The next stop on the roadtrip was Zion National Park. Zion, a Hebrew word for refuge, was just that for the weary city gals out in nature. We immediately stopped thinking about emails, voicemails and deadlines and starting thinking about the awesome beauty that surrounded us.Here you see one of the monoliths at the base of the Weeping Rock trail. Zion is all about water and the erosion of sandstone by seeps, drips and streams. Trees and plants grow out of cracks in the rock, precariously clinging to cliff edges. At Weeping Rock, a continuous waterfall both wears away the rock and nourishes the flora.
For the notable Zion fauna, while we were on the Emerald Pools trail overlook we observed a deer family frolicking in the creek, experienced bats zipping around (!!), lots of salamanders and other amphibians scurrying about, and a fox.
And, a special recommendation for the non-claustrophobic, non-motion sickness folks: check out the Zion-Mt. Carmel tunnel, a 1.1 mile long, pitch-black cut through a massive rock, followed by a series of switchbacks. The tunnel dates back to 1930 and is a "short cut" to Bryce and Grand Canyon National Parks. I dug it but can only imagine what the "long way" entailed!
Click here to go to Zion's Web site.
Zion National park is one of the famous nature attraction in the area.
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