Karen and I flew into Las Vegas from Chattanooga on Saturday, 4-13-26, to begin an eleven-day exploration of National, State, and City Parks in Arizona, Utah, and Nevada. Along the way, we would visit with friends and family we hadn’t seen in years.
We made our first stop 50 miles from Las Vegas in the Mojave Desert at Nevada’s first state park, Valley of Fire. The deeply red rock formations in the park appear to be on fire when the early- morning or late-evening sun lights them up.
Fragile Elephant Rock illustrates the power of erosion that created the countless sandstone formations in the midwestern deserts and mountains.
After the Valley of Fire, we drove to St. George, Utah, to spend two days with our dear friends Amy and Mike, whom we had not seen since they moved to the desert five years ago.
Pioneer Park is 52 acres of captivating red Dixie Rock formations and walking trails. The ages-old “Boy Scout Cave” above is a fine addition to the park’s cultural heritage.
It was good to see honey bees busy pollinating the spring cacti blooms.
The desert cools at night, and after hiking, it’s a huge treat to soak in a hot tub. We were Mike and Amy’s first hot tub guests. They are spectacular hosts.
On the way to Mike and Amy’s, we drove through the impressive Virgin River Gorge between St. George, Utah, and Beaver Dam, Arizona on Highway 15, which is one of the most expensive stretches of interstate highway because of the cavernous and twisting canyons. Above, the mighty Virgin River zigzags through and is largely responsible for carving out and shaping Zion National Park.
The extremely popular Narrows Hike upstream into a slot canyon in the North Fork of the Virgin River is a challenging slog over slick stones with strong currents that can be chest-high at times. We opted for the beautiful mile-long stroll along the riverside and left the remaining 2.6-mile trudge between the increasingly narrowing canyon walls to more intrepid trekkers. Many outfitters rent special shoes, walking sticks, and dry suits to tackle the channel.
During the walk back from the narrows, I heard someone shout my name. I paused and turned around when the female voice shouted again, ” That’s Jeff f***ing Lyon!” It was Elizabeth Dekovic whom I hired to work in food service at Snow Mt. Ranch in Colorado in 1983. We are FB friends, but I have not seen or talked to her in 43 years. Her nickname back in Colorado was Deke. She is next to Karen in the picture, dressed to hike the Narrows with her wonderful partner. It was mind-boggling!
Zion’s Emerald Pools Trail took us to a desert oasis, complete with a small waterfall from mountain runoff stunted by dry weather. The recent drought caused the pools to be extremely low, but when full, their vivid green color comes from blue-green algae, which can grow into large blooms and produce cyanotoxins with nasty side effects.
Because of decreasing population and winter brumation in underground burrows, this Arizona toad was a rare sight along the Emerald Pools Trail.
Zion’s Checkerboard Mesa stands at 6,520 feet of elevation to form a Navajo Sandstone summit near the park’s east entrance. Check lines in cross-bedded white sandstone give the mountain its name.
An alcove is an arch-shaped recess in a cliff face caused by wall collapse. Compression strengthening makes the arch resistant to continued water erosion, so it can separate from the cliff. The massive alcove above could someday become a freestanding arch.
We left Zion via the impressive Zion-Mt. Carmel Tunnel to the east entry gate. Huge holes were dynamited through the tunnel’s walls to allow digging material to be thrown out. The openings were reshaped to create windows called galleries that light the 1.1-mile passage. Parking is a bitch, but the trailhead for the Zion Canyon Overlook Trail is immediately to the right of the east tunnel entrance.
The Zion Canyon Overlook Trail meanders along several narrow ledges with sheer drop-offs and a wooden platform was extended over a portion of a ledge that eroded. We walked under cliff overhangs, clung to cliff walls with no railings to protect us from plunging into the abyss, and scampred up rocks slick with loose sand. The payoff from high atop the park’s eastern side is a sweeping view of Zion Canyon that is breathtaking!
It’s 72 miles from Zion’s east exit to our next adventure at Bryce Canyon, which would present us with much colder and windier weather. Deke and Deb also headed to Bryce Canyon after hiking in Zion. We ate dinner with the ladies both nights we spent in Bryce Canyon City, while our partners suffered through our tales of life while living and working at Snow Mt. Ranch in the 80s.