![UTAH - ZION NATIONAL PARK : Zion National Park is located in the Southwestern United States, near Springdale, Utah. A prominent feature of the 229-square-mile park is Zion Canyon, 15 miles (24 km) long and up to half a mile (800 m) deep, cut through the reddish and tan-colored Navajo Sandstone by the North Fork of the Virgin River. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park's unique geography and variety of life zones allow for unusual plant and animal diversity. Numerous plant species as well as 289 species of birds, 75 mammals (including 19 species of bat), and 32 reptiles inhabit the park's four life zones.
Human habitation of the area started about 8,000 years ago with small family groups of Native Americans; the semi-nomadic Basketmaker Anasazi (300 CE) stem from one of these groups. In turn, the Virgin Anasazi culture (500 CE) developed as the Basketmakers settled in permanent communities.[1] A different group, the Parowan Fremont, lived in the area as well. Both groups moved away by 1300 and were replaced by the Parrusits and several other Southern Paiute subtribes. The canyon was discovered by Mormons in 1858 and was settled by that same group in the early 1860s. In 1909, U.S. President William Howard Taft named the area a National Monument to protect the canyon, under the name of Mukuntuweap National Monument. However, in 1918, the acting director of the newly created National Park Service changed the park's name to Zion as the original name was locally unpopular. Zion is an ancient Hebrew word meaning a place of refuge or sanctuary. The United States Congress established the monument as a National Park on November 19, 1919. The Kolob section was proclaimed a separate Zion National Monument in 1937, but was incorporated into the park in 1956.](http://andresalvador.smugmug.com/photos/575237041_fvXtg-Ti.jpg)
Zion National Park is located in the Southwestern United States, near ...
Updated: Jun 28, 2009 4:30pm PST
![UTAH - BRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK : Bryce Canyon National Park is located in Garfield County, southwestern Utah, in the United States. Contained within the park is Bryce Canyon. Despite its name, this is not actually a canyon, but rather a giant natural amphitheater created by erosion along the eastern side of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. Bryce is distinctive due to its geological structures, called hoodoos, formed from wind, water, and ice erosion of the river and lakebed sedimentary rocks. The red, orange and white colors of the rocks provide spectacular views to visitors. Bryce is at a much higher elevation than nearby Zion National Park and the Grand Canyon. The rim at Bryce varies from 8,000 to 9,000 feet (2,400 to 2,700 m), whereas the south rim of the Grand Canyon sits at 7,000 feet (2,100 m) above sea level.
The Bryce area was settled by Mormon pioneers in the 1850s and was named after Ebenezer Bryce, who homesteaded in the area in 1874.[1] The area around Bryce Canyon became a U.S. National Monument in 1923 and was designated as a national park the next year. The park covers 56 square miles (145 km2) and receives relatively few visitors compared to Zion Canyon and the Grand Canyon, largely due to its remote location. The town of Kanab, Utah, is situated at a central point between these three parks.
Hoodoo - a pillar of rock, usually of fantastic shape, left by erosion. Hoodoo - to cast a spell at Bryce Canyon National Park erosion forms an array of fantastic shapes we know as hoodoos. Hoodoos cast their spell on all who visits the national park. The park is open all year, offering recreational opportunities for each season.
Information shown on Bryce Canyon National Park are from the Park Literaature and from Wikipedia.](http://andresalvador.smugmug.com/photos/571097857_fj2PN-Ti.jpg)
UTAH - BRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK
Bryce Canyon National Park is located in Garfield County, southwester ...
Updated: Jun 28, 2009 3:50pm PST
UTAH - NATURAL BRIDGES NATIONAL PARK
Natural Bridges National Monument covers a relatively small area in so ...
Updated: Jun 28, 2009 3:28pm PST
During our stay at Galle, we visited Kahanda Kanda, a hotel we had hea ...
Updated: Jun 23, 2009 9:06am PST
A land shaped by wind, water, and ancient civilization - beautiful bey ...
Updated: Jun 22, 2009 11:39am PST
Our boat tour on the Buriganga river on our first morning in Dhaka. Al ...
Updated: Jun 22, 2009 1:07am PST
Our long journey from Delhi to Dhaka. Train ride from Delhi to Kolkata ...
Updated: Jun 21, 2009 4:49am PST
All photographs ©Nguyễn văn Tuấn
Updated: Jun 21, 2009 2:13am PST