Zion
National Park:
The drive
south on Hwy 89 towards Mt Carmel and Zion NP, we think, is our least
interesting...however, keeping in mind what we've seen over the past few weeks,
and put in perspective, this may well be quite charming! The same cannot be
said for the Zion RV and Campground...DON'T stay there!! Make the time to drive
straight through to Springdale.
One of the very few downsides to
driving an RV is that it can be difficult to find a parking place in some
pull-off areas at points of interest. Often all the spaces set aside for large
vehicles are filled by quite small cars.
So it is that
we are unable to make the short walk to the Canyon Overlook, instead making our
way through the tunnel and on to the wonderful Zion Human History Museum,
tracing the history of settlement from the Pueblean race through the arrival of
Mormon pioneers, the considerable influence of Union Pacific Rail in opening up
the area to the first 'tourists' and the declaration of National Park status on
November 19, 1919.
You'll read this historical info in
other NP blogs as well...it's a common thread woven into the history of quite a
few Parks in Utah and in Arizona.
For three
nights we are based at Springdale, the 'heart' of the NP, and during that time
we use the shuttle to enjoy walking most of the trails accessible from the Zion
Park Scenic Drive
Zion has two free shuttle services:
a the
'town' shuttle which runs the full length of the 'main street,' for shopping,
restaurants, adventure tour bookings, ATV (All Terrain Vehicle) rental and the
acquiring of souvenirs;
the
National Park shuttle which runs the length of Zion Park Scenic Drive on which private vehicles are excluded, except for those staying at Zion Lodge. This road is access to the trailheads and other
areas of interest and is free of ‘where to park’ worries as well as being much
more environmentally sound as the shuttles are LPG powered.
As our
introduction to the Park, we choose to 'Ride with a Ranger' on a special
evening shuttle. We spot some mule deer grazing
quietly by the road, and Ranger Adam shares the history of the early population
of the area, while pointing out the main geological and geographical features
along the way. We hear some local
legends (myths?)…like the Flanigan boys and their logging endeavours. From the
valley, we can just make out the gantry (flying fox) they used to lower the
huge Ponderosa pine logs (and occasionally themselves!) to the valley floor
from the top of Cable Mtn.
Relocation to
Virgin, just 13 miles away, gives us easier access to Kolob Canyon on the
western flank of the Park. The RV Park there is at capacity as there is a
mountain bike event, the final leg of 'The Red Bull Rampage,' a series that
'combines slopestyle, downhill racing and natural terrain free-riding' in the
one event, with prize money of $45,000!! David Holman & Peter Cranage...what am I
talking about??
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On our way back along the valley, we
pass the start/finish area of the “Rampage” in the red clay hills, and also
notice many folk camping along the dry river bed. We comment that hopefully they have looked at
the forecast for the next couple of days.
Alas! The
thunder, lightning and heavy rain begins in earnest at around 10.00pm and
continues virtually unabated until about 11.00am the next morning. The dry
creek bed, separated from our campsite by a (fortunately substantial!) levee
bank, is now a raging torrent several feet deep, carrying all before it - logs
and all manner of debris - and we hear that Zion NP was closed for some time
yesterday; bridges have been washed away; the Mt Carmel road we so blissfully
drove along a few days ago has been undercut by a washaway and is closed
indefinitely; campers have been rescued from riverside campsites; there is a
rock blocking the highway we plan to take tomorrow.
It is considered unsafe to
travel anywhere in the area not cleared by road authorities...so we hunker down
and watch the internet reports of road conditions in order to plan our safe
onward travel. PS... even the mountain bike event is postponed!!
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