Zion

So.

Everything is Zion National Park is pretty aptly named. Right off the main drag, you've got the majestic peaks that surround the river and the obligatory scenic roadway, where tourists (myself included) routinely slam on their brakes every twenty-five feet because would you look at that crow over there, have you ever seen anything so majestic honey quick get my tripod before he finishes trying to swallow that entire corndog.

Anyway, you drive into the park surrounded with beauty. You get the Court of the Patriarchs, The Great White Throne, Angel's Landing, the Emerald Pools, Weeping Rock. You get the Altar of Sacrifice, The Watchman, the Temple. For a meager entrance fee, you get to stand in the presence of the Mountain of Mystery, where it is said that if a man climbs to the top, he becomes wise beyond his years and decides to stop all this stupid backpacking shit and start sleeping at Holiday Inns like a regular human being.

Once you get to the backcountry though, that's where things start to shine. You'll find yourself looking at a gorgeous high desert landscape among such attractions as Telephone Canyon and Horse
Pasture Plateau. Who needs the Mountain of Mystery when you've got Potato Hollow?

I'll give the cartographer a break though, because by the time I hit the abovementioned hollow, I was hyperfocused on potatoes myself, albeit the instant, mashed variety. Horse Pasture Plateau was completely devoid of horses (thank god) and for all I know, Telephone Canyon
is home to vicious herds of Nokias and their close relatives, soup cans connected with strings.

Stupid Sunset

Came into Zion with plenty of time to hit my campsite by dark, but the climb up was stiff enough to be obscene and I stood around and took an hour and a half's worth of photos of the sunset. So I ended up nighthiking for 3 or 4 hours.

Met two other hikers camped out on a switchback a mile or so before the first designated campsite (yeah, Zion is one of those parks). The snowpack started to show up soon after that, but it honestly wasn't bad. A foot, maybe less. The worst part about it was the temperature, which, at canyon bottom was near 60, and up at elevation was around 35. Meant that the snow got warm enough to melt into your socks, but it wasn't warm enough to dry them once you stopped.


Anyway, got to campsite, set up and went to bed. Woke up, hiked on through snow and some surprisingly difficult terrain, ended up at an AWESOME campsite for the second night. Great views of the sunset and sunrise, was fairly warm and had plenty of rock stools

Campsite Sunset

Zion is, in a word, incredible. Without a doubt one of the most beautiful places I've ever hiked. It was so damn colorful and dramatic that words can hardly do it justice. I will be returning for sure, ha
d my eye on a few inaccessible "air islands" that I'm pretty sure no human has set foot on in decades, if ever. Spent 3 days in there, and I was already missing it on the hike out.

BAM HIT YOU WITH THE SUNRISE

H20 was definitely scarce, even with snowmelt occurring everywhere. The area, even with the snow, was one big fire hazard, so if you decide to shirk the rules and make a fire, make em small, safe and make sure they're completely out before heading on down the trail.

I got down into a couple of canyons, but for once decided not to push my luck. Smooth walls made getting out hard enough as it was, and I didn't want to get canyoned with a broken leg or something equally stupid.

Really is incredible.

Finally got to use my Gpsmap 62s to it's full potential (maybe not, but I'm getting a hell of a lot better). Added in some co-ordinates and played around with it, but have to say that I was only semi-impressed with the maps I downloaded (Bird's Eye Imagery). The map was scrunched and they made the West Rim Trail the same color as the  topographic lines. Springs were marked and overall I'm glad I had it, especially during the nighthike portion. Didn't really refer to it during the day at all, as I have found that reliance on physical evidence of trail is much more effective that reliance on maps and/or GPS devices. More on that later.



Here is a short list of things I'd have brought with me if given the chance. Note that they are system and season specific.

1. Climbing gear/Rope/Carabiners
2. Gaiters
3. Waterproof shoes
4. 2 Extra Pair of Socks
5. Extra memory card for camera
6. More time
7. Spork.

I'd like to take a moment to note that my titanium spork, a particularly fine specimen from the good people at Vargo, has spent the last 3 trips in the bed of my truck, completely unused. I had lost it until recently and have been forced to whittle my own utensils like Dick Proenneke or, even worse, use plebian cutlery in lieu of specialized gear. Protip of the day: Spoons work just fine.

Video is here

Pictures are here and here