Today was our last day near Zion this year and we took it pretty easy. We drove into the east entrance, down the first five miles and passed through the mile long tunnel that ends at the top of a series of switchbacks overlooking some of the really tasty parts of this treasure. We crept along, talking pictures, until we turned around at the Zion Canyon turnoff and retraced our drive back to our campground.
We were very lucky in that the weather gave us a terrific show by contributing a thunderstorm as we took today’s drive. The rock formations exhibit spectacular colors when wet and lots of the flat rock surfaces get really shiny. It is startling how big a change a little precipitation induces.
From our turnaround point, we were able to see the three or four holes that have been drilled into the sides of the iconic tunnel that is a terrific engineering feat although it is also a terrifying inky black narrow passage through solid rock. When big RVs approach the tunnel, the NPS attendant at the tunnel stops the vehicle, collects $15 and then shuts off oncoming traffic at the far end of the tunnel so the enormous RV can pass through without using only his or her lane. It seems to work very well which is fortunate because a head-on collision in the tunnel with traffic going both ways would be disastrous. Truly, a live grenade in a crowded bunker.
When we got back to our RV park today, many Druids or Jawas had moved into a nearby primitive tent space. They were all wearing floppy brown robes but I did not get a close look at any of them to see if they had little circular LEDs for eyes. They were all very short. I did not see any droids that they may have kidnapped. They spoke a funny language.
We took some pictures on our last run through the park and you can see them if you click here