Iron Like a Lion in Zion
Trip Start
May 09, 2009
1
12
22
Trip End
May 29, 2009
Where I stayed
The Driftwood Lodge
Zion National Park,
Utah,
United States
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
I'm gonna be iron like a lion in Zion
I'm gonna be iron like a lion in Zion
Iron, Lion, Zion ~ Bob Marley
OK, I admit it, I was not like a lion in Zion. We awoke intending to explore; Jane would take to low road while I took the high road. I was planning on hiking to the top of Angels Landing. We grabbed a quick bite and rode the shuttle to the Grotto stop. Unfortunately there was a rather large school group who caught the bus just before we pulled out. They also exited the bus at the Grotto. I figured I was safe, that the chaperones were not planning on taking a busload of middle school students up the trail to Angels Landing, 1,500 feet above the canyon floor.
Jane went off and ended up on an enjoyable low-impact nature walk lead by a ranger. I started out on the West Rim Trail heading for Angels Landing but fell in between several boisterous groups of younger hikers. I suppose it was the adrenalin as they prepared for the hike. I should have been on the trail at 7:00 instead of 8:30 if I really wanted a contemplative hike. Not feeling fully on my game and wanting a more relaxing hike, I backtracked and took the Kayenta Trail which eventually leads to the three Emerald Pools. I could wander, stopping to take pictures or watch titmice feeding in the junipers without feeling like I was blocking anyone's progress. I even caught sight of a couple of baby ground squirrels scampering around the trail.
The Middle and Upper Emerald Pools were serene. Certainly not as awe inspiring or lush as a waterfall in Hawaii, but relaxing none the less, considering they occur in the high desert. There were several people when I arrived but everybody was quietly talking with friends or sitting and soaking up the morning sun. The swallowtails were out, flitting about the moist sand at the pool's edge to get their recommended daily allowance of moisture and minerals. After sitting for a bit, I headed down towards the Virgin River thinking I might find some cactus in bloom to sketch when I ran into Jane. She had finished with the ranger talk and was preceding up to the Upper Emerald Pool. I accompanied her back up again. By the time I arrived a second time, there were much more people there. We sat for a bit, but soon grew tired of overhearing someones woes about their vacation property in Aspen, and headed back down the less traveled Kayenta. By this time we could also tell the school group was at the Lower Emerald Pool. Loud voices echo in small canyons.
We walked around some more but decided to really enjoy Zion's canyons I would need time for back-country hiking. Maybe next time, but the morning hike up the Kayenta helped erase the unease from the prior day.
While having dinner, we realized how pleasant Springdale was as compared to Moab. Both sit at the entrances of National Parks and are hemmed in by canyon walls. Springdale seemed much more relaxed. Sure, the shuttle system makes it more pedestrian friendly, but we also decided the Zion-Mt. Carmel tunnel helps preserve the town. Too small to be used by semis and large trucks topped with the $25 park entrance fee for all users cuts down on the through traffic. Unfortunately, to get anywhere in the central to southeastern part of Utah, you have to go through Moab. They have reduced the speed limit, but Main Street has become a 4-lane monster dividing the town. There are pedestrian crosswalks but you take your life into you hands trying to use them, as opposed to Springdale where you could cross just about anywhere. As I heard one local telling the bus driver on the shuttle, "We're not Jackson Hole - yet." Hope it stays that way for a while.
