Zion is beautiful. The more time I spend out there, the more I am amazed by the place. Its gotta have more spectacular and wonderfully unusual places than any place on earth. Having it so close is a major bonus as well.

Zion South Valley

Mollie and I were feeling stir-crazy and needed to get out of the desert for a while, so we headed out for some hiking and exploring. The weather was crisp and calm, and great change of pace. We spent a few hours exploring the Emerald Pools trail system, which made for a good relaxing morning.

The emerald pools are impossible to photograph. The location below is the Upper Pool, and it is like a giant sandstone amphitheater. The walls just in front of me shoot vertically out of the pale green water on three sides, briefly over hanging, then continuing upwards for several hundred vertical feet. Very cool spot.

Upper Emerald Pool

Zion takes on a much different feel in the wintertime. There are no crowds. The main canyon road is open for regular traffic, but it is by no means congested. On our hike we ran into a few other people enjoying the park, but nothing like in the summertime. The main canyon is normally lush and green, full of animal activity and rushing water. This trip it felt peaceful, dormant, subdued, quiet. It was a great change of pace.

Tired Trees

In the afternoon we headed into Springdale. Springdale is the tiny tourist town that serves as the Southern gateway to Zion. Its full of funky shops, eateries, and strangely enough, an Elk farm. This guy was particularly interested in my new camera. I’m sure he wondered if it was tasty.
Nose