Zion National Park was high on our list of “must sees”. However, just driving into Utah was also an amazing sight. I expected it to be beautiful and it did not disappoint. Everywhere you look, there are amazing views.
The Campground
We stayed in Hurricane at our first KOA and it offered everything we needed. There was a large day room and we spent an evening in it watching a movie. It was good to have a place to sit comfortably for a couple of hours as it was too cold to be outside once the sun was down.
We liked the KOA. The cable and WiFi were weak, but everything was else was great.
Zion National Park
Zion National Park was indeed gorgeous, but not exactly what I expected. There was no Visitor Center or restrooms inside the Park. However, there were a couple of porta potties at one spot. We did not go into the campground, so don’t know what it was like.
We discovered the Visitor Center is in Springdale, just outside the park. They were widening the road in Springdale and construction was everywhere with delays in being able to continue on the road. Interestingly, the website for Zion National Park showed lodging information with an average cost for a three star hotel room of $283. The hotels did not look impressive. Our campground site was $51 a night and quite close to the park. We certainly didn’t have the amenities of a hotel, but I am feeling that we are being quite economical!
Zion offers camping, canoeing, and hiking. My husband’s bad knee makes any significant walking a problem; so for us, it was the scenic drive through the park. There are many amazing sites that cannot be seen from the drive, but we waited too long to make this trip. Nonetheless, it was a gorgeous drive. Lastly, a link to the park follows. https://www.nps.gov/zion/index.htm
Amazing Sights
There is a tunnel on the scenic drive that is 1.1 mile straight through the mountain. It was dark and a little creepy. I was happy when we made it to the other side. The photo below is not very good, but will give you an idea of how it was inside.
An interesting fact, as you look down from higher elevations, the road does not contrast with the surrounding canyons because of its unique color.
It would have been great to do some strategic hiking in Zion, but absent that, it was wonderful just to be able to see it. My photos turned out well, but to actually be there was so much more beautiful.
Pipe Spring National Monument
We actually just stumbled upon Pipe Spring after visiting Zion and did not want to go back through the park and all the construction in Springdale, so we went through Kanab. We had been driving through the Kaibab-Palute Reservation for awhile and when we saw the monument, were curious.
It turned out to be very interesting. In the late 1800s, the Mormons were settling the area and the fort was an outpost. The fortified ranch house was called Windsor Castle after Anson Windsor, the first ranch manager. There was two-story housing was on both sides of the fort and Ranger Bennjamin Pikyavit gave a guided tour. He showed everyone the rooms in the fort and explained how they were used.
Ranger Ben was an impressive man and he made the times come alive for me. He is a Vietnam veteran who has worked tirelessly to preserve the culture of his people. His tour and the film in the museum highlighted the culture clash that occurred between the Mormons, the United States Government, and the Native Americans in the area. There were also lots of exhibits and artifacts from earlier times.
The Fort was very interesting. It covered the main spring in the area and was the site of significant butter and cheese production. There were bi-monthly deliveries to St. George for the workers who were building the new Mormon temple. The Mormons also had large amounts of cattle. Unfortunately, the land became overgrazed.
The visit to Pipe Spring was a vivid history lesson about this part of the country, how it was settled, and the impact on the Native Americans. It was well worth the visit. If you are old like me, it can be totally free with the National Parks Senior Pass.
In Closing
Hurricane was a great leg of our journey. The town was very close to Zion National Park with a good assortment of restaurants and shopping. We took the opportunity to get our oil changed while there. We have put so many miles on our SUV that it was needed.
Next stop, my most anticipated place, Moab! If you are interested in how we planned our trip, this link explains our process. Planning That First Long Trip
