We started just outside Hildale, home of Warren Jeffs and the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. (If you go, be sure to eat at the Merry Wives cafe!) From there, we wandered through Water Canyon...
...and upward into a slickrock wonderland.
I'll confess to a love (perhaps even an obsession) of austere geologic form, but I suspect even the most jaded of eyes would be impressed with the endless variation found on the route.
We also passed some historical curiosities, including an old windlass...
...used to lower lumber to the valley floor below.
But mostly, it was mile after mile of the geologic freak show.
If you're ever out near Zion, be sure not to overlook this route. Nature of course pays no particular heed to the typically straight and generally arbitrary boundaries with which we define our National Parks. Still, it is refreshing to see that the terrain just outside the Park is equally as striking as the terrain in the Park. (One of my favorite canyons in the area -- Fat Man's Misery -- is just beyond the opposite boundary of the park.) And being outside the park, it is very much off the radar. We saw just two other humans in our 30 hours en route.
A few caveats... This is a surprisingly strenuous route given its moderate 14 mile length. Irregular, loose, and often sandy footing make for slow going. Navigation is also very difficult. I'm not a big fan of GPS, but it sure came in handy here. It seems nearly all the features (drainages, buttes) are large enough to force consequential navigational decisions but small enough to elude resolution on the 7.5' maps. It's really best suited for a two day trip, as you'll surely want plenty of extra time to admire and play around among the geologic wonders.
(Full set of photos is available) on Flickr.
