We broke camp and rolled out of Kodachrome by 10:40. Crack of dawn for us. We headed west on Hwy 12 past Bryce and into Red Canyon. All of this is scenic byway stuff.
After Red Canyon, hwy 12 tees into hwy 89 and we headed south. We stopped in Orderville, UT at a 1950's grocery store and resupplied. We came in the east entry on highway 9 and the senior pass was golden again.
About 2 miles into the park you come to a 1.1 mile tunnel that was built in the 30's. If you are pulling an rv you have to pay $15 and they stop the oncoming traffic and then you drive down the middle of the tunnel. It's really narrow and dark and way cool.
As you emerge the view takes your breath.
We headed to Watchman CG where we had reservations for 2 nights. FYI they only have electric at their hookup sites, no water or sewer. The CG was full and we reserved the last site available next to the bathroom but it had plumbing so it didn't bother us. The drive from the entry was so beautiful we decided to drive back w/out the camper and stop at the viewpoints. Below is a view back toward the tunnel and a view portal that was cut into the side of a 1000' cliff.
Everything there is so vertical we were taking pictures out of the truck's sun roof. The scale is absolutely incredible.
One of the stops was by a formation called Checkerboard Mesa. It was formed by erosion, freezing and thawing, and humic acid leaching from decaying plant material.
What a great day. Each park we have been to has been unique and the awesome size and scale of Zion absolutely blows you away. We ended the day watching the sunset over the camper.
Day 9
Some of the busiest NP's no longer allow private vehicle traffic on their scenic drives. Zion is one of them and has a shuttle system that stops at every viewpoint. You can get off and on as you choose and another shuttle will come by in 10 minutes or less. I thought this sounded cheesey but I really liked it. I didn't have to drive and worry about traffic or a place to park. After morning coffee we walked to the shuttle stop by our CG and off we went.
Every stop, absolutely stunning views.
Even the not-so-grandiose nooks were beautiful.
Our plan was to ride to the end of the 15 mile shuttle route and hike to the "Narrows". The Virgin River runs down the canyon and at the end of the pavement there is a 1 mile trail that takes you to where the canyon narrows.
The canyon keeps closing in until it is just cliff walls and the river bed.
To keep going you have to wade in the river, which we did. The water was really cold.
We hiked back to the shuttle stop and sat in the sun and warmed up. Big Bend is a shuttle stop where the Virgin River does a 180° surrounded by 2000' sheer cliffs. Scanning the cliffs we saw these totally crazy people 3/4 of the way up.
At our next stop we took a loop trail to Emerald Pools and then tied into Kayenta trail, about 3 miles total. The foliage and sandstone forms were almost magical.
I'm fairly certain when we get home I am going to need to see a chiropractor and get my neck adjusted. You spend the majority of your time looking up and just gawking.
Pretty cool. Jennifer walked behind a waterfall and I stayed back and a took a picture of her through the mist.
What a magical day. We were pretty weary when we got on the shuttle and headed to our camper.
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