Pa'rus Trail and the Junior Ranger Program

With only two full days to spend in Zion National Park, we had carefully planned how to allocate our time: one day would be dedicated to hiking Observation Point; the other day would be spent hiking shorter trails in the valley bottom and allowing Frankie to complete the Junior Ranger program.  This is something I remember very fondly from family trips to National Parks as a kid, so I wanted to make it a priority to give Frankie the same opportunity.  We had originally planned to hike Observation Point today, thinking crowds would be less on Friday than on a weekend, but it was raining this morning and forecast to be nice tomorrow.  We decided to save Observation Point for the nicer day, thereby minimizing potential risks associated with slippery rocks near steep drop offs.

This worked out well, in that it allowed us to pay our entry fee and go to the Visitor Center at a more relaxed pace.  We talked to a Ranger, who explained that Frankie would need to attend a ranger-led program in order to become a Junior Ranger, or as an alternative, could watch a 20-minute movie at the Museum.  He told us the Museum was the first stop on the shuttle bus, and when Erwin asked if we could walk there, gave us directions.  It turned out to be just over a mile on the Pa'rus Trail, and since we were eager to get outside, we happily set off on foot, heading north from the Visitor Center.  Unfortunately the trail runs alongside a giant campground, so it wasn't exactly a wilderness experience.  Still, this is was our first visit to Zion National Park, and our first time in desert/canyon country, period, so everything was new and exciting.  It was about 40 degrees Fahrenheit and raining, but the low clouds over the mountains were very appealing. 

However, between the rain and never-ending campground, I didn't take many pictures in this section.  When we arrived at the Museum, we were disappointed to find it was closed and wouldn't open for several more hours.  This is clearly printed in the map/brochure we were given at the entrance, but we were a little surprised the Ranger who told us how to get here didn't mention it.  Maybe we were just too excited to take it all in?  From here we decided to hop a bus and ride all the way to the last stop, the Temple of Sinawava, where we hiked the Riverside Walk.  After that we took the bus back one stop to Big Bend, where we shivered through sandwiches under a covered bus stop while watching a nesting pair of California condors soaring above.

Then we got back on the bus to warm up, and rode back to the northern terminus of the Pa'rus Trail at Canyon Junction, so we could hike back to the Museum.  In this way, we hiked the entire Pa'rus Trail - kind of funny to section hike 3.5 mile paved trail, but it worked for us.  It had stopped raining, and the sun started to peek out.  It was becoming a beautiful afternoon!  This section of the Pa'rus Trail was much more appealing, given that it was NOT located adjacent to an enormous campground.  It follows the Virgin River, with numerous scenic bridge crossings, and offers magnificent views of the Watchman formation along with some very lovely desert flora.  And it was much less crowded than the Riverside Walk.  We were quite happy we got off the bus at Canyon Junction instead of riding all the way to the Museum. 

kingcup cactus (Echinocereus triglochidiatus)

North Fork Virgin River

purple sage (Salvia dorrii)

Utah beardtongue (Penstemon utahensis)

desert plume (Stanleya pinnata)

When we arrived at the Museum, we checked in at the desk and found out the movie was currently showing, and that there would be a ranger-led program immediately afterwards.  Although it seemed strange to come to a National Park to sit in a dark room to stare at a screen, the 10 minutes of the movie we saw was very well done.  [And learning about the Mount Carmel Highway and historic tunnel inspired us to drive that way on our way out of the park Sunday morning, and that was amazing, so it was totally worth it.]  The ranger program was focused on geology, and was fairly amusing in a campy sort of way.  At least it was outside, in the shade, with amazing views.  After the program was done, Frankie completed some other tasks remaining in his activity book, including picking up litter and documenting how he disposed of it properly.  Once he'd completed his tasks, we went back inside, and Frankie took his oath and was issued his badge.  It's official! 

taking his oath to become a Junior Ranger