We were able to sleep in a bit today knowing there was a 90% chance of rain in the park and that the bikes would stay parked. We met for breakfast at 8am at the Lodge. During breakfast we crafted our itinerary for the day, opting for the shuttle bus scenic tour. At around 10am we met to head out, but quickly realized the rain would be a problem. We pulled out our rain gear from the bikes, then headed to the gift shop. Michele bought a sporty Zion hat and wool socks with the hopes of the rain would not be getting worse.
We hopped on the shuttle and headed up canyon towards the Temple of Sinawava. There was a walking trail just over 2 miles that led towards The Narrows, a famous part of the park where the trail is the river itself. The rain was merely spitting on us after we got off the shuttle. We were immediately awed by a waterfall high up on the sandstone cliffs.
Our walk along the trail had pretty views of the rocks, cliffs and river. The rain began to fall more steadily, getting worse as we went along. Apparently Tom had declared today would be an “easy day” since we were staying off the bikes. We were jinxed!
Despite the rain and us getting increasingly wet, the walk was gorgeous. There are pretty maindenhair ferns and native columbines clinging to the rocks with ease. The river is lined with cottonwood trees, which during the flooding season, can be ripped from their roots and carried downstream.
Near the end of the trail, a train of older folks in a tour was walking back. We stopped to let them go by on the path, and the last guy said “Fifty more yards and you’ll need a boat.” He wasn’t kidding. The entrance to the Narrows was closed, the steps leading right into the rushing river.
Along the riverbank, we also discovered interesting rock formations. Notice them piled to the left of Michele in this picture. Rob tried to convince us that the rock formations were naturally deposited during the last time the river flooded. We knew better though.
With the rain full on, and the temperatures dropping, we picked up the pace to head back to the shuttle bus. We got a good laugh that the people getting off the bus were so dry and ignorant of how cold and wet they would soon be, just like we were.
During the ride back we spoke to a couple that were also on a motorcycle vacation. They were from California and had already been to Vegas and were heading to the Grand Canyon next. We shared our experiences riding across the country and provided them some recommendations on a good route to get to the Grand Canyon.
Back at the Lodge, we put our soaked gear in front of the heater and had lunch. After lunch, we hopped back on the shuttle to the Human History Museum to watch a movie about Zion. The sandstone cliffs were once huge sand dunes, that over time, formed sedimentary layers with water minerals binding them together into rock. This explains the sweeping layers seen and patterns you can see in the formations called slippery stone.
Around 4:30pm we called it a day, and decided to meet for dinner around 6pm. In the meantime, Rob put his large lens on his camera and stood on the lodge balcony to get some great shots of the clouds against the cliffs and a distant waterfall.
Tomorrow, we’ll explore more of the park and if the weather is drier we’ll try and do some short trail walks.
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