Day 3: Tuesday, August 6 (part two)
After lunching and lounging outside Zion Lodge, and then refilling our water packs, we decided on what to do next. It was now afternoon, and despite the weather reports, not a drop of rain or clap of thunder yet. We decided to take the shuttle to the end of the canyon and at least do the Riverwalk and assess the Narrows situation for ourselves.
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4473 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
The Temple of Sinawava shuttle stop was hopping. Lots of people everywhere. Most of them quite wet, having obviously spent all day in the Narrows. Apparently we were the only ones in the park worried.
I looked at the board near the trailhead that rated the risk for the day. It said flash flooding "possible," just like it had at the visitor center. Only this board gave me another bit of info--it showed that "possible" was, in actuality, the second lowest risk warning available. The rating system went from
no risk of flash floods, to
flash floods possible, to
flash floods probable, to
you are idiot for even contemplating going into a slot canyon right now, and if you go in you must have a death wish.
...In other words, we'd been avoiding the Narrows all day for very little reason.
Oh well, we could get a little bit of time in the river, anyway.
So we walked along the Riverwalk, stopping to look at the squirrels (scarily tame) along the way, until we reached the river. Matt was still a little tentative about going up the river, but there were so many people everywhere, the sky was blue, no thunder, and as far as I could tell from my phone, nothing to be concerned about in surrounding areas, either.
So into the river we went....
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4528 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
Immediately I regretted not heading straight to the Narrows in the morning. The water was soooo cool and felt sooooo good. Even Sunshine, who had been lagging after lunch and did NOT want to hike anymore, perked up. No, she didn't just perk up actually, she came alive.... she loved being in that river.
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_- by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
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nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
Right from the get-go, I missed my tripod. Alas, it was back in the rental car at the visitor center....
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4554 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
The Narrows was magical. Cool rushing water, towering red cliffs--sometimes brown, sometimes orange, depending on the light--small green trees clinging from the rock or growing right in the river. Surrounded by beauty, immersed in it, soaking in it.
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_--2 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
One of the most magical things about Zion was the color of the water. In the right light, the river reflected pink light from the cliffs off its surface, making the water itself seem to glow pink. It was a softly quiet kind of beauty, and every time I saw it, it made me feel like we had stepped into the pages of a beautiful book, a fantasy world... like Tolkien's Middle Earth.
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4567 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
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nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
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nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
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nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
We took our time, exploring and splashing and (me) taking photos. We didn't get very far in... enough to lose the crowds and come around a bend and have no one in sight, so late in the day... enough to where the walls were closing in just a bit. But not to where the walls really felt very narrow.
I could have kept going, I wish we could have kept going!, but then, then, at last... we heard what sounded like thunder. A rolling sound, and something in the air seemed to shift, some wind current.
Matt was adamant that we needed to turn around. He and Sunshine started back immediately. I couldn't help myself and kept dawdling along the way back, taking more pictures. Matt took Sunshine ahead, to the beginning of the trailhead, and they ended up waiting a while for me
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4631 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
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nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
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nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
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nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
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nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
But at long last (and after a dunk in the river--slipping on some stone and falling smack on my butt, holding the camera high in the air to save it!)... I rejoined Matt and Sunshine at the trailhead.
We made our way back down the Riverwalk, to the shuttle stop...
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4727 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4731 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
After riding the shuttle back to the visitor center, we clambered into the car, soaking, tired, but happy. It had been a long but lovely day. I didn't want to leave the park, really, but it was dinner time... so we drove back into town, back to the La Quinta.
We spent our evening eating some pizzas from Zion Pizza & Noodle in the room, and then exploring shops again. There was a photo gallery across the street from us, and I wanted to go in and see the photographer's work, but he had a sign on the door: "Gone Chasing the Light."
So instead I settled for shooting a few pictures of my own as the setting sun hit the cliffs.
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4816 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4836 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
smaller_AZ_UT_2013_-4847 by
nicole_lynn_, on Flickr
Our last night in Springdale, in Zion... paradise on earth.