Zion Canyon National Park, Diverse Views & Hikes

Zion Canyon National Park has a base level of about 4,000 feet above sea level.

The cliffs rise about 3,000 feet above the Virgin River.

The lizard above rested on my shoe while I rested at a spring after hiking the West Rim Trail in Zion. Views out across Wildcat Canyon below.

Typical scene of sage scrub along the Zion trail, once you have left the rim.

Zion lies in an area where the Colorado Plateau, the Basin and Range province and the Mojave Desert come together. It is not far from the Painted Desert. Very rich geological & biological diversity.

Hop Valley Section of Zion Hike

Zion Hike: Wildcat Canyon and Connector

Larkspur, above, (Delphinium andersonii) grows out of the red Navajo sandstone.

Isolated boulder, below, with the same peak that appears in the last three photos.

Berkeley and Janet

People Met on the Trail, Zion National Park

Springs are great places to meet people, while purifying water. Alan talks with Lois, above.

Matt Hart, below, had just set a new record for running across Zion Park in less than 8 hours. He and Linda were out for another jog.

Godfrey and Delcia Litchfield are from Belper, Darbyshire, England.

The man above works for the Green Tortoise company out of San Francisco (adventure bus tours). National Park Service workers, below, hike to their worksite.

Dead Trees, mostly From Wildfires in Zion Park

These pictures are from the West Rim Trail. Campsite 7 above.

Many, many acres on the plateau had burned in recent years, with great loss of trees.

Bob Hoxie

Bob was just finishing the Hayduke Trail, from Arches to Zion via the Grand Canyon.
He had been hiking for 7 weeks.

West Rim Section of Zion Hike

Paintbrush species, above, growing in a hanging garden (Castillea lanata?). The paintbrushes are root parasites on other plants. It is good to look at the plants and take one's mind off the steep dropoffs next to the trail. The trail is well-designed and not really dangerous.

Angel's Landing Zion Hike Finish

This WPA era trail engineering is breathtaking. Alan hikes on the descending staircase of trail switchbacks, below.

Visiting Beth