Glorious Zion

Again, not many words necessary.  It is so wonderful to know that these National Parks that we saw were saved for our enjoyment.  That is a good word - en"JOY"ment.  Some of the view were staggering.  I feel so blessed that we had the opportunity to visit Zion.

I'll just share some photos and a bit of commentary.  Enjoy.

Driving into the Park

This checkerboard pattern was so cool

John and I hiked up to this water fall.  A bit of a

hike, at times slippery but it was worth it.  Very pretty.

Many beautiful wildflowers on the trail

Interesting pattern of algae on the rock.  

What does it look like to you?  (I see a little mouse)

Slippery red mud - our shoes were caked with it.

Along our hike we had some light rain.

Always fun to have an encounter with creatures.

He was so cute and posed for me.

Lovely bridge - back to parking lot and we

were very glad to be back and sit down in the car

Beautiful Mule Deer.  I was so excited

to be able to see this animal so close.

Since we have a handicapped plate we were allowed to

 drive our own car instead of taking this shuttle through the 

entire park.  That was wonderful because it was a cold, 

windy and long day.  Parking close was a big help for us.

Our view from the restaurant we had lunch at.  Service

was beyond bizarre.  Servers came 5 times to recheck on

what I had ordered and it was right on the menu?????  

North Fork Virgin River

So park 1 of 5 was done.  Very memorable and special.  You can take so many photos and still not be able to really show how beautiful it is here.  I will always remember Zion.

Red Paradise - Sedona, Arizona

Finally traveled to a wonderland that people had always said to visit.  As we drove into town,  down a bit of a slope, you immediately see a panoramic view of the mountains like you've never seen before -- this is Sedona, AZ.  It was enchanting.

Sedona is home to 15,000 people and is a tourist mecca.  I can't tell you how many languages we heard as we went to view the many sites.  I'd say the majority were not English.

There is not a lot to write about here - the allure is not in words, but sight.  

We had some haze on the day we were there and the sun was here when it needed to be there so in many pictures you do not get the true "red" color of the rocks, sorry. All the mountains, peaks are red. The famous red rocks of Sedona are formed by a layer of rock known as the Schnebly Hill Formation. The Schnebly Hill Formation is a thick layer of red to orange-colored sandstone found only in the Sedona vicinity.

The view when driving into town

Chapel of the Holy Cross

 View from Chapel

Bell Rock

Cathedral Rock

Again, we were blessed with many magnificent wildflowers

 You can really see the red dirt here

Art and crafts, great galleries

This was a fun outdoor shop, the only one we stopped at.

 Coffee Pot Rock

Another view of driving in Sedona

You are surrounded by glorious red mountains at

every turn.  I could not stop taking photographs.

We took a little stroll in Oak Creek Canyon

 John said, "Wish I had my gold pan."

We saw these, drove by and had to make a u-turn.  These

rocks were so beautiful.  You can't tell how huge they are

in this picture.  Massive rocks with such interesting patterns.

 Chimney Rock

To me this looks like a painting

 Tourists, just like us, to highest 

driveable point to see the sunset.

These folks collected a $1 per person suggested donation

and were there to answer questions.  They looked great.

I was hoping for a mind blowing sunset, but it just didn't happen.

This entire trip has not been one a spectacular sunsets.

Breezy and a bit chilly

Sunset is generally crowded. Got there

early for parking and a viewing spot.

Overwhelmed with Sedona feeling we

sadly leave this magical place

We visited Sedona on May 23 and 24th, which was "pre-tourist season".  This is not to say there weren't tons of people there, so I can't imagine June - August.  So keep that in mind if you visit and if possible go early.  No one should miss seeing this beautiful area of America.

As an addendum:  A special thank you to John who drove through all of this splendor.  He had to: 1) stop, 2) pull over, 3) back up, 4) do many, many u-turns, and 5) go back to........  He did all this great and patient driving with a great attitude as I had to capture so many special views and in this area it was constant.  He really was a great guy through out all the trip but, especially Sedona and the 5 National Parks we visited.  Thank you dear!!!!!!!