Zion National Park - The Rest of the Week

We loved Zion.  This time of year the park was not very busy and we were able to spend lots of time hiking and sight-seeing throughout.  Hiking highlights:

• Narrows - Hike in and along the Virgin River which runs between the canyon walls.  Unfortunately most of the trail was closed due to high running water, so we will need to leave that for our next time out.
• Hidden Canyon - Very steep trail that leads to a...duh! hidden canyon.  The trek up the 850 ft elevation gain kicked my bleep!, but it was well worth it in the end.  Beautiful views and a fun, somewhat technical climb at the end of the trail.
• Emerald Pools/Grotto Trail - Waterfalls descend into algae filled pools that give them a nice green color.  We took the trail to the lower pools and then I climbed to the upper without Janet.  We finished our hike on the Grotto trail that skimmed along a mountain rim with views of the Virgin River below.

A nice convenience is the shuttle that takes you up and down the canyon road.  Even though this is mandatory (they don't allow vehicles during the busy season), it was nice not to worry about parking, traffic and burning expensive fuel.  I liked that especially...yes I am cheap!  


Other highlights:

• Janet saw a wild turkey (no...not her favorite bourbon) with it's tail fanned for mating season.  She said she had never seen that in real life before.
• The Human History museum was OK, but the highlight was Janet calling it the Hu Man (hoo-mon) Museum.  I guess she was surrounded by so many Japanese tourists that she wanted to give it an Asian flair!  
• Met a very nice German couple (Hans and Rose Marie Bechtel) in the campground.  We had several great conversations with them even though there was a bit of a language barrier.
• Moon Rise over Zion (see picture)

And now a few pics...will post more as they develop (pun intended):

Zion Moon

Zion Waterfall

Zion East

Upper Emerald Pool

The Patriarchs