For the 1997 Christmas Holiday, Marcia & I flew to Colorado Springs to celebrate with her family. We took our skis and camping gear because after Christmas, we and Marcia’s brother-in-law spent a few nights in huts operated by the 10th Mountain Division Hut Association. After returning to Colorado Springs, we flew to Las Vegas and drove a rental car to Bryce Canyon National Park.
The snow was sparse, so despite having ski equipment, we ended up doing a couple of hikes in the park. We certainly learned to love the gorgeous blue skies contrasting with the colorful rock you frequently find in the SW, even in the winter.
From Bryce we drove back to Zion National Park visiting both the northwestern Kolob Canyon area and the main Zion Canyon along the Virgin River. There was no snow here (although patchy ice in the north facing portions of Kolob Canyon) so we hiked in trail shoes. We even managed to get ourselves up the Angels Landing trail.
