Kolob Canyons

When a friend learned we were heading to southern Utah, she suggested we check out Kolob Canyons. Kolob Canyons is a 10 mile scenic drive through the northwest section of Zion National Park. It has plenty of pull-offs, making it ideal to stop and take pictures along the way. We were up high enough in elevation that we were able to see the start of the leaves turning colour. We didn't initially plan to hit this part of the park and decided to do so on a whim, and I'm so glad we did. You already know I took a million pictures in this part of the park, but I managed to limit myself to just the few beautiful examples below. If you get an opportunity to visit this part of the park, the scenic drive is worth your time.

Zion National Park

Husband recently got some unexpected time off and we had numerous discussions about where we should go during this time. A lot of the things on our California bucket list were closed, either due to COVID or wildfires. After much discussion we decided to go to Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon, with a stop in Vegas thrown in for fun. In an effort to avoid picture overload, I have divided the trip into multiple blog posts. I hope to have them all up within the next few days but I make no promises.  

One of my favourite childhood memories was a camping trip we took to Zion National Park. My specific memoires of this camping trip are vague. I remember a big white mountain (the Great White Throne) and a lot of red. I also remember my mom freaking out when she discovered a giant lizard crawling on my sister. Other than that I just remember how much fun we had camping as a family. I should have planned ahead and had my mom send me a few pictures from that trip, but I didn't so you don't get to see how adorable I was as a 5 year old. Regardless, I was pretty excited to go back to Zion and see if it was a good as a I remember. Spoiler alert: it was. 

We did two hikes: the Riverside Trail--which leads to the start of The Narrows--and the Emerald Pools. Both were on the short side (less than 3 hours each round trip) and not too hard. We like the short, easy hikes. We have discussed going back and hiking Angels Landing but I think I need to get in better shape before doing that one. I would rather not die while hiking. 

We are lucky that we live about a half-day's drive from this wonderful place. I can't wait to go back and explore some more. It was absolutely beautiful, with stunning views everywhere. I had a difficult time deciding which pictures to post here because they were all amazing. Here are my absolute favourites.