The Navajo sandstone cliffs of Zion’s Three Patriarchs -- Abraham, Isaac and Jacob -- as seen from the Sand Bench Trail. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
Angels Landing and the trail leading to it, seen from the Observation Point Trail. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
Echo Canyon, reached via the Observation Point trail, is considered a great beginners slot canyon. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
Late daylight in Zions Echo Canyon, en route to Observation Point. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
Wild turkeys roam the grassy area in the front of Zion Lodge. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
Late October maples along the Emerald Pools trail in Zion National Park. The three pool areas can be hiked in a three-mile loop from a trailhead near Zion Lodge. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
Fall color along the Virgin River looking west from the bridge just south of the Zion-Mount Carmel junction. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
Black streaks on canyon walls in the Zion Narrows are caused by desert minerals in water running into the canyon. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
Orderville Canyon is a scenic side trip from the main Narrows trail, with soaring walls and shallower water than the main channel. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
The water is cold and deep in some sections of the Virgin River Narrows in Zion National Park in November. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
The Alcove area of the Narrows in Zion National Park. (Julie Sheer/Los Angeles Times)
