Zion National Park in Utah is well known for its multi-layered colorful cliffs. It is less well known for, yet still contains, an abundance of vegetation in the carved valley due to the plentiful flow of water in the Virgin River. One species of tree that is plentiful in the valley area is the Fremont Cottonwood. It was named for John C. Fremont, an American explorer and pathfinder. This species of tree has been used for many thousands of years by the native people of the region for medicinal purposes and for the creation of musical instruments. Fremont Cottonwoods are native to the riparian zones along waterways in the southeast United States. They are deciduous trees whose leaves change colors in the fall and drop off as winter moves in. They have thick trunks of up to five feet in diameter that have a distinctive silver gray color when fully grown. The Wild Images Team chose to compose this image of the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive in the winter time such that the Fremont Cottonwoods were leafless, allowing a nice view of the massive sandstone cliffs that tower over both sides of the road with the very clear blue sky above. The Wild Images Team has captured many other photos in Utah including the competition between cliff colors and clouds in Zion National Park, the intricate designs of the high altitude patterned wall in Zion National Park, distant rain curtains over the colorful cliffs of Bryce Canyon National Park, cloud shadows defining the colorful pinnacles of Bryce Canyon National Park, the scenic view as the full moon rises over Red Canyon, the Goblin Valley State Park thunderstorm and lightning strike over goblins, the impenetrable colorful rim wall of Goblin Valley State Park, the gravity defying balanced rock with snow in Arches National Park, the moment in Arches National Park when a winter storm clears over pinnacles and the La Sal Mountains, the very bright but fleeting rainbow beyond The Hand in Arches National Park, the instance In Arches National Park when lightning strikes near the Three Gossips, the green slopes of Sandy Mountain guarded by red lichen rock sentinels, the wild clouds over the elevated plains of the Grand Staircase-Escalante, and finally in Midway where the five flags of the military fly over Memorial Hill, each of which are available for sale in our store. Blog posts documenting our time in Utah include the road towards the extremely remote Valley of the Gods, an expansive view of the major formations of Zion National Park, the road winding through Fremont cottonwoods in Zion National Park, the road through intricately carved highlands in Zion National Park, the road through red and white rock cliffs in Zion National Park, The Wild Images Team vehicle on a dirt road in Red Canyon, the high altitude scene where a thistle soaks up the brief summer season sunshine, the moment a snake slithers over water plants in Cascade Springs, The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome at the entrance to Cascade Springs, The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome standing proudly in Goblin Valley, The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome at The Brick Oven Restaurant, The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome at the entrance to Bryce Canyon National Park, The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome at an overlook of Bryce Canyon National Park, The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome in front of the rock pinnacles of Bryce Canyon National Park, The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome at the entrance of Zion National Park, and finally The Wild Images Team Travel Gnome in front of the cliffs of Zion National Park.
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