Becky and the Parents, Day Two continued: Zion National Park

On Saturday, after our tour of Antelope Canyon, we drove from Page, Arizona, to Kanab, Utah where we ate lunch at Houston's Trail's End Restaurant.  After lunch, we went to Zion National Park. I'm telling you, if you are easily overwhelmed by spectacular views, don't come to this area! We found ourselves wondering how "they" decided one place should be a national park and another place was just ordinary. I don't know how "they" decide this, but I wouldn't want that job. If I were the one having to make that decision, I think half of northern Arizona and southern Utah would be one huge, continuous national park. 

 

The photo above is of the scenery just opposite the entrance station to Zion National Park. I could look at that every day, yes I could. 

 

 

FabGrandpa and Becky at Checkerboard Mesa in Zion National Park. 

Out the window of the car as we drove through Zion.

 

It was such a fabulous day here, the sky really was that blue.

 

As usual, these photos don't show how really grand this landscape is. 

 

Gorgeous!

 

We drove all the way through Zion, starting on the east side, then out the west gate into the town of Springdale. At the far end of Sprindale is Springdale Fruit Company. They have the best smoothies, made with apple juice from their apple orchard. MMMMMM.  We also got some of that delicious Old Navuoo jam they sell there.  Then back in the car, to drive back through Zion, west to east. 

 

 

This is in Springdale, headed back into Zion National Park. 

 

This place is so amazing! 

 

We stopped to watch and photograph a herd of Mountain Rams. These two just posed and posed for us. I got a video of them, too. 

 

This is the Utah countryside on the way back to Kanab, where we spent the night that night. We went to dinner at Nedra's, Too, a great Mexican restaurant in Kanab. We stayed at the Best Western in Kanab, on the top floor I might add. We got some good sleep that night, but the wi-fi didn't work. Oh, well, I guess you can't have everything.

The Road To Zion

Back on May 10, FabGrandpa and I and one of our co-workers, went to St. George, Utah to buy some boots, which we are all required to wear on the job. The drive over there is amazing, if only because it looks so different from Georgia, my home state. You go through views of Vermillion Cliffs, huge geological formations such as I had never seen before. I took a gazillion pictures, and it was really hard to choose just a few to show you here.

After driving for about 80 miles or so through views like that, you come to Hurricane, Utah. A little green valley in the midst of the desert. Here is a view of Hurricane from the mountain road:
This little shop is on the side of the road in "downtown" Hurricane. I know I will be stopping there someday soon:

After we did our shopping in St. George, we decided to take the road through Zion National Park on the way home. Or, Sally, our co-worker, badgered Jim into going that way. I stayed out of the discussion, because 1. I wanted to go, and 2. I knew from Jim's remarks that he did not want to go that way, but Sally doesn't know him well enough to have recognized it. Anyway, we went that way, and in the end, Jim told Sally, "Thanks for making me take this road."


On the way to Zion, we passed this river. There was no sign or anything telling us the name of it, but it was nice to look at:

This the town that is right outside of Zion National Park, to th west of it. I think it was called Springdale. I like that the shops are all lined up, and unless you look really hard, you can't tell where the roofs end and the rocks begin.

It i so hard to imagine these rocks being eroded by water and wind. They look so chisled, so clean cut in places, that it looks like sculptors did this. These pictures don't really convey the true beauty of the area.


I just can't come up with the right words to describe this area. This cliff, with its huge boulder like rocks, made our truck look tiny.


Look closely near the center of this picture, near the bottom, right above the trees. You will see an opening in the rock. We thought at first it was a cave, but it is actually a window in the tunnel that goes through this mountain.

On the other side of the tunnel, we saw some mountain sheep. We got out and walked down a short trail to get pictures of them. The pictures did not come out that good, so I can't share them with you, so you'll just have to believe me that I saw them.

After driving through this fabulous national park, we stopped in Kanab, Utah to buy groceries. I felt like it was rather odd to see all this wonderful scenery, then just hop into the grocery store to buy milk, eggs, and butter. But, I guess that is how it is for people who have lived here all their lives, who drive to work down that road.