Zion National Park

Friday:
Left Lone Rock about 8:30 heading for Zion National Park. Did some last minute grocery shopping in Kanab and topped off the gas tank. This is a very rural part of UT. Towns are few & far between. There is a mile long tunnel leading into Zion from the East Entry. Oversized vehicles, i.e. RV’s, need to pay a $15 fee to use the tunnel. Oncoming traffic is stopped so you can drive down the center of this narrow tunnel.
Our campsite is nice. Lots of privacy to the rear plus a short walk to the Virgin River. Just outside the entry to Zion, is a group of shops, a deli, ice cream store, etc. Took a walk out there and bought an ice cream cone. Carol said this is her type of National Park. Electric hookups in the campground, nice places to walk and an ice cream store.  In addition, the main Visitor Center is right next to the campground.
There are two paved, accessible, trails in Zion. Pa’rus and Riverside Walk. Dogs are allowed on the Pa’rus Trail. We walked along some of the Pa’rus trail today because it starts near the Visitor Center. This trail follows the path of the Virgin River. We inquired if Carols scooter could get on the shuttle bus. It can!!. Tomorrow we’re going to take the shuttle to the end of the line and walk the Riverside Walk trail.

Saturday:

After breakfast & walking the dog, then waiting for it to warm up some, Carol & I took the park shuttle. The shuttle has a ramp/lift that extends to allow a scooter or wheelchair, to board. Very nice. We rode to the last stop; the Temple of Sinawava then walked the Riverside Walk “A beautiful, shaded walk that meanders through forested glens, following the path of the Virgin River into a high-walled canyon.” It was a very enjoyable 2 mile walk. The entire thing was paved with only a few steep places where I pushed the scooter up the hill.
The shuttle ride was very enjoyable. The driver narrated the ride so you knew what you were looking at.
After dinner, we walked to the store for an ice cream cone.

Saw a bumper sticker on an RV today. “When there is a storm you can either stay inside or you can dance in the rain”.

Another perfect day.


Sunday, October 26, 2008

About 11 am we went for a walk on the Pa’rus Trail. About 3.5 miles round trip. Mostly it followed the path of the river. Now & then we would stop to let Gopher cool off and get a drink. It was in the mid-80’s this afternoon. Carol just loves it

Gopher pictures from Lone Rock

We met this really nice fellow at Lone Rock. Joey Yuan. He had a very sophisticated camera and took some great Gopher pictures.
Here are a few of our favorites.

Lone Rock

Wednesday:
It was cool in the morning. 41*. Gopher saw the two chocolate labs playing and ran down to say hello. On & off for the rest of the day, Gopher, Tinkerbell & Zane ran, swam, played, and chased after thrown sticks. Tinkerbell & Taint are female & male chocolate labs from the same litter. Two well behaved, and high energy, dogs. A good match for Gopher. The owners are from Flagstaff, AZ.

Thursday:

Woke up to 37* but no wind at all. Carol enjoyed sitting in the sun. We used the scooter and took a nice long walk. The sand was hard enough in most places so I didn’t have to push much. A guy parked nearby with his dog, Whisky. A lab mix. The dogs had a good time playing chase. Strange for a lab. mix, but Whisky wouldn’t do into water he couldn’t stand in. Another nice day.

Glen Canyon Dam + Lone Rock

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Left the campground about 9 am heading for Page. Went to Wal-Mart, Basha’s grocery store, an excellent place to shop, filled up with gas and propane, ate our Basha’s take-out lunch of burritos, washed the camper, I got a haircut then we went to the Post Office to get the mail. Took care of all our chores by about 2 pm. Then we went to the Carl Hayden Visitor Center, i.e. the Glen Canyon Dam. Just as we went in, a tour of the dam was starting. We joined in. Very interesting. We went all the way to the lowest level of the dam. Saw the turbines and huge generators.
After the tour, we went to the Lone Rock primitive camping area. This time of year there is no charge. You simply park anywhere on the beach you care to. This is among the most beautiful campsites ever. If Gopher could speak out, she’d probably say it was her favorite campsite to date. No lease required, a huge fresh water lake and lots of open space to run. As the day went on, it became very windy. Probably in the 25 to 35 mph range. Tumbleweeds were blowing everywhere. Gopher chased them until I guess she decided it wasn’t as much fun just chasing a weed as chasing another dog.
There was a guy zipping around the beach with a scooter towed by a large kite. Another couple with two retrievers of some type, incessantly chasing their water toy. A guy with a small sailboat. A lady driving an ATV with her Border Collie as the passenger. A thoroughly enjoyable day. We’ll be here through Thursday.

Lees Ferry Day 2

Monday:

Another warm & sunny day. In the morning we walked around some of the old stone buildings from the active days of the Ferry. Because of the quality of the trail, we couldn’t get to the actual site of the ferry. Talked to our camping neighbors. One very active couple in their 80’s from San Diego and an apple orchard owner from North Carolina. The signs posted in the Blog give a lot of the local history.

Lees Ferry, Glen Canyon National Rec. Area

Sunday:

Continued on to the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area near Page, AZ. The drive was just beautiful. In places it looked as though we were actually driving though the Grand Canyon. We went to the Lees Ferry Campground near the town of Marble Canyon. Drove across the Navajo Bridge getting to the campground. At one time Lees Ferry was the only river crossing for many,many miles. It’s also the only place you can drive to the Colorado River in over 700 miles of Canyon Country. This is the start of the Grand Canyon. The boat ramp is Mile 0 for rafting trips down the river. We watched several rafts being launched. There is a parking place right on the river. Gopher & I were able to walk to the river. She thoroughly enjoyed her swim. Later on, we all walked to the Lonely Dell Ranch. This historic ranch, near the mouth of the Paria River, was home to the families who operated Lees Ferry. Our campsite is on a bluff overlooking the Colorado River. One of the best campsites ever.