JK and I had the opportunity to take a somewhat last minute vacation, so we jumped at the chance to return to Utah. We flew in to Vegas, but immediately picked up a rental car and drove away as far as we could since I hate that place with a raging passion.
First stop was Zion, our favorite park. We camped in the Watchman Campground and wanted to find some hikes that weren't too crowded, so we got up the next day and headed for Cable Mountain. It’s a 15-16 mile hike that ends up by the remnants of the old cableworks where they used to send timber down into Zion Canyon - it’s pretty impressive once you get up there and realize just how nauseatingly high it is.
If you know where to look, you can see the structure from Observation Point and Angel’s Landing. After the trail forked off from the Observation Point trail, we only saw one other person, a ranger who was just as surprised as we were to meet someone up there.
All in all a good hike, but if you haven’t done Observation Point before I would say that's a better choice. If you’re in good shape and motivated, you could go to OP on the way back from Cable.
The next day we were planning on backpacking along the West Rim Trail, but unfortunately the forecast called for rain and thunderstorms that night. We decided to check out Angel’s Landing and then drive back to St. George and sleep out the rain in a motel.
The trail up to Angel’s Landing was just as fun as I expected it to be, with excellent views down the canyon and the adorably tiny Walter’s Wiggles switchbacks. An incorrigible acrophobic, I felt no need to attempt the skinny little trail out to the landing. I might have given it a shot if we were alone, but the thought of having to pass hordes of hikers on the cables freaked me out. JK proceeded alone while I relaxed at Scout’s Lookout.
The next day we woke up to blue skies (but a new friend we met in Zion later told me it had rained there), so we drove out to Snow Canyon State Park, just outside St. George. If you’re ever in the area, please take the time to visit this park! It’s absolutely beautiful, full of hiking trails, rock climbing routes, and reportedly an excellent campground. We followed a six mile loop detailed in our guide book, covering the Hidden Piñon, Petrified Dunes, Butterfly and Lava Flow trails.
Next stop: Bryce! Since we had deviated from our plan of backpacking in Zion, we drove to Bryce via Cedar City instead. It was interesting to drive around in our car at almost 10,000 feet, much higher than the highest mountain in Norway. Unfortunately Cedar Breaks National Monument wasn’t open for the season yet as most of the mountain was still covered in snow.
Bryce was amazing. Once again we made the right choice weather-wise and arrived between two storms. Moahaha. We camped in the North Campground (in hats and gloves, brr), then went for a hike the next day on the Navajo, Peek-a-Boo (my favorite!) and Queen’s Garden trails.
Next up was a long drive (this time via Zion) back to Nevada to camp in Valley of Fire State Park, but we found the time to stop for ho-made pie, a quick trip up to Zion Canyon Overlook, and an excellent meal at the Spotted Dog Café in Springdale.
The Atlatl Campground in Valley of Fire is the best I’ve ever been to. We got a beautiful tent site, all the individual sites have a covered table so you can survive the more disgustingly hot hours of the day (all of them), and they have free hot showers! We ended up scrapping our plans of camping in Red Rock Canyon the next day and stayed in Valley of Fire an extra day instead. It’s such a relaxing place with lots of little trails to explore, and we figured our fellow airplane passengers would appreciate the showers.
We spent a lazy day in Petroglyph Canyon, White Domes (a must!) and Ephemeral Arch. On the hike back from the arch we saw our first (ever!) rattlesnake curled up in the sand. I saw it as I was halfway through the air after jumping off a rock, about to land right next to it. I ricocheted off the ground, screaming, and JK took photos. Good times.
We flew back to Seattle the next morning. It was raining.
This looks like a photo for some sort of commercial
Awesome pictures and what a fun trip~!
I miss Utah and the rocks
-------------- ♫ You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. And you're the one who will decide where you'll go. Oh the places you'll go. - Dr. Seuss
Joined: 19 Oct 2007 Posts: 939 | TRs | Pics Location: The Best Place on Earth
Mon May 18, 2009 5:52 pm
VERY VERY nice. You hit up a lot of great places and your photos are superb! (and the titles aren't half bad either ).
I love the shot from Cable Mountain, I'm thinking that vista looks better than the one from Observation Point (although hard to compare since our shots from there are taken with a disposable camera ). How sporting of you to pose so close to the edge!
I love the lighting in framed, nice lizard, and the road through the "moonscape" is awesome!
I also really like your last shot, what a great campsite! I remember our first trip camping among the red rocks. I had never seen anything like it before, it felt like we were camping with the Flintstones!
Thanks for taking the last minute trip and I don't mind that we had to wait SOOOOOO long for a report to be posted.
what a wonder getaway for the two of you! i want to go back! i love your photo of Angel's Landing from Cable Mountain.
i think if you can see the words Vitamin water on the bottle, you should submit it to the company with your caption. who knows. anyway, great shot. maybe you should go back, have JK hold the bottle on his left hand with more label showing!
sorry you got spooked on going to angel's landing. next time, bring a carabiner, rope, harness, and hook yourself to the chain on your way up/down.
fantastic TR and photos. thank you.
-------------- bobbi ૐ
"Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!"
The first made my heart smile, the second made my ankle scream... out loud. Is that even possible?
Absolutely great photos of what looks to have been a wonderful vacation.
Glad JK came through his crazy jumping moment unharmed and that you survived your close encounter of the rattler kind. ~Jo
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).
). How sporting of you to pose so close to the edge! 
