Zion/Mt Carmel Drive - Mar 2009

On Wednesday (happy St. Patrick's Day) we took the Zion-Mt Carmel drive. We drove from the Watchman Campground, through the 1.1 mile long Zion-Mt Carmel Tunnel and then to the east entrance of Zion -- a one-way trip of about 10 miles that took us over three hours -- not because of traffic, but because of all the lovely scenery. Going out, we drove straight through to the east entrance, noting good stops along the way and then turned around and visited each and every one of them on the return trip.

It was another fine weather day considering that it was just a few days shy of spring. The view from the east entrance was equally as lovely as the view from the south station and we had a friendly German couple who, with no conversation (just hand waving and head nodding) agreed to snap our pic and we returned the favor.

Returning through the tunnel, we had to stop and wait for a couple of RVs to come through. The ceiling of the tunnel was low and steeply sloped -- so much so that RVs and other tall vehicles must drive in the center of road to get enough clearance. There were rangers posted at each end of the tunnel and they stopped traffic in one direction while the oversize vehicles came through. The wait was not long and the ranger entertained us with facts about the number of visitors who go through the tunnel on an average day -- about 2,000 on a normal day and over 12,000 on a busy weekend.

The inside of the tunnel is pitch black except for a couple of "windows" that look out to the canyon and let in a narrow shaft of sunlight. Being a bit claustrophobic, the 15 minute drive through inky blackness was a bit eerie for me and I was relieved to see the light at the end of the tunnel -- and a pretty view too.

We stopped at several places to ooh and aah at the scenery.

This was just one of several blind arches in Zion. This one was almost totally sunlit, unlike many of the others that are cast in deep shadows.

Another stop was at the Checkerboard Mesa. A distinct criss-cross pattern has been etched into the rocks giving it the look of a checkerboard. There was still a bit of snow clinging to the side.

We stopped to check out the rocks from up-close -- pretty neat looking. That tree in front gives you some perspective on the size of the mountain.


An even closer look at the rock formations.

At the base of Checkerboard Mesa was a dead tree -- toppled over with it's exposed roots making a perfect circle frame for the view of the cliffs in the distance.

Here are just a few of the cool sights along the road. This was a lone pine atop a formation called a Bee Hive.

An up-close look at some lichen that was left behind after a small pool of water had evaporated -- it left a pretty ring in the rock.

A couple of very tiny, pale-pink wildflowers were heralding spring.

Another bonsai-looking pine. I just love how it's trunk is jutting sideways out of the rock before making a 90 degree turn to reach for the sun. It's softly curved shadow belies the sharp angle of reality.