Days 6-7 ~ Valley of Fire, St. George and Zion

We have now been on the road for one full week. On Sunday we left Pahrump, NV, and headed to St. George, Utah. Enroute we stopped at Valley of Fire, a Nevada state park. As we drove off the main highway we wondered what was in store as the scenery was a continuation of the same desert scenery. As we came over one hill we suddenly saw a colorful landscape ahead. We understood why it is called the Valley of Fire. The valley contains red sandstone formations. One area is called Beehives.

Later we arrived in Hurricane, Utah, just north of St. George. On Monday morning we boarded a bus and headed to Zion National Park.

It seems each place we visit is better than the last. The temperature in the park reached 95 degrees. The park features a very efficient shuttle service that takes visitors from the visitor center at the park entrance to various shuttle stops at trailheads throughout the park. The hikes are all labeled as Easy, Moderate and Difficult, with detailed descriptions. The scenery was a beautiful combination of vivid red walls and deep green trees and bushes.

At the end of the day everyone in our tour group was exhausted. A full day of beauty, heat and hiking took its' toll. Today, Tuesday, we (Curt, Dawn, Chig & I) visited old town St. George, founded by the Mormons in the mid 1800's. We toured the historical tabernacle. After lunch we returned to Zion and drove through the 1.5 mile tunnel. We again enjoyed the beautiful scenery. On our drive home Curt pointed out a "Shoe" tree. I made Chig turn around on the highway so I could take a picture of it. Interesting : )

Tomorrow we head to Cedar City, Utah.