Zion National Park, Utah. Part II

"Alas! how little does the memory of these human inhabitants enhance the beauty of the landscape!"

-Henry David Thoreau

Pardon me. In the last blog, I stated that those photos were taken in the fall of 2011. They were taken in the fall of 2010, but hey, who's counting? These photos are a mix of 2009 and 2010 trips.

When one first enters the canyon, a sense of better things to come pervades the atmosphere. The striated walls begin relatively low, getting steeper and more dramatic as one travels deeper into it. At the end of the road (Zion Canyon Scenic Drive), it enters into an area known as the Temple of Sinawava. This is the terminus, ending in a parking lot where one can park and hike up the Narrows Trail.

On the way up to Angel's Landing and approximately half way up to the top is a nice viewpoint one can stop, rest, and enjoy the scenery. This HDR photo was taken towards the end of the afternoon, looking down into Zion Canyon with the Virgin River coursing through it... and no, I didn't climb the chain all the way to the top of Angel's Landing. I didn't want the opportunity to manifest itself of  potentially becoming a fallen angel. Did make it to the flat point just after Walter's Wiggles at the base of the chain path, though. The bottom part of Angel's Landing Trail can be seen in the lower, right hand area of the photo.

The Virgin River during the first week of November.

 

Both 2009 and 2010 were particularly good years for fall color in the canyon.

Plopped right in the middle of the Temple of Sinawava are two huge monoliths named The Pulpit. Impressive they are, especially in the context of their location and placement in the temple area. The photo above utilizes HDR.