Sunday June 10, we woke up well rested after spending the night at Econo Lodge in St George Utah. For less than 60 dollars a night we have a king size bed, fridge, microwave, coffee maker, table and chairs, couch, tv and access to swimming pool and hot tub. Bonus is that they throw in a breakfast, though something is left to be desired with what was served. Compare this to the 35 dollars to stay at the KOA, it somewhat feels like heaven.
After eating breakfast we headed into the park with the intention of climbing the hike to Angel's Landing as well as a to be determined smaller hike. We managed to find a parking spot within the park saving us a shuttle ride from the town of Springdale. We found our way to the park's internal shuttle service and after waiting in the quickly moving 3-400 person line we boarded a shuttle destined for the Grotto trailhead.
The climb from the trailhead was warm and steadily inclining for the first mile and a bit. We were then greeted to the shade provided by a canyon wall for the next 3/4 of a mile, by then arriving at the famous wiggle waggles. Ascending these short but steep switch backs had us breathing hard. We arrived at the Scout's lookout which provided our first up close glimpse of the famous final half mile of the hike to Angel's landing. After resting and snacking for a few minutes we began the steep journey that is aided by chains providing both safety from the dangerous cliffs and support to help get up and back down the intense incline. Tori overcame her fears and doubts and did marvelously getting to the top. We enjoyed stunning 360 degree views of the canyon and were ecstatic that we chose to ascend this famous climb.
We took our time descending and found a picnic table near the trailhead for lunch. A trial run of our hiking stove proved successful as we enjoyed the famous college food of top ramen noodles. Other tourists and hungry hikers passing our table had looks of envy as we enjoyed our cheap and tasty lunch. Our bodies appreciated the rejuvination of carbs and salt and we were soon on our way to visit the Emerald Lakes. This series of lakes involved a moderate 3 mile hike up into one of the sides of the canyon and features 3 small lakes along a creek. The upper most lake is gorgeous as it sits up along the canyon wall.
Venturing back down we witnessed the sunlight fall across the canyon and light up the wall that we were facing during the descent. A beautiful way to finish our first day in Zion.
After a quick stop in the gift shop for our park sticker we boarded the shuttle to take us back to the car. On the drive back to the hotel we made a short stop at walmart to pick up dinner and some food for the following couple of days.
End of a fantastic day at Zion and the anticipation is high for the hike through the famous Narrows in the morning.
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