon and then a 2 mile one into the canyon where it starts narrowing.  It was raining and cold or I would have been right in there walking in the river upstream until you can’t anymore.  The water falls and pools are not spectacular like Yosemite however this park has something Yosemite will never have and that is quiet!  We hiked to the top of the water fall to the Emerald Pools and at the top there is a small pool, no view but it is so beautiful here and even though you are not alone you feel like you are.  It is beautiful.

Canyon narrows

View of the Canyon Walls

We left Zion late in the day and made our way from amazing nature to amazing Lights!  Las Vegas is always the same, lots of people, noise, traffic, lights and energy.  I always really want to go to Las Vegas and then when I get there I am exhausted by the crowds and Paul was not impressed so who knows when I will get there again, probably with my girlfriends!!

Paris

Grand Canyon is spectacular; Arches National Park is interesting; Bryce Canyon is brilliant.  What a beautiful Canyon and the park is also really nice.  Much smaller than Grand Canyon and definitely less traffic than Yosemite but this Park has the most beautiful formations to look at.  We just kept saying this is perfect.  I think the biggest reason I say it is better than Grand Canyon is you can actually get up close and personal with the HooDoo’s.  HooDoo’s are the rock formations formed from millions of years of nature. There are no more words for this park, just enjoy the photos and wish you could be here with us!

Walking among the HooDoo's

FDR carved in the front of the house!

If you ever get to Moab Utah take the 10 mile drive south and see this roadside attraction.  It is very cheezy but worth the trip and the drive is beautiful also.  There is so much stuff here that is right out of the Route 66 days that you feel like you have stepped back in time.

Made from Irons

Patio Furnishings for Rock Home

Amazing rocks

The weather is working in our favor; it is cool, only 70 degrees and it could have been 100 easily.  This is definitely desert landscape.  This park is really spread out and has lots of opportunities for hiking and photography.

 We took two 1.5-mile hikes to get closer views of the arches.

 These arches were called North and South Windows and you could walk right up and under them.  Very cool and the view into the valley was beautiful, no smog here!

The rock formations were pretty impressive and the colors were spectacular.  I thought this one looked like Budda, no one else agreed – you decide!  We didn’t see much wildlife although we did get the pleasure – NOT of seeing a large snake cross the footpath right in front of us.

It is a SNAKE people!!!!

I was definitely not one of the ones trying to get a photo, Paul was.  I was busy backing up until I tripped on a rock and realized that my bum could not take another fall so I turned around and walked further in the opposite direction of the snake.  Paul did get a photo but I was too terrorized to even publish it.  He says it was pretty, 6 feet long and bright yellow with strips – I did get enough of a glimpse to burn the image into my brain forever.  Did you get that I hate snakes!

Landscape Arch

 The Landscape Arch was what we got to see after 1.5 miles and the snake – pretty cool!  You can’t walk under it anymore because a few years ago while people were sitting under it a huge chunk fell off- they got away safely as it made an incredible noise like thunder and started crumbling, giving them enough warning to run for their lives!

Delicate Arch

Those aren't benches

All this fresh air, beauty and exercise I guess they needed to rest.  Or, maybe they were tired of waiting for me to take pictures!  I hope you are enjoying my photos as much as I am.

We left Golden early and decided to put some miles on our trip so that we can be in California on time.  We are in Moab Utah and it is still cold!  Not as cold as Colorado but colder than I expected for the desert.  The 350 miles went pretty well except for my bum hurting!  It is a good thing we have a motorhome cause I could move from the chair to the couch and stand up often also. Moab is a really cute mountain town that is definitely set up for the tourist.  I picked an RV park out of the Good Sam listings and when we arrived there was no pool which I was hoping for and they said they were dog friendly however I find this hard to believe.  After we checked in the nice lady handed me an additional red sheet with the pet rules!  No dogs on the lawns; don’t let your dog pee on the lawns or the rose bushes; and no barking!  How are you suppose to keep your dog off the lawn I asked the lady cause the lawns are between each site.  She says “Just don’t let them pee or poop on the lawn” Ok???  Duke was fine however later in the evening I was sitting on our lawn and some people were walking their dogs and one of them was barking in greeting to other dogs.  The lady comes out of the office and tells them to keep the dog quiet or they are out of the park!  Whoa – It seemed like a really nice park and quiet however I will in the future ask about the pet policies before making the reservation.

One of the most interesting things about this park was we went to town and returned to new neighbors.

How do you fit all your stuff?

They were really friendly, but mostly kept to theirselves.  My only question is how do you fit the VODKA in?