Zion & GSENM

Dinosaur Fossil
On the edge of Zion Canyon; Look at the switchbacks in the road below.
Desert bighorn sheep at the crest of the hill.
Buffalo; the birds follow them as they graze and eat the insects they stir up.
Dry Stream Bed Trail
Blooming Cactus

Walter's Wiggle-The easy part of the trail.

Nancy on the chains looking down 1200 feet.
Saddle to Angels Landing

We are now at the East Zion Riverside RV Park on the shores of the Virgin River in Mount Carmel, Utah. On the drive from Page we stopped at the visitors center for the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument (GSENM) which was established in 1996. It is an area the size of Delaware which is managed by the Bureau of Land Management, not the park service, and has almost no developed roads. The biggest find during the survey of GSENM, which began in 1998, was the fossils of over 100 dinosaurs, some of which are on display in the center. Some of the fossils where just removed this year to save them from the expected rising of Lake Powell. Until this survey was done no one knew of any dinosaurs in this area. The Grand Staircase is the giant steps of land coming off of the Colorado Plateau that include Bryce Canyon National Park at the top. The bottom layer of rock in Bryce is the top layer in Zion and the bottom layer in Zion is the top of the Grand Canyon. The varied colors of different layers of stone give each park a unique appearance. Zion has the highest sandstone canyons in the world. To drive into Zion you pass through a 1.1 mile tunnel with turns and they have to stop traffic when an RV or bus goes through so it can go down the middle of the road in order to not hit the top and sides. We have done several hikes in the canyons and stream beds and have seen more magnificent rock formations while continuing to enjoy spring like weather. We have seen buffalo, desert bighorn sheep and many plants in bloom. Today we made a hell of an effort to go to Angels Landing but I could not bring myself to cross the five foot narrow saddle that drops off 1200 feet on one side and 850 feet on the other. The last half mile of the trail has chains to hold on to as you climb up and down the rocks. Every direction you turn you see another beautiful vista and the pictures, as usual, do not capture the true beauty of the surroundings. After this, we will be heading up the "staircase" to visit Bryce Canyon.