Hiking the Virgin River upriver from the Temple of Sinawava is a rite of passage for many. On this particular fall morning I held only a fraction of that desire, wanting instead to simply wade into the Narrows for a mile or two to see what there was to see as the sun rose. I didn’t realize when boarding the crowded 5:15 am visitor center bus soon most of my companions were ready to hike the distance. And the river would be packed.

You can imagine how hard it is to take a steady photo in running water (a solid tripod with spikes helps–thank you, Gitzo!). It’s a bit tougher when there’s no clear shot! Everywhere I turned there were hikers upstream and downstream of me. 

Clearly what I came for wasn’t going to happen, but I was damned if I was going to walk away empty handed. This small tree somehow finding footing and nutrition from between the towering stones, whose leaves were slowly turning into a brilliant autumn yellow, reached out to offer just what I needed. 

Sometimes when faced with unexpectedly changing conditions and no clear path forward, the next best step is to just pause and look at things with a different perspective. 

Find this and more from Zion National Park.