Zion is a place that has many features. There are a lot of plants and animals. It was made over millions of years. Wind and water eroded the rock. There are many mountains too!
Small bands of Anasazi Indians roomed the park in the early years. The Paiute Indians used to live there but they disappeared in 1778. French trapers also roamed the area searching for beaver pelts. Issac Behunin named the area Zion, which means, ''Heavenly City of God''. In 1919.Zion had a history mixed of French, Indian, and American.
Weather conditions change alot through the year. In the summer it is common to see thunderstorms. The average temperature can get over 100 degrees. Winter in the canyon gets light snow. In the high elevations it can get below zero degrees and in low elevations it gets to 30 or 20 degrees.
There are animals roming freely all over the park.The small common animals are squirrels, chipmunks, coyotes, ringtail foxes, and weasels. Watch out for skunks. If someone gets sprayed they will have to take a tomato sauce bath.
There are many beatiful things in Zion but only four will be described. Checkerboard Mesa is a huge sandstone mountain that has been etched by wind and water to look like a big checker board. The Narrows is a sixteen mile long hiking trail that goes along the Virgin River. Emerald Pools sit at the base of the high cliffs with two beautiful water pools and three beautiful water falls. Weeping Rock is a rock alcove with dripping springs, and there are hanging gardens of wild flowers on the walls in the spring and summer.
Flowering plants and ferns grow on cliffs that are moisurized by the driping water. Some of these plants include box elder, cotton wood, Douglas fir, ponderosa pines, primrose, crimson monkey flower, and dark throated shooting star. In more arid regions yuuca, cacti, mesquite, and other desert like plants grow there. More moisture places near rivers and streams are home to aspen trees. Zion has some very interesting plants.
There are many things you can do in Zion for fun. The Visitors Center has movies you can watch. The Junior Ranger Center is just the same as the Visitor Center except it is for little kids. The rest of the things you can do is go to musuems, on nature walks, hiking trails, horseback riding, fishing, and mountain climbing. Your choices for places to stay in the park are cabins, lodges, and campgrounds.
From what has been written, everyone will see that Zion is beautiful and unique. People will see things they have never seen before. It deserves to be protected. The plants, rocks and flowers are like they have been for thousands of years. As a national park they will stay that way forever.