Day 11: Getting Down on the Canyon Floor

Start: Hurricane, UT
End: Las Vegas, NV
Miles Driven: 218.4 (3671.4 total)

Instead of exploring Hurricane any further, we went straight to Zion National Park.
The short drive offered fantastic mountain views but was nothing compared to the canyon we were about to see. Upon entering the park, we consulted the Visitor Center maps to plan our day. We decided to take the "Scenic Drive" through Zion Canyon and stop at points of interest along the way.

The first stop was The Patriarchs: three rocky peaks that line the canyon wall. The next two stops, Emerald Pools and Weeping Rock, both displayed unique water runoff points from the desert canyon walls. We then hiked down a two-mile path called the Riverside Walk, which follows the North Fork of the Virgin River through the canyon floor. Before we left Zion, we drove up the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway: a windy road that ascends 1,500 feet in less than a mile.

Once our canyon exploring was done (and our camera ran out of batteries) we headed directly to Sin City. We pulled into Vegas around 3:00, checked into our room at the MGM Grand, and went straight to the Grand Buffet which opened at 4:30. After dinner, we participated in a test screening of CBS's "The Unit" where we rated the show second-by-second using a dial. Katrina and Patrick gave it two thumbs down. After that, we got down to business and gambled. Several, several hours later, Katrina found herself up $60 and Patrick...well he didn't do as well. But tomorrow is a new day. (Vegas pictures to come tomorrow.)