December 26, 2011
We stopped at a rock shop to buy huge chunks of quartz and ogle the various exotic metamorphic minerals; as an igneous petrologist I wandered off and was promptly accosted by the resident cat.
Zion Rock & Gem and cat
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Tag Archives: Zion National Park
Zion National Park: Emerald Pools
December 25, 2011
Unique about visiting Zion in the winter, aside from the park all but empty of visitors, were the cold temperatures: streams of water that are running in the summer months are frozen in time, held in the chilly grip of December.
Zion National Park: Angels Landing
December 25, 2011
After a day spent canyoning in the Narrows, we opted to hike the iconic trail of Zion National Park leading to Angels Landing.
Zion National Park: Canyoneering in the Narrows
December 24, 2011
A conversation with my mother’s college roommate inspired a pre-New Year’s Eve trip to Zion National Park in Utah. While her roommate and her daughter went to New Orleans for Christmas, we decided on the original plan of Zion. We rented a car in Las Vegas and drove up Interstate 15 through Nevada, Arizona, and finally to Utah, where we turned off the interstate and passed the towns of Hurricane, Virgin, Rockville, and Springdale, arriving in a deep river valley gouged out by eons of flowing water. The Virgin River cuts through ancient dense sandstone, carving out a narrow river valley amid the tall red and white cliffs.
Christmas in the Canyon
What better way to spend a holiday than hiking in the desert?
- The Virgin River winds through Zion National Park in Utah.
Hiking up here, appearance-wise, is somewhere between a that of a canvas from the Romanticism movement and a HDR image. I adore winter in dry climates for the low light and small crowds in parks it brings.
Have a wonderful next orbit around the sun!