Camping – Page 3 – WANDERLUST FAMILY ADVENTURE

Zion National Park – Springdale, Utah

August 29, 2020 Joseph Candora Camping, Hiking, Mountain, National Parks Service, North America, Rivers, United States, Utah

Zion National Park is located in southwestern Utah near the town of Springdale. A prominent feature of the 229-square-mile park is Zion Canyon, which is 15 miles long and up to 2,640 feet deep. The canyon walls are reddish and tan-colored Navajo Sandstone eroded by the North Fork of the Virgin River. The lowest point in the park is 3,666 feet at Coalpits Wash and the highest peak is 8,726 ft at Horse Ranch Mountain. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park has a unique geography and a variety of life zones that allow for unusual plant and animal diversity. Numerous plant species as well as 289 species of birds, 75 mammals (including 19 species of bat), and 32 reptiles inhabit the park’s four life zones: desert, riparian, woodland, and coniferous forest. Zion National Park includes mountains, canyons, buttes, mesas, monoliths, rivers, slot canyons, and natural arches. Zion is my favorite western national park with its spectacular vistas. unique hiking trails and stunning topography.

New photo by Wanderlust Family Adventure / Google Photos

One of the unique hikes is up through the Virgin River in the Narrows. As you wade through the river bed shear cliffs surround you on either side.

Bryce Canyon National Park – Bryce, Utah

August 29, 2020 Joseph Candora Camping, Hiking, Mountain, National Parks Service, North America, United States, Utah

Bryce Canyon National Park is located in southwestern Utah. The major feature of the park is Bryce Canyon, which despite its name, is not a canyon, but a collection of giant natural amphitheaters along the eastern side of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. Bryce is distinctive due to geological structures called hoodoos, formed by frost weathering and stream erosion of the river and lake bed sedimentary rocks. The red, orange, and white colors of the rocks provide spectacular views for park visitors. The rim at Bryce varies from 8,000 to 9,000 feet. The Bryce Canyon area was settled by Mormon pioneers in the 1850s and was named after Ebenezer Bryce, who homesteaded in the area in 1874.

Most of the formations can be easily seen from the cliffside on the park road.

There are trails that lead down into the eroded amphitheater. It is definitely a different view looking up towards the cliff rim.

The campground has some very habituated wildlife.

Capitol Reef National Park – Torrey, Utah

August 29, 2020 Joseph Candora Art/Painting, Camping, Hiking, Mountain, National Parks Service, North America, United States, Utah

Capitol Reef National Park is in south-central Utah near the town or Torrey. The park is approximately 60 miles long on its north–south axis and just 6 miles wide on average. The majority of the nearly 100 mi long up-thrust formation called the Waterpocket Fold, a rocky spine extending from Thousand Lake Mountain to Lake Powell, is preserved within the park. Capitol Reef is an especially rugged and spectacular segment of the Waterpocket Fold by the Fremont River. The park was named for its whitish Navajo Sandstone cliffs with dome formations, similar to the white domes often placed on capitol buildings, that run from the Fremont River to Pleasant Creek on the Waterpocket Fold.

There are many remnants of the pioneer settlers of the area, mostly Mormon.

The park also has some petroglyphs to see.

The campground is nestled in an apricot orchard and the local mule deer usually make a visit.

Canyonlands National Park – Moab, Utah

August 29, 2020 Joseph Candora Camping, Hiking, Mountain, National Parks Service, North America, United States, Utah

Canyonlands National Park is located in southeastern Utah near the town of Moab. The park preserves a colorful landscape eroded into numerous canyons, mesas, and buttes by the Colorado River, the Green River, and their respective tributaries. The park is divided into four districts: the Island in the Sky, the Needles, the Maze, and the combined rivers—the Green and Colorado—which carved two large canyons into the Colorado Plateau. I was very impressed with the scenery in this park. The tableau of canyons spreading out before you I found to be more awe inspiring than even the Grand Canyon. Although not as deep and steep the vistas you observe are more encompassing in all of their grandeur.

Arches National Park – Moab, Utah

August 28, 2020 Joseph Candora Camping, Hiking, Mountain, National Parks Service, North America, United States, Utah

Arches National Park is in eastern Utah. The park is adjacent to the Colorado River, 4 miles north of Moab, Utah.

More than 2,000 natural sandstone arches are located in the park, including the well-known Delicate Arch, as well as a variety of unique geological resources and formations. The park contains the highest density of natural arches in the world. The park consists of 76,679 acres of high desert located on the Colorado Plateau. The highest elevation in the park is 5,653 feet at Elephant Butte, and the lowest elevation is 4,085 feet at the visitor center.

Many of the arches can be seen from the park road or accessed by short hikes and walking trails.

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