As we were breaking down to leave the Valley of Fire I noticed a swarm of bees outside the driver’s side window. I had read that the bees like to hang around the water supply but they were up near the roof and window. Ron took a video and we both believed they were trying to get at the water from the air conditioning unit.
Once again it was blistering hot and we were glad to be getting out of the desert. As we drove along we noticed the landscape changing once again. From the bright red to terra- cotta colors, we were now seeing more grays, deep reds and much more green.
We weren’t sure where we would be spending the next few days. Once again we took our chances and drove into town without reservations. And, once again we were able to get a site without difficulty. We booked at the Zion Canyon CG 1/2 mile from the park entrance. Full hook-ups and a nice site as well – couldn’t ask for more then that.
We settled in and around 5:30 PM we stopped at the Zion National Park Visitor Center. Driving into the park was quite spectacular to say the least. The mountains were quite beautiful and the skies blue with big white fluffy clouds.
Zion NP
http://www.nps.gov/zion/index.htm
Once in the park you are not allowed to drive your car on the Zion Canyon Scenic Road with several scenic viewpoint stops. The park ranger recommended we go to the end of the drive and take the 2 mile R/T hike to Slot Canyon.
The ride to Slot Canyon was quite pretty. The vistas as pretty as we had seen but everchanging. It’s amazing to think that you can drive just a short distance and the terrain and weather is completely different .
Looking out the roof of the shuttle I notice some dark clouds forming over the mountains. HMMMM- could there be a storm brewing just as were about to hike 2 miles. There had been thunderstorms in the area for the past several days so it was not a big surprise to see the dark clouds.
We got to the trailhead and began our hike. Ron and I think we had done this hike over twenty years ago but it looked different so we weren’t sure. Looking up at the canyon walls makes one feel so small in this huge world.
As we continued to walk it started to thunder quite loudly. We were quite a way into the hike so decided to keep going. Not necessarily the best decision. As the thunder grew louder the lightning flashed more frequently. Not a great time to be out in the open!!! We were so close yet so far from the “slot” but just as we got to the area where we would have to walk through water it started to pour buckets and the storm was just getting worse. Not a good time to be walking through water either!!! So just short of the slot canyon we turned around.
We had been so hot in The Valley of Fire that getting wet and cooled off felt pretty good. At least initially. Once back at the shuttle the cool breeze blowing in the roof vent gave us a chill. Such a drastic temperature change in one day required some adjustment on our part.
Back at the MH the first order of business was to get into dry clothes – which we did. The plan for Thursday is to jump on the shuttle and check out all the stops and maybe do some hiking. It was a busy but fun day. Plan to return to Slot Canyon and finish that hike.
Slide show of all pictures from our first day at Zion National Park
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