Zion National Park, Utah

At 6am we wake up to our alarm, get up and get ready to drive to Zion National Park. We are packed and leave the park before 7am (very early for us).

The 140 miles drive takes us through the Dixie National Forest and some very pretty scenery. Lots of snow still at the summit that we cross.

We arrive at Zion by mid-morning and get a campsite in the park for the next two nights. We're hoping someone cancels so we can stay here three nights. The ranger said to check back and we may be able to stay a 3rd night.

We have dry camped the last several nights, so we need to "dump" our tanks, fill up our water tanks, and take showers. It was so cold at Bryce we weren't anxious to take showers; plus their dump station was closed so we had to conserve our water (no way to refill our fresh water tank at Bryce) -- my hair hasn't been washed in four days. I feel much better after my shower.

The campground is next to the visitor center so we walk over there to plan our day.

We end up taking the free shuttle (cars are not allowed on the scenic drive through the canyon) to the end of the canyon and walking the Riverside Trail.

Then we hop on the shuttle to return to the campground for dinner and an evening of relaxation.