Zion

 Zion

Zion was the Promised Land to Mormon settlers. The Virgin River supplied the most crucial element in a dry climate, a reliable source of water. The sanctuary that the Mormons found in this river-irrigated canyon had been such for thousands of years for the Ancestral Puebloans, and others before them.

It is a beautiful canyon with golden cliffs rising high over our campsite. Nearby were irrigation ditches still flowing from the time they were dug by the Mormons to water their crops. With cars not allowed on the scenic drive, we took the shuttle bus up the canyon, and took a high-rising stone trail up the canyon wall. Simply beautiful canyon vistas. We descended again to the canyon floor and took the iconic walk in the river itself into The Narrows. There the Virgin River squeezes through a steep-walled slot it had created over millennia. It is easy to imagine how the grand and arable  Zion Canyon was considered a land of promise for thousands of years.