Zion National Park

Highlights

Slideshow

By skipping Bryce Canyon, I was hoping to dedicate more time to Zion for fall foliage focus. While failing to get a permit to hike The Subway, I was happy to substitute it by wading into The Narrows.

Foliage was at peak on the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway (the high country eastern Zion), but only about 60% in the canyon itself. But I was actually happy with a mix of green, yellow and red. There was a heavenly sunset when I was on the Pa' rus trail which while might not be as majestic as the view at Canyon Junction, I did not take the same pictures as about a hundred photographers crowding the bridge.

Journal

I made a decision to skip Bryce Canyon since I had been to the park several times, and don't recall much fall foliage. I wanted to arrive at Zion early enough to secure a camping spot, and thankfully I did since the campsite I got was the last one that I saw in the South Campground.

Zion-Mount Carmel Highway: The road to the canyon from the high country was out of this world for colors. I was there during the peak colors. The sceneries exceeded my imagination. I had envisioned capturing fall colors against a sandstone background. And certainly that was achieved, but I did not expect the level of vibrancy of colors and a fusion of different colors clinging to the sandstone or near washes. Unlike other places when I found wonderful colors of hills or forests, I found places where I could isolate a single tree against simple and colorful sandstone. During the drive, the clouds began to fill the sky with periods of sunshine, offering moments for great photography.

The canyon Scenic Drive: After failing to secure a permit to hike The Subway, I took the park bus to the canyon. Colors were great with a mix of green, lime yellow and golden colors. My guess was the canyon was only about 60 percent reaching the top color potential. Having spent enough energy in the previous few days, I refrained from taking long hikes to save energy for the hike to The Narrows the following day. I made just a couple stops to take pictures from the Hidden Canyon trail, then headed back.

Pa'rus Trail: By chance, I decided to walk back to the campground from the Museum stop in hope of catching the sunset. That turned out to be one of my best decisions on the trip. Even though the clouds have mostly settled in, there was a moment when the sun broke out just before sunset. And what colors it created on sandstone peaks! I managed to take numerous pictures along the trail.

Virgin River: Just by the time I reached the campground, the sun was about to set. With no more colors in the sky, I turned to the river and used the color temperatures of the early evening to photograph the river, rocks and foliage. I repeated the same thing early in the morning. Foliage along the river was great but still not at peak.

The Narrows: A bit concerned about the cold water temperature (which was around 45 degrees), I headed to an outfit store and rented dry pant outfit, which also include neoprene socks, shoes and hiking stick. It was my first time to see what dry pants look like and how it'd keep me dry. I believe it was a good investment of $35 for the outfit since it worked well enough during my hike.There were people hiking with the same kind of protection and seemed to do just fine as well. One girl even hiked bare footed, which I thought to be quite risky. The only mishap during the hike for me was dropping a point and shoot camera in the river at some point. By the time I discovered I had dropped it, the water was flowing too fast and deep to attempt looking for it. All my journey informational photos and some composed shots were gone. Perhaps one day, someone might find it and also find me!

Unlike a similar hike I made earlier during a summer, foliage in the Narrows was outstanding. The different shades of the sandstone emphasized by reflected lights, the fall foliage and evergreen made for beautiful and interesting sceneries. There were endless opportunities for photography - in the river, on the rocks, of reflected lights or against sunlight, with people for a sense of scale or without for a sense of solitude and heavenly... With the intent to leave the park and heading home that day, I was not able to hike in too far, but it was enough to satisfy my photography interest.

Photographic Considerations

Both graduated neutral density and polarizing filters were useful for me. Ensuring the tripod is securely planted to avoid shakes is quite important in the Narrows when I frequently took pictures while in the river with fast flowing water. For the most part, wide angle lens were used more often, especially in the Narrows. There could be situations that I missed a telephoto lens such as when trying to get closeups of rock climbers. However, those moments were rare. Mid morning or mid afternoon seemed to work well in the Narrows. Too early or too late in the day, while great magic hours for most photographic situations, might not render the same kind of reflected lights that bring out contrast and colors in deep canyons.

Having been on the road for many days, it was time to head home. But this park deserves several days to capture more of its amazing sceneries. Hindsight, I could have skipped a few others to make more time for it.

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