18.04 - Day 94 - Grand Canyon to Zion
Thursday 18th April - Grand Canyon, Arizona - Springdale (Zion), Utah (Day 94)
Take a year off, see the world. But in practice, to make that even a tiny bit true requires constant travelling. We’re trying to balance being able to enjoy a destination, not just take a photo of it with the reality of five weeks to get from West to East Coast. Plus, every time we stop, it’s both the suitcases, the rucksacks and food to come out the car and then in reverse when we leave. Which means after two nights - to give us at least a full day - we’re off again in the morning, so I wake up early to pop back to the South Rim for a final viewing with a different perspective with the early morning sun.
Zion National Park is our next stop which is only about 100 miles away to the north as the crow flies, but is a 340 mile drive, doing three sides of a square.
Heading out east of the Grand Canyon we pull over after 45 minutes at the Desert WatchTower. Designed by Mary Coulter who was also included in designs in the village, this three storey cylindrical tower offers (more) amazing views west this time along the canyon and then to the north where the Colorado is heading right to left on it;s way to the Hoover Dam.
We spend 20 minutes here gawping at the view through the mish mash differing windows and outside ledge. We also see small patches of snow, much to the kids' excitement, who, bar a weekend outside Canberra on snow-machine snow, have never played in the white stuff.
Back on the road we turn north on the 89 heading to charge at Page, but just shy of this is Horseshoe Bend. A high turnover car park by the main road starts a path 1 km past red dust and low lying hardy shrubs. Suddenly the floor drops away and hundreds of metres down is the Colorado River winding its way along, having carved (and still carving) a giant horseshoe shape. A few tiny kayaks dot the river to help give context to its scale. It’s exposed in the overhead sunshine and we hunker down under an overhanging rock to munch on lunch.
What do you think, I ask Sienna, is it good? “I guess. I mean it's just a river going around a rock.”
Suitably impressed then we pause 10 minutes further on to charge for half an hour, then turn west, crossing the river and driving along through vast open spaces punctuated with huge rocks emerging from the ground.
Our next accommodation in Springdale, just on the edge of Zion National Park, is a bit of a black hole for superchargers,so we take a slightly longer route to St George to charge up again to 100%, using the 35 minute charge time to eat at Panda Express, before heading north east to Springdale.
Doing the drive, the car clock has changed as we’ve crossed from Arizona to Utah, back to Arizona and back to Utah. Upshot is the clock has pushed on an hour, so although we arrive after 7pm, it’s still daylight. Zion Park Motel, family run for 40+ years with 15 rooms will be our base and we get a run down on the motel and the park from one of the original owners' daughters. In the room, Sienna and Seb adopt the role of motel owner, and despite larking about during check in, clearly hear every word we were told and recite it back to us as Kate and I play as incoming guests.
