Not as Widely Known but Exceptional.
Kolob Terrace is the central part of Zion National Park. The paved road is just out of Virgin, UT off Highway 9. It heads north and runs along the Virgin River. In the valley are farms and ranches. Looked like these horse riders were taking a break by the river.
The road climbs to 8000 feet and ascends steeply. As you start to go up you can see the beautiful ranches that are down in the valley.
The road winds in and out of Zion National Park and changes color to red each time you enter the Park. If beauty is in the details Zion has it down to a fine science.
The day was cloudy and the gray skies made the red rocks intensely stand out.
There was an area where there had been a forest fire. Walt and I argued that the change in road colors could not possibly be in and out of the Park so often. I am convinced that they are that attentive to detail. He does not agree. Next time we are in Zion I am going to talk to a ranger to confirm.
We stopped often to enjoy the area and this little guy was gracious enough to pose for his picture.
Gorgeous backside to the formations you see in the main Zion Canyon.
I thought these rocks looked like pulled taffy.
As you climb the firs and pines increase. We had some rain showers and it made the green even greener.
On private land there are a few homes along the roadway. I am sure that this is a vacation home and it did not look like it had been opened yet for the summer. The picture below is the view that they have from those windows.
Looks like a watercolor painting on a gray and cloudy day. What a beautiful site day after day in all kinds of weather. They really have the perfect view.
As you near the end of the road the quaking aspens are almost fully leafed out.
The culmination of the trip is Kolob Resevoir. The water level again is low but we did see a couple of boats with fishermen and some fishing from the shore. There are several homes around the lake and there is even a small market. There is a dirt road that goes part way around the lake. Since it had rained it was muddy in some spots but we kept on going until there was a low spot with quite a bit of standing water. We had no idea how deep it was so we turned around.
The highlight of our day was observing this bald eagle. Our binoculars allowed us to be up close and personal. I saw him land on this log just up from the water. After several minutes he flew (very low so we had an incredible view of him flying) to a fence post. He stayed there until someone drove by and he again flew very low back to this log where we continued to watch as he preened and looked around. What a treat! Regretfully we left. I wonder how long he remained there.
Snag of the day!
Majestic mountains, green valleys, red rock canyons and a little bit of wildlife. Perfect day.
"Life itself is the most wonderful fairy tale."