ZION NATIONAL PARK

" I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes. "

~e.e. cummings

Nestled amongst the towering rust mountains lies a little piece of heaven called Zion. Jason and I had been there a few times but haven't returned in twelve years. Why? I cannot explain because we both love this place. Kids would have to be our excuse, but now that they are older we will plan to visit more regularly. We stayed in Zion at the lodge in one of the quaint little cabins. Although the lodge is not the original designed in in 1925 by Gilbert Stanley Underwood, which was tragically lost to a fire in 1966, it once again resembles the vision that he had. The little cabin we stayed in was original- circa 1929. We enjoyed walking the grounds and at night the stars were beyond measure.

The first hike we tackled was Weeping Rock. Lauren and Jace enjoyed the water dripping on their heads and couldn't believe it was coming out of the rock. The views were beautiful from there and we even saw a deer taking a rest in the trees on the way down.

Next we took on the Riverside Walk, which is the gateway to The Narrows. I wouldn't mind hiking The Narrows someday, Jason did it in his youth, but for now we weren't prepared or in the mindset for it- not to mention there was a flash flood warning so they weren't allowing people that far in. Lauren and Jace were giddy about the fact that the squirrels were quite friendly and didn't run away, although they wouldn't go too close to them after seeing a flyer about someone who had gotten too close and ended up having stitches in his hand. We stopped for a snack on a huge rock banked by the river and just enjoyed the scenery.

Emerald Pools was our final hike of the day. Jace ,as with the other hikes, had to climb every big rock on the trail and of course had to get a picture on them. We saw frogs and tried to catch one but they were fast.

After lunch the kids went for a swim in the river. It was so great to be in that canyon sitting along the river and just enjoying everything surrounding you. Lauren and Jace loved playing in the river and I wasn't worried because at most spots it was only knee deep. Jason caught a frog so Jace held it, they played in the mud, and skipped rocks across the river. We even had some tubes for them to float down on. It just doesn't get any better than that!

On the way out we stopped to pose in front of the arch. I got a picture of the tunnel by way of the sunroof. It had just started to rain on our way out, so the kids were catching raindrops while we drove.

We were sad to leave such a beautiful place, but we were glad to have been there. We headed over the mountain and spent the rest of the long weekend in Cedar City.

Monday night we headed to my parents house for the annual Labor Day pool party. We enjoyed some food and family and had a great end to a fantastic weekend!