The third part of my Fall 2021 adventure was the stay at St George, Utah. I drove from Page, AZ to Las Vegas to pickup Diane at the airport. Then we went back to St George. My daughter Ella was living there and moving back East in a few weeks. I had my van so I would be able to take some of her things back for her. Meanwhile, the plan called for ten days in the area.

We stayed in an Airbnb near the entrance to Snow Canyon State Park. We would spend a few days doing the hikes there. Our first adventure was a sunset hike to an overlook of the canyon. The photos from that hike were poor. I only took one that I liked, but that is my goal when I go out with my camera. One good photograph a day is sufficient for a successful day.

We did some exploring of the canyon on the second day. We hike a couple of trails. The photos this time were much better. The weather was clear and bright for our time there. The temperature ranged from shorts and t-shirts to full winter gear.

On Monday of this week, Ella and her boyfriend Harrison joined us for a trip to Zion National Park. This would turnout to be the most disappointing adventure of the week. It was Thanksgiving Week and California schools are out for the week. The result was the park was totally packed with people. We had to park outside of the park and take a bus in. Wait in lines. Then more bus rides to go into the park. The trails we choose to walk on were pack full of families with the usual screaming children and parents. We walked but given the Disney like conditions photographing was difficult. I could see that under different conditions it could be inspirational. We did have a good dinner at a pizza place on the way back and it was good to spend time with Ella and Harrison.

The next day we returned to Snow Canyon after doing some poking around the area. There was a mini slot canyon which produced some good photos and the late afternoon light made for some nice pieces.

One of the best days was our trip to Bryce Canyon National Park. It was very cold that day. The canyon is spectacular. We did a little hike and I photographed quite a bit. Good photos. Overall, it was a near perfect day; great park, good photographing, nice little Italian restaurant and a great brewery.

Before our Thanksgiving dinner at Ella’s with her friends, Diane and I went on what my daughter said was her favorite hike in the area to Scout Cave. Warm and sunny. Great little hike on the edge of Snow Canyon. More good photos. Then a feast for the holiday.

The highlight of this part of the trip was the Friday trip to Buckskin Gulch. I had said to Ella that I wanted to photograph in a slot canyon. She said the famous Antelope Canyon was too crowded. She lead us on a two plus hour drive to Buckskin. It was a glorious hike. I had two tripods in the car. I took the lighter one. It turned out to be a big mistake. Many shots, not all, were blurred by camera movement. Something that never happened with the heavier tripod. This turned out to be probably my biggest disappointment of the trip. At least I didn’t lose everything.

Saturday was a rest day. Just a short trip up a little volcano. Three photos from there. Picked up Ella’s stuff and said our goodbyes. Sunday, I drove Diane back to Las Vegas and dropped her at the airport. I headed east through Arizona. And thus, began Part 4 of the epic trip.