Zion National Park

We stayed on the north side of Zion National Park in New Harmony, UT; a five minute drive to Kolob Canyon. Kolob Canyon has fewer tourists than the south end of the park where the main visitor center is located. On June 4 we hiked the Middle Fork Taylor Creek Trail to the Double Arch in Kolob Canyon. It was a moderate trail that switched back over Taylor Creek more times than I could keep count- maybe 20 times each way? We passed two log cabins built in the 1930’s and beautiful red rock formations. The arch at the end was large with 2 layers (hence “double arch”) that created an echo. The next day we drove to the south side to hike. We got there at 7:45 and the parking lot was almost full; luckily I talked to the ranger in Kolob Canyon who suggested we get there no later than 8 am. From there we took the park shuttle (no cars allowed on the park roads) to stop 6 to get on the Scout Lookout via West Rim trail. It’s rated hard by All Trails and I would agree based on the steepness; the only breaks were as you circled around one of the numerous switchbacks! Luckily there were no stairs and it was a paved path; that’s why I rate it second hardest to Yosemite. The lookout view at the top was pretty with red rocks higher up and condors soaring in the sky. We took the shuttle back to the base, ate lunch, then hiked the Virgin River trail that started at the base. At the top of that trail is a large alcove that provides relief from the heat, and a waterfall that you see from the backside. Our last excursion was to Parowan to see petroglyphs and dinosaur tracks. They are roadside historical sites about 35 miles from New Harmony and down a 2 lane road that goes through Parowan Gap; which is a gap in the Red Hills formed by a stream 15 million years ago. At some point the stream dried up and Native Americans passed through it leaving signs in the rocks. About 2 miles further down the road is another small roadside marker where the dinosaur tracks are. There is a marker by each track to help identify it; which was very helpful as they are not easily recognizable to a lay person.Read more