SOUTHERN UTAH, A LAND OF STARK BEAUTY: Part 3--Bryce Canyon

Visiting Bryce Canyon was one of the main reasons Ron and I wanted to travel to Utah. I'd heard for years how beautiful Bryce was, but would I be disappointed? The sights I'd already seen on this trip had taken my breath away. Could Bryce be any better, or as incredible as Zion Canyon?

We left Washington, Utah, early in the morning, checked into Bryce View Lodge that afternoon. We'd wanted to stay at The Lodge at Bryce Canyon, which was designed by architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood in the 1920s and is a National Historic Landmark, but it was all booked months before we planned our trip. Bryce View Lodge was sufficient, and restaurants were near by. We ate both dinner that night and breakfast the next day at Ruby's Inn, a place you will not want to miss if you go to Bryce Canyon. 

There are so many pictures I wanted to include in this blog post, i.e. shots of tenacious trees and wildflowers clinging to rocks and cliffs; steep trails I'd like to explore on horseback if I were guaranteed a sure-footed mount; Pronghorns, the fastest animal in the Western Hemisphere, second in the entire world to the African Cheetah; unique rock formations stretching toward heaven; ever-changing views as the sun moved across the sky; a raven and it's talons inches from the top of my head. There's one photo of a Bristlecone pine that I'll probably put on my facebook page. Be sure to click on the pictures to enlarge.

 Entering Bryce Canyon National Park.

 I took this photo through our car's rear-view 

mirror. Click to enlarge, then study it carefully. 

Bailey and Melissa, this one's especially for y'all.

 I rim-walked to shoot this picture and many others.

 

 How one could look at all this 

splendor and not believe in God 

astounds me.

 

 Another view of massive Bryce Canyon.

 I snapped this picture of Dare-Devil man and his 

friend. Was he nuts? It's a LONG, 
bumpy, non-survivable drop from his perch.

 Dare-Devil took this picture of Nita, Bob, me 
and Ron in the same spot where they posed 

moments earlier. Note that we aren't as fool-hardy!

 

 I wonder if most people heed these warning signs. 
Lightning starts many of the forest fires in Bryce 
Canyon; we saw evidence of large burns.

Named "Natural Bridge," according to the tourist literature it 
really isn't. The "bridge" was carved by rushing streams. 
According to what I read, "more subtle forms of  weather 
sculpted the opening." Huh, I don't know about you, but 
that sounds pretty "natural" to me.

 

 Aqua Canyon. Enlarge to see the details.
 

These fairy-tale formations of eroded limestone are 
considered by some to be sacred ground and are called
hoodoos. 
Click to enlarge and you'll see two hikers in the bottom left of the above photo.

While  sight-seeing in Bryce Canyon, we figured being at either Sunrise or Sunset Points at, well, either sunrise or sunset, was a must-do. Which should it be? Because we'd need to leave our motel at 4:00 a.m. in order to be situated at the point by 5:00 a.m., we opted to catch the sunset. The following  are four out of the one or two hundred pictures I took that evening. Remember, click to enlarge.

Below are two pictures taken the next day as we left Bryce.  

I really hated to leave Bryce Canyon, would have stayed longer if I could have, but there were places to go, things to see, people to meet. And we did meet some interesting people while in Utah. Some offered to take pictures of the four of us with my camera so we could have a few group shots. We used what little French we remembered to "converse" with a group of French tourists, spoke to seasoned tourists from California who told us Kolob Canyon, another part of Zion National Park, was their favorite place. We went to Kolob, loved it, and yes, took lots of pictures. But Bryce topped everything.

SOUTHERN UTAH, A LAND OF STARK BEAUTY: Part 2 - Zion Canyon

On our second day in glorious Utah, the weatherman promised another scorcher (107-109 degrees), so we packed snacks and eight more water bottles and hit the road for Zion Canyon, which covers 229 square miles, is 15 miles long, and up to one-half mile deep. In other words, it is BIG. Upper Zion Canyon, our destination, covers six miles and is only accessible by National Park Service Shuttle. No private vehicles are allowed on this six-mile stretch April through October, but we didn't mind using the shuttle.

 Almost at Zion Canyon. Click on photo to enlarge.

The free shuttle ran every 10 minutes, stopping at different trails to allow folks to get off and on. We did this a lot. Because we've traveled together often, Ron, Bob, and Nita know I'm a nutty photographer; they graciously put up with me and my camera.

 The visitor center and its numerous shuttles.

 Picture taken through window on the shuttle's roof. I took lots of these.

Thousands of years ago the canyons of Zion were created by the Virgin River and the spring rains that brought waterfalls cascading through the huge rocks. Flash floods are common, especially in the spring, and you are warned to check weather conditions before coming to Zion Canyon. Even distant storms can cause flash floods. Scientists believe that the Virgin River can still erode 1,000 feet of vertical bedrock.

I liked seeing the American flag at the visitor's center.

One of my favorite pictures. The white peaks

in the center remind me of white chocolate candy kisses.

Sister-in-law Nita and I bought these hats 

at Walmart in Washington. Hers is cute and 

stylish; mine is floppy and kind of ugly, but it 

protected my face and the back of my neck.

This squirrel begged unsuccessfully for food. Squirrels 

and other wildlife can become aggressive if you 

succumb to their charms.

Maidenhair ferns (above) grow in small pockets of moist dirt and cling to the rock faces, often appearing to grow out of the rock.

The above photo explains the swamp in the desert.

The pictures above and below show the swamp. In some swamp areas, tiny streams of water trickled from the rocks, even rocks hundreds of feet high.

Can you spot the buck standing right beside the trail?

The Virgin River, peaceful the day we visited, but it 

can turn into a roaring, dangerous river in minutes.

Weeping Rock.

  

We climbed a short, but steep trail with what is called "minor" drop-offs to reach Weeping Rock. Hah! I didn't consider them "minor" at all, but I have a fear of heights. The view at the top was worth it, however, and seeing the live rattlesnake about six inches off the trail made it more exciting.

This bird, possibly a black-headed grosbeak, posed long 

enough for me to snap a quick picture. Bless his heart.

Cottonwood, singleleaf ash, and boxelder live near the Virgin River.

Zion Canyon captured my heart, and I hated to leave. But we were all tired, hot, and hungry, so we caught the shuttle back to the Zion Visitor Center and our car, and drove the 42 miles back to our condo. What a great day!

SOUTHERN UTAH, A LAND OF STARK BEAUTY: Part 1

I've always wanted to travel to Utah, the land where movie-star cowboys made many of the shoot 'em up movies I watched as a child, so in June, hubby Ron and I flew west. Getting there wasn't easy. First, we boarded a puddle-jumper in Lynchburg, changed planes in Charlotte, flew to Phoenix where we waited on the plane for an hour before continuing our flight to Las Vegas. At the airport, we joined Ron's brother Bob and his wife Nita, rented a car and drove three hours to the condo in Washington, Utah. Remember to click on the pictures to enlarge.

We stopped in Mesquite, Nevada, which isn't far from the Arizona line, for a very late lunch. I rubber-necked my way through the maze of slot machines, crap tables, and other gambling games as we walked through the building to reach the restaurant. The food was bountiful and delicious and inexpensive. The establishments in Nevada don't make their money peddling food; they make the big bucks when people belly up to the gambling tables.

 I loved the wide open spaces, the changing topography, the mountains.

Sister-in-law Nita in front of our condo, which had 

three bedrooms, two and a half baths, an 

attached garage, and a view of the resort's pond.

 

 A view of the great room from the hall.

We stretched our legs and visited the resort's pond. I took tons of pictures of the ducks that live there, visited the pond at least once a day.

  

 I named the male mallard (foreground) Curly because 
of the curl in his tail feathers. Of course, I had to name 
his mate Curlette. Also in the picture are four 
of their 17 ducklings.

 Close-ups of two of the babies.

I loved watching Curly dive. Note his curly tail.

The next day, we packed eight bottles of cold water in a cooler and headed out to Snow Canyon State Park, not far from Washington and St. George. The outdoor temperature sizzled at 107 degrees. 

We passed these life-size bronze statues on the way 
to Snow Canyon. I snapped this picture from the
 back seat of the moving car.

Petrified dunes in Snow Canyon State Park. I  

waved to the folks on top; they didn't wave back.

Lava beds from long-ago volcanic eruptions contrasted 

with the red and white rocks and the green plants.

Petrified dunes in the back, lava in the front.

 Deep sand dunes at the foot of the petrified rocks.

 Ron, Bob and Nita outside IN-N-OUT.

We lunched at IN-N-OUT fast food restaurant. I was so impressed with the cleanliness, the food, and the employees who were actually smiling at each other and the customers that when I returned to Virginia I called IN-N-OUT's corporate headquarters and told them what a great place it was. They told me a plaque would be made up and sent to this IN-N-OUT. If you are in Washington, Utah, and want a quick but nice lunch experience, I recommend this place.

Inside IN-N-Out.

The day before we left Utah, we stopped in IN-N-OUT again for a milk shake. Yum.

We went to bed exhausted, but happy. Snow Canyon State Park was great, and I knew that the next day would be fun, too. Would Zion National Park be as nice as Snow Canyon?