Zion National Park part 2

Our second day in Zion began with coffee (mmm...pumpkin spice latte!) as every day should begin. We had decided to bike some trails today. We headed to the bike rental store across from the Bumbleberry to rent a bike for Jared. The guy there was very helpful and gave us lots of information regarding trails. We chose to drive back to Rockville, take Bridge Road and drive up Cry Baby Hill to ride the mesa trails in the area of Gooseberry Mesa. We traveled down the first trail which was very rough. Many ups and downs along with loose rock. The view from the mesa was incredible! We pedaled back to the main road and headed up to the second trail, which was a little longer, but less gnarly than the first one. There was a big "table" rock at the end of this trail which was shaded. We sat and enjoyed the view from there. Lauren and Jared then decided to ride the bikes down "Cry Baby Hill". Paul & I followed in the truck. We had to stop and switch out Paul's bike for Jared's because he got a flat tire going down the rough terrain. After the exhilerating ride down the hill, there is an immediate right turn and instant climb up the road to the bridge. Jared hitched a ride with us up the road. Here they come across the narrow bridge. Biking was so much fun. Lots of work on some of the trails, but the scenery is well worth the
effort. Lauren enjoyed a quick sandwich (only slightly smushed) before we packed up the truck to head to our next destination: Bryce Canyon National Park. On our way out of the park, we stopped to view Checkerboard Mesa. The effect of crossbedding, which is a layering of sandstone and vertical cracks in the rock. This creates a checkerboard pattern in the side of the mountain. It is more visible when the snow is sitting in the cracks. We drove on to Panguitch to check out the town and find some flys for fishing. No luck with the flys, so we drove on through Red Canyon and into Bryce to stay at the Ruby Inn. It's a very nice facility, complete with restaurant, groceries, camping store, and gift shop. Internet service is included in the price of your room.