Zion National Park

Zion was a short but sweet visit.  We got there around lunchtime and had a picnic before taking the shuttle out to explore the park.  The shuttles within the parks are an awesome way to get around, making it a lot easier to figure out where you’re going and better for looking at the scenery.  We decided to do a hike called the riverside hike that was pretty easy and takes you winding through the bottom of the canyons.  We had a great time on the hike and Elisabeth practically ran the entire way!  We ended up at a dead end where the canyon narrows and the only way to continue would be to wade in the river waters.  There are people that continue on here to explore what is called The Narrows.  With Elisabeth this would be impossible but sounded very cool!  It can be dangerous because there can be very violent flash floods here even if it rains just a tiny bit.  The walk along the river was beautiful with the towering walls on either side and the ‘hanging gardens’ clinging to the cliff sides.  We ended up at the lodge on the way back to have a drink and a bite to eat before venturing out to find a campsite outside the park. 



A view on the Colorado river from the Navajo bridge on the way to Zion.



The Navajo Bridge.

Getting in the shuttle.

A wild turkey.

Starting the riverside trail.

Looking up at the hanging gardens.

Grand Canyon - Desert View

Here are the pictures from Desert View when we were on our way out of the park, I forgot to put these on the last posting:

We stopped at an archeological site on the way.

The Watchtower.

A California Condor soaring above.

The Grand Canyon

We arrived at the Grand Canyon in the afternoon and first headed to our campsite on the south rim within the park to get set up before heading out to see the canyon.  We stopped first at the visitor’s center, as has become our tradition, to get Elisabeth’s passport stamped and to see the introductory video.  We figured out that there was really only one hike that we would be able to do within the park which as along the rim, which is quite a long hike in itself.  Any other hikes become very strenuous since these are the ones that actually go down into the canyon.  The river floor can potentially be around 20 degrees hotter than the rim temperatures, making exhaustion and dehydration a very real risk with people die from every year in the park.  Well with Elisabeth this ruled out any of the inner canyon hikes, including the mule rides since she was too little!  So we decided to visit the canyon along the rim which is already incredible!  The first day we headed along the rim, completing Elisabeth’s Junior Ranger booklet as we went along.  We walked around 6 miles, and Elisabeth did a great job walking!  She probably walked around 4.5 of these miles!   We stopped at Hermit’s rest to take in the view and have a snack at their little store.  We stopped on the way back in the village to see the shops and had a drink on the terrace of the beautiful lodge, El Tovar. 

The Junior Ranger Elisabeth.

The El Tovar Lodge.

Relaxing after a long hike.

The beginning of a beautiful sunset.

That night Antoine and Elisabeth went to a ranger program about endangered species while I read my new book that I got from the shop (Last Child in the Woods, a renowned book that talks about how today’s children do not have enough exposure to nature – a great read for any parent!)  The next day we took it easy a bit during the day and just took the shuttle out to Yaki Point to see the sunset.  That night we went to another ranger program that talked about exploring the caves of the Grand Canyon.  The ranger did an unbelievable program taking us into the reality of what it is like to explore the caves and the importance of doing so.  It was crazy how the explorers could squeeze through the tiniest little holes!!  The last day we packed up the camp and headed to desert point which has a beautiful watchtower overlooking the canyon.  We toured inside the tower and even saw a California Condor flying over the patio outside.  Then we headed out to Zion National Park! 

The artist at work!

The best view for lunch!