Zion distilled

Today was my first day without having to drive anywhere in quite some time. I think the last time the TT was left parked for a full day was in NY and I'm not really sure that that's true either, it's possible this is the first day it's had off in a month. Yep, today makes one full month since I left my house and as I'm now within days of being back there I don't think I'm ready yet. Well, there are a few days left, and then TT-West and then perhaps another week of mischief :)
But anyway, back to Zion. I got everything together and hopped on the shuttle to the park and then caught the in-park shuttle to the Emerald Pools trailhead at the Lodge. I headed up and around clockwise this time, I think Russ and I started the other direction. It's a bit of an uphill walk but not too bad and the weather was perfect, clear blue skies and getting hot but not unbearable. I made it up to the middle pool and mistakenly thought it was the upper pool. Since I thought I was at the end of the trail I did what I usually do and started poking around for sidetrails :) I followed the water and started scrambling over rocks and boulders and eventually started climbing upwards... basically because there were rocks that went up the hill :) I popped out onto a trail and two people coming around the bend told me it was the trail to the upper pool, so I had bypassed all the switchbacks and just went straight up :)
The upper pool was pretty crowded, a bunch of people in the water, it's deep enough in places to swim. I did manage a few unobstructed shots and a different take on the dangling foot picture too :) I continued down the trail and managed to get some decent hand-held long exposure shots of the cascade down to the lower pool. On the way back through I heard before I saw a squirrel lounging and munching on a snack. He didn't seem to mind being photographed, and at very close range too.
After the trail it was about lunchtime so I grabbed a sandwich at the lodge and finally got my chance to sit on lawn at the lodge and do nothing (besides eat) for awhile. There's lots of shade and a beautiful view and even when there are other people around it feels quiet. Next year I'm bringing a smoothie from Tsunami :)
After lunch I hopped on the bus and headed to the Temple of Sinawava at the end of the park. I figured since it was warmer and I had climbed yesterday that I'd do the Narrows hike today. The trailhead really starts at the end of the river walk hike and that hike itself is a 2 mile round trip. There's lots to see along the way and the river walk is an easy mostly level walk. At the end of the walk you just hop in the river and keep going. I had already moved everything from pockets to backpack so all I needed to do was not get in past my waist or drop the camera ;) Most of the time the water is only ankle deep and sometimes just about waist deep. You can of course go in further if you want. The water felt great, not cold at all and for the first time I was hiking without sweating constantly :) I headed upriver for about an hour and a half, maybe two hours so I think I made it at least 2 miles in, probably further. The Narrows really captures everything about Zion in one place, the river, trees and red cliffs and you're right in the middle of it all.
Unfortunately my late start had me chasing the sun and it seemed to always just be around the next corner, need to start this hike earlier in the day. I reluctantly turned back as there wasn't enough light for my lenses and was starting to get breezy. I also wanted to catch the sunset at the Temple so I needed to get back. The hike back is always quicker than the hike in and I was back to the river walk trailhead by I think 6pm.
I wandered around the Temple of Sinawava for a bit taking pictures and decided I wasn't really tired yet and since it was my last day I wanted to make the most of it. There's a trail that runs along the river pretty much from the Temple all the way to the visitor center so I headed to the river and started walking that back to the next bus stop (Big Bend). They don't allow cars in the park past the lodge so there was no outside noise except for the occasional bus running up on the road. The sun was already low enough that the canyon at this point was out of direct light but that only seemed to make the colors that much more saturated. I didn't really have any idea how far it was between the two stops and they don't pick up people in between (maybe if you ask real nice) so I was sort of committed to the full walk :) I think it's probably about a mile given how long it took to get there. It was a great way to end the day though and I think some day I would like to walk the entire length of the park.
I hopped on a bus and started heading out but as I got further out of the park there was still alot of light left in the canyon so I hopped off a few times to take pictures and then caught the next bus coming down the trail. Eventually I was at the visitor center and reluctantly grabbed a bus back to the hotel. I think a return trip will be sooner rather than later, maybe even this fall sometime (I hope :)
I had heard good things about the meatloaf at the restaurant at the Driftwood Inn (right across the street from where I was staying) so I headed there for dinner. Fantastic food with a table outside and a great view as the sun set capped off two of the best days ever. The Narrows was a unique hike and was alot of fun but the Hidden Canyon hike on the first day was still just so much better. I could have spent hours on that perch high above the valley.

It's not quite the end of the trip yet but I think this quote from American Beauty sums up the past month...
"...it's hard to stay mad, when there's so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I'm seeing it all at once, and it's too much, my heart fills up like a balloon that's about to burst... And then I remember to relax, and stop trying to hold on to it, and then it flows through me like rain and I can't feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life."

Zion Day 2