As forewarned, day 5 was a long day of driving (11 hrs…) through western Colorado and most of Utah to our destination near Zion. The highlights of the day included delicious breakfast burritos from Scratch Deli in Estes Park at 7am, lunch burritos from Qdoba at noon (yes, so Jon could eat and drive), and finding out that the Zion National Park shuttle no longer requires tickets!
In anticipation of Memorial Day weekend crowds at Zion NP, we got up bright and early to get a parking spot at the visitor center and try to avoid long shuttle lines. However, little did we know that there would be another 1.5 hour line waiting for us at the Angel’s Landing hike trailhead! They were letting only 6 people up the trail every 3 minutes in order to regulate the backup at the chain portion near the trail’s peak. It felt like Disneyland, but everyone was waiting to scale a mountain instead… It was also quite chilly, and we felt very bad for all the hikers that were dressed for the 92 degree forecast for later in the afternoon.
I (Michelle) have been on the Angel’s Landing hike in the past (back in high school), but it was Jon’s first time. The steep inclines and switchbacks came back to me quickly, but the views were so worth it!
After our hike, we were very hot and tired. We had an early dinner (like 4:30pm early) and headed back to our B&B to shower and rest for the night! Another day in Zion tomorrow…
grablifebythehorngs 