2016 Epic Road Trip - Day 99

Day 99

August 20, 2016

Las Vegas, NV to Zion National Park (UT), Bryce Canyon National Park (UT) and Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument, UT

East of Las Vegas, a sombrero sitting out in the midst of nothingness.

 The scenery changes as I travel east from Las Vegas into Utah.  Zion (meaning the promised Land) is a mountainous area constantly changing.  The cliffs are colorful and present a glowing calm - until the lightening flashes.  Waterfalls erupt from the dry cliffs, floods flash down the usually-waterless canyons exploding log jams and hurling boulders.

Note the rock chip in the windshield - Alaska casualty

The scenery changes again as I left Zion National Park.  Bryce Canyon National Park is reknown for its "hoodoos" - bulbous columns created by erosion of the adjacent cliffs, leaving a jagged column sticking up.  The colors were more varied in Bryce Canyon - pink, grey, white, vermilion, and chocolate.

The third stop for the day was Grand Staircase (the shape of the mountains/buttes) - Escalante National Monument.  There is no actual monument - the whole area is considered to be one.  The mountains  and cliffs were much smoother than at Bryce and Zion parks.

Called it a day in Utah, and everything here will be closed tomorrow (Sunday).