Zion National Park – while beautiful – I do not understand why it is more popular than Bryce Canyon, which is not too far away….
We Started our day at the Visitor Center. We got there early enough there was plenty of parking. An hour or so later, it was completely full. There wasn’t anything spectacular about the visitor’s center, so we didn’t stay longer than to use the bathrooms and fill up water bottles.
We then loaded onto the bus that takes you through the Canyon. There was a decent line for the bus, but apparently it is usually MUCH longer. I think we waited 3-4 bus loads to get on one. At this point, we realized that with 8 of us, getting “on and off” a bus, may not be easy! There probably won’t be room to get all of us back on a bus at the same time. It was at this point that we decided to ride the bus all the way to the end, and “start” there. This was an EXCELLENT decision on our part. The last stop when we were there was the Temple of Sinawava stop. The stops past this were closed.
You can see many things from the bus, and the drivers talk to you about the park as you drive through the park. It is a great way to see quite a bit of the park.
When we were there, many trails and parts of the park were closed due to high water. Our first hike/stop was the Riverside walk at the Temple of Sinawava stop. It is a beautiful walk that leads to the popular Narrows! However, the Narrows were closed due to high water and dangerous conditions, so we did not get to do that hike.
Our next stop was to Weeping Rock. It is a short and easy trail for kids. Continuous water “weeps” out of the Weeping Rock alcove, keeping lush hanging gardens moist. The weeping is from above where Echo Canyon, one of the parks many slot canyons is located. There are other seepage areas resulting from the “spring line” between the two rock strata, kayenta and Navajo sandstone, but Weeping Rock is an impressive one. An impermeable shale, the Kayenta layer, makes up the floor of the slot canyon that prevents water from absorbing into the ground and forces it to find a place it can penetrate, such as at Weeping Rock
Our last stop before leaving was Court of the Patriarchs – another easy walk for kids. We had to wait 2 buses to get enough room for all of us on a bus out of the park. You can easily see these peaks from the bus stop, or hike up the short path to a viewing area. They are named for the 3 towering figures in the Old Testament – Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob – these Sandstone cliffs hold court over Birch Creek Canyon and the Virgin River. In 1916, a Methodist Minister, Fredrick Fisher, named the peaks. There is actually a fourth peak (that is easier to see than the “Jacob” peak, as it is in front of it) named Mount Moroni.
We skipped the museum, for fear we’d never get back on a bus. Plus, by the time we got back down to the museum, our kids were tired and had NO Desire to go. I was not going to make them, because that would just make us all miserable! So we just took the bus back to the Visitor Center, had our Picnic, and left.
While Beautiful and Majestic, Zion National Park is not a place I feel I HAVE to see again. It is WAY too popular and busy and not nearly enough buses to keep up – and we were not there during summer! I can’t imiagine the zoo it is during summer….
I did several Instagram posts on Zion – complete with pictures – if you’d like to check them out!
