Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks
Feb 13-16, 2009
AC593 YYZ-LAS, UA286 LAS-LAX, AC790 LAX-YYZ
Not being one not to waste the value of the US National Park pass that we bought in August 2008 for Zion, we headed back to Utah for the Family Day holiday weekend. Due to the high elevation in the National Parks we were hoping to see some snow in the canyons and luckily were not disappointed. We were also very fortunate to be there for the few days between winter storms. As we flew in and out of Las Vegas we got a few hours of warm weather before heading to the bitter cold of Bryce. We stopped back in Zion to see it with snow and without the summer crowds. Although there was lots of ice in Bryce, we managed to find a snow-covered hike among the Hoodoos. The snow made for a beautiful backdrop and great weekend.
Feb 14
Las Vegas to Bryce
Mountains along I-15 towards Utah
Our first snow covered mountains
Mountains in the small patch of Arizona we drove through
Mountains outside of St. George Utah
Zion Canyon
River and snow in Zion
More Zion Snow
Zion Big Bend
More from the heart of Zion Canyon
Me hiding behind the snow covered tree. Despite the snow it’s not too cold
After driving through the tunnel Zion’s signature red road contrasts with the snow
After a day of driving we get the big pay off of the Bryce Canyon Amphitheatre
One of the many viewpoints in the park
Me trying not to look too cold
The snow provides excellent contrasts for the photos as the afternoon progresses
We waited for sunset as the temperature drops
Sunset from the aptly named sunset point
Feb 15
Bryce to Las Vegas
Sunrise from sunset point
Unfortunately it took a long time for the sun to warm up the day
We started out early on the Queens Garden and Navejo Trail
Although we did the hike in fall 2005, it is very different in the winter
Being in amongst the Hoodoos is my favorite part of the park
Tom was fascinated by the evidence of constant erosion
The rolling snow reminded us of the desert sand
Looking out into the valley
More snow dunes as we climb out of the canyon
More of the beautiful contrast between snow and sand
More impact from rolling rocks
Looking out over the canyon
The view from sunrise point a few hours after sunrise
The empty parking lot confirms that we had the park mostly to ourselves
We drove to Las Vegas and flew home the morning of the 16th