Desert Rains
It seems we got every weather pattern imaginable on our road trip from snow in California, rain in Utah, to sweltering heat in Arizona... It's a gift and a curse, really. On one hand you have beautiful contrasting weather/low crowds in extremely popular places but on the other it throws you through a complete loop. This late in the year, we weren't exactly prepared for cold weather either. For much of the trip, it was warmer and drier back home in Washington!
One of the places where I was so glad that we had less than stellar weather was Zion. If you've ever been or have heard of it, you'll know just how busy this place can get. For starters the National Park is downright tiny, a 15 minute drive gets you all the way through the park. We also happened to do Angle's Landing which is the most popular hike in the Park and one of the most popular in the entire Park system and from what I've heard, can basically turn into stop and go traffic the whole way up. Luckily for us that was not the case, it seems if you want to hike a popular trail in relative solitude just wait for there to be rain and snow in the forecast.
Angel's Landing itself was amazing, the views you get at the top are some of the best around and the hike is pretty easy if you're in reasonable shape. Maybe I've been exposed to more steep drop offs than I realize but I didn't find the steep section at the top scary at all, in fact I thought it was awe inspiring hiking so close to the edge. Normally you have to go pretty deep into the mountains to stand on the edge of cliffs that tall and there's nothing will make you feel more alive than looking down into the abyss.
If you ever get the chance to go to Zion, do it in the off season so you can really experience this place for what it is. It has so many amazing things to offer and if you're like me and have never seen towering red cliffs in a desert like this, then you're in for a real treat!
Happy Trails ya'll! I hope you have something awesome planned for the weekend as it slowly approaches! :)
