Last full day in Zion today, head out tomorrow morning for Vegas for the fly back. Went on a longer hike on the East Rim Trail for most of the morning, rolling desert surrounded by colorful crags, had the trail mostly to ourselves. In the afternoon we took one final spin around the park in the shuttle and walked around a bit saying our goodbyes. Capped it off with dinner at the tried and true Subway.
Coming into this I was somewhat apprehensive about how crowded the park would be because that's the warning in basically every review or write up. And it certainly was well attended even at the end of October but it seemed like most people were only there to do the two most well known hikes, Angel's Landing and The Narrows, and quite frankly most of the people weren't rude exactly but certainly weren't particularly friendly. A stark difference than most of the National Parks we've been to as far as the culture. It was more tourist destination than natural sanctuary. Which is fine, the park service needs the exposure, but the relief for me was that with a little research we could go off the beaten path, and be virtually alone. No matter where you are the park is breathtaking, vast, and stirring. There's an serene enormity to it, a graceful yet daunting beauty, that's really moving. Nicole and I had a wonderful time, we did a bit more planning this year and struck the perfect balance of activities and longer exertions. It's always nice to get away from work, get out of the city, but this was particularly needed and particularly special.
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