Visiting Zion National Park

As you can see, we had plenty of sites to choose from. The views in the RV resort were amazing.

183 miles from Yuba State Park was our next intended RV home at Zion White Bison Glamping + RV Resort in Virgin, Utah. It only took two and a half hours to travel to this resort nestled against the stunning surroundings of Zion National Park which would be our base for the next three days. Upon arriving on Friday, September 5 in the afternoon we got settled early enough to explore the road into Springdale just outside the entrance into Zion National Park. It was pretty apparent that parking would be a challenge outside the park. So based on this intel we decided to see Zion on Friday and use the resort's paid shuttle service to access the park. After returning back to our site we went out to dinner near our resort. We made our shuttle reservation for 9 AM Saturday, September 6 to see Zion.

Once we reached the entrance to Zion we used our National Park Pass for free admission and immediately headed to the free shuttle bus. We decided to ride the park shuttle to STOP 9, the end of the line at the Temple of Sinawava, and hike about a mile into "The Narrows". Because the area had had some rain the night before, the north fork of the Virgin River was muddy and somewhat swift. Many of the people on the trail had rented special water boots and walking sticks to navigate the uneven river bottom. Karen and I considered walking the river but decided to pass due to the conditions. We took the bus back down and stopped at each stop along the way to take in the scenery. When we reached the Grotto we hiked the trail to the Zion Lodge for lunch and a relaxing break.

"The Narrows" trail is paved for about a mile. The surrounding canyon walls are colorful and steep.

The crowds were manageable on the shuttle buses and we didn't have to wait. The trail traffic to the lodge was light considering this was a weekend. We spent about five hours in the park which wasn't enough time to see the museum and explore more of the trails, including the emerald pools trail, but we got a flavor to build a future visit. I would love to see this National Park again, maybe in the early spring after a light dusting of snow.

The color contrast between the cliffs and the trees made for some lovely images.

My hope is to return in the future and also see the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway scenic drive with tunnels and switchbacks which offers breathtaking landscapes of the park. With the truck in it's present condition it didn't seem a prudent option for this trip.

Sunday, September 7 we attended the Calvary Chapel church in Hurricane, Utah and met some lovely members who invited us to join them for lunch in St. George. It's truly wonderful to have family wherever we travel as part of the community of Christ followers! After lunch we drove back to Hurricane and made yet another O'Reilly's stop for more coolant to have on hand.

We had made an apppointment at Roadrunner Automotive and Diesel Repair, Inc., in La Verkin, Utah for Tuesday, September 9. I was hoping they might be able to resolve the coolant leak issue. So Monday September 8 we moved the RV closer to that shop and stayed at the Gateway Luxury RV Resort & Casitas on North Main Street in La Verkin, Utah. It was more expensive per night but within a short walking distance so we would not have to rent a car.

Tuesday morning we dropped the truck off and walked back to the resort. By 10 AM we got a call back telling us the coolant system was holding pressure and our problem might just be a bad coolant reservoir O-ring in the cap. I gave them the okay to replace the cap and by 11 AM I was picking the truck up. A mere $45 replacement might solve the coolant leak problem. We continued to pray our truck problems were solved!

We checked out before noon and proceeded to Page, Arizona hoping the coolant problem was in the rear view mirror. About halfway to Page the coolant light once again came back on our truck's instrument panel. Okay, so now we know the reservoir cap wasn't the problem after all. We pressed on hoping to have the chance to see the amazing slot canyons outside of Page on the Navajo reservation.