So many
people tell me “Oh, you travel so much!”. But I feel that I don’t at all, in
the grand scheme of things. At least not as much as I wish I did. Driving a
couple of hours in whatever direction from where we live, and spending the
weekend nights in a hotel or campground don’t constitute, I guess, the kind of “travels”
that people would notice. But I suppose if it’s away from home, no matter how
far, you’re traveling. A matter of perspective?! Perhaps.
We kept
our tradition of taking a trip around our birthdays (mine) and/ or anniversary
– they’re both this month – and we drove to Southern Utah, to spend last
weekend in and around Zion National Park.
As you
might remember, Zion is one of my
favorite places on the planet. It’s one of those spots that elevates me and
reminds me why there is order in the universe. In a few words and a lot of
pictures – here’s how the trip went this time.
Aa.
discovered a cool new place to have breakfast: Oscar’s. Think Asheville, NC hippy meets Mexican cuisine. The
portions were insane, too, and the coffee came in these locally made, very
coarse (think naïve art) clay mugs. Just too cool!
Breakfast al fresco, at Oscar's
The
Zion Canyon Overlook trail was challenging but so rewarding at the very end! I
was shocked that there was almost no fencing along the trail, and one side of
it opened up in a very steep and very rocky precipice. There was hardly any
vegetation to hold on to, should you have slipped. Dogs were not allowed on the
trail but kids were, and I thought that was not a good idea, either! After all,
we live in America, where people sue for slipping on their own bathroom floors!
I was surprised that the trail was not more “protected” or at least “warned”.
It is a listed as a moderate trail, and if you’re not too sure footed, or are afraid
of heights, I would not recommend it. However, it is only a half mile (one way)
walk, and as I have said – completely worth it!
So many times in Utah, you feel like you're walking on Mars: on the Zion Canyon Overlook Trail
On the trail: spring is definitely here!
On the edge! - shooting into the valley below ...
The
trail was mostly narrow and rocky, but some of it was sandy and thus slippery
as well. It was littered with lizards. At the very top, we saw tons of
chipmunks, but there were ever so elusive, so … they shied away from pictures. The
view from the top of the trail, down, into the winding roads inside the Zion
Canyon is amazing! It’s one of the few spots in Zion where you can look at the
canyon from the top down. Mostly, the ride in this park allows one to be at the
bottom of the majestic formations. So, this was really a treat!
On
top of the world! Finally, at the of the trail, looking into the park
road below. The Zion - Mt. Carmel Tunnel is behind me, through the mountain on my right
"How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountain!" (John Muir) - Zion Canyon
Dinner
at The Spotted Dog Café was another
new experience to us. Usually, in majorly touristy towns, I don’t like eating
at very posh, very high end establishments. I like mingling with the local
crowd, in hole-in-the-wall places that hold the charm of the area strong. But The Spotted Dog Café, aside from the
neat name, had a charm all of its own, despite the high end flair. The place is
like a giant sun room – all wood and
glass. We sat outside, on their back
patio, under tall elm trees, shedding their blooms right into our water
pitcher. The red cliffs of Zion were guarding us all around.
On the patio: the rocky mountains of Utah reflected on the Cafe's windows
My dinner: fresh mountain trout, crusted with sunflower seeds, over dirty rice, asparagus and spaghetti squash
If you
ever happen down those parts, make sure you pay a visit to this place! They
have a pretty impressive (for Utah) wine list, and everything they serve is
simple food made deliciously.
Springdale, UT - Southwestern architectural detail at Amigos
The
weather was perfect all weekend, so we could have almost all the meals outside.
If the trail climb was the highlight of Saturday morning, a stroll through
Springdale, visiting art galleries and swanky boutiques was the pastime of the
evening. For a quick break, we stopped at Amigos,
a Mexican restaurant, and we just had some chips, three kinds of salsa, and
some beer. This was a revisit from our first trip to Zion. We love the casual
atmosphere there, the salsas are amazing and the hostess is so low key and welcoming!
Just pure goodness!
Snacks at Amigos
On our
way back home, I wanted us to drive through the Kolob Canyons, as there was a
brown sign on the highway announcing them. If you lived long enough in The
Rockies, you know that any sign of a canyon will immediately offer breathtaking
views and peaceful corners, and almost always a surprise or two. This was no
exception.
Kolob Canyons vistas and details
Unlike
other canyons, we could not drive through the big “cuts” in the side of the mountain
on this one! We could only drive along the side of them, on the 5 mile long
park road, and look at the formations to one side. They were spectacular,
however, as you can see from the pictures. This park is definitely for those
with a love of hiking – to get inside the steep valleys, and see some of the
formations (arches and bridges, etc), you have hour long or several hour long
hikes – something we didn’t have the luxury of in a couple of Sunday afternoon
hours.
" 'ello, Mate!" - click on the lizard to see the whole album
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