by Winn Carroll
12. July 2010 22:46
Greetings America!
If you visit Zion this month look up at Kolb Canyon as you pass it by and you may see Kevin Zwick hanging from it. Have no fear Zwick is fully trained (he has spent 14 years of training) and is fully prepared for the 2,000 foot climb. His strategy is a slow but sure ascent of the Canyon as he tells Colorado's Channel 9 news:
"I will climb up to various points along the wall, I will then repel back down, retrieve gear that I used to climb that section of rock," he said. "I will then haul my gear up to the point where I'm at and then climb the next section and then come back down and repeat that for about 2,000 feet."
Zwick plans to spent several days making the ascent, living in the mountain and sleeping on a ledges that he will be mounting by the end of each day.
"The ledge is actually relatively comfortable because I can sprawl out on it and I don't have to worry about being cramped on a small sloping rock ledge that I might slip off of in the middle of the night."
This grueling test of will and strength is also Zwick's way of raising awareness for the Rocky Mountain MS Center. Already having raised several thousnad dollars through his activities, Zwick hopes that this highly publicized climb will continue to raise money and awareness for the center.
"It's an amazing resource with amazing people that work there that are really striving on a daily basis to provide resources education seminars to people that really need help,"
To learn more about the Rocky Mountain MS Center and to donate you can visit their website by following the link (). Good Luck Kevin!
by Winn Carroll
10. June 2010 03:10
Greetings America!
Hope your summer is going well and you are having multiple adventures whether it's exploring and discovering our national parks or planning your visit. Today I want to talk to you about a man who played a vital role not only shaping all of the National Parks but Zion in particular.
Horace Marden Albright was an important catalyst in promoting the National Parks. Credited with not only helping the National Parks get exempted from travel restrictions by the railroad companies but also encouraging the Railroad Administration to promote visitation with spectacular and colorful brochures like the one seen below:
In 1917, after accepting an invitation to visit souther Utah, Albright first laid eyes on a place where the Virgin river carves it's way through a beautiful canyon of sandstone cliffs. Called Mukuntuweap (Paiute for "Canyon") the area had been virtually ignored by the federal government after being set aside as a national monument in 1909. As the first senior official from the Interior Department to view it, Albright was awe struck:
"I was surprised, excited and thrilled. More than that I was just plain stunned. I had no concept of the staggering beauty I beheld. . . It was love at first sight for me I was so impressed. . . that I determined we should expand Mukuntuweap and have it made a National Park."
Albright's enthusiasm was enough to convince President Wilson to expand the area and to change it's name from Mukuntuweap (Albright believed this was far too hard to pronounce or spell) to the name which the local Mormons had used for the canyon: Zion. Within a year, Congress would set it aside as a National Park which it has remained to this day.
Were it not for Albright, Zion would have most likely remained a mostly ignored national monument but thanks to his words of praise that has echoed through the history of past and future generations of visitors, Zion became what it is today, one of the most beloved and beautiful of our National Parks.
Happy Trails!
by Winn Carroll
30. May 2010 20:53
Bloggers always pray that people miss them when their blogs don't pop up. I've been blog-stispated because my poor Mac caught a bad computer cold! Hope you missed it because now I'm overflowing with thoughts on Zion! Since I was separated from all things laptop, I had time to do a lot of things; catch up on my reading, get some more exercise in and most importantly for the blog, watch "Adventures in America's Parks: Zion & Bryce."
I profoundly enjoyed this movie. Despite the late nineties cheesy music and presentation, the content was the most informative and exciting of any Zion movie I have reviewed to this date. With interesting and helpful selections that ranged from hiking Angel's Landing to wading through the narrows to exploring the flora and fauna uniuqe to the area. With interviews with park staff and experts, this movie is without a doubt the one movie soley focused on Zion that you and your family need to see in preparation for your own Zion adventure. You can find it on Netflix by clicking on the link here () Have any other movie suggestions about Zion? Comment below. Happy Trails!
by Winn Carroll
17. May 2010 08:14
People have used many media to convey the beauty and wonder of Zion throughout the generations, The Anasazi drew cave paintings, the Spanish priests documented the wonders in their journals, members of the first Powell expedition used photography. But no medium has alerted more people to the wonders of Zion than the paintings of Frederick Samuel Dellenbaugh.
Born in McConelsville, Ohio in 1853, Dellenbaugh grew up a lover of the natural world that surrounded him. His taste for adventure served as a jumpstart to his career as a painter. Fresh from high school in 1871, Powell joined an expedition with other young men under the leadership of John Wesley Powell on an expedition down the Colorado River. Powell, who was somewhat of a celebrity for conquering the Grand Canyon in 1869, chose Dellenbaugh to be the expedition’s artist.
The group explored southern Utah where they discovered the last unknown river in the continental United States, the Escalante, along with the last mountain range, the Henrys. The group was also the first to peer into Bryce Canyon and the first to cross what is now Capitol Reefs National Park. The area would have a lasting impression on Dellenbaugh’s work as his 1903 painting of Zion Canyon would be exhibited in the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair where spectators refused to believe that such a fantastic place was indeed real. The painting can be seen at the park today. Dellenbaugh would further introduce the nation to Zion with an article in Scribner’s Magazine declaring:
“One hardly knows what to think of it. . . There is almost nothing to compare to it. Niagara has the beauty of energy; The Grand Canyon of immensity; the Yellowstone of singularity; The Yosemite of altitude. . . This Great Temple, of eternity-“
The painting and the article would be important catalysts in creating interest in Zion and ultimately to its formation as a National Park in 1919. Dellenbaugh’s is just one of countless stories to influence visitors to the park. Have any stories of your own? Fell free to leave them in the comment section below.
by Winn Carroll
11. May 2010 23:00
Five days from now marks the ninetieth anniversary of Zion as a National Park. To commemorate this historic occasion the University of Utah Publishing has just released "Opening Zion" by authors Melissa and John Clark. "Opening Zion" tells the story of the first official visitors to Zion National Park. On May 15, 1920, six girls, the majority of them coeds at the University of Utah, and a handful of photographers were the first to set foot in this newly created National Park, taking plenty of photos as part of a publicity stunt by the railroad company to promote the park. According to John Clark:
"The Union Pacific Railroad was interested in drawing tourism . . . they had a camping facility in the park and they had an automobile stage that would take them from there into the National Park. It was actually timed with the opening of the tourist facilities in 1920 because in 1919 when Zion was made a national park the tourist facilities had been closed down for the season and it wasn't until the following spring that Zion re-opens to the public and with this publicity stunt ushers in Zion's existence as a National Park."
The Clarks' interest in Zion's first official visitors stemmed from Melissa purchasing a scrapbook online that was owned by one of the six women, Catherine Levering, a young dancer in Los Angeles at the time. In this scrapbook they found tons of photos from the publicity stunt all kept in surprisingly pristine condition. Together the two took these photos and made what one reviewer calls "part fashion spread, part adventure guide and all Utah cultural treasure." The book has some 130 photos documenting the girls travels around Zion and while most of the photos are staged by the cameramen, it still gives a fantastic glimpse of a time when Zion was young. To purchase your own copy of "Opening Zion" click on the link (1).
Happy Trails!
Video courtesy of: KUED ()