Zion National Park

Zion National Park
a park in SW Utah. 148 sq. mi. (383 sq. km).

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National park, southwestern Utah, U.S. It covers an area of 229 sq mi (593 sq km); its principal feature is Zion Canyon, which was named by the Mormons who discovered it in 1858.

Part of the area was first set aside as the Mukuntuweap National Monument in 1909. Enlarged and renamed Zion National Monument in 1918, it was established as a national park in 1919. Zion Canyon was carved by the Virgin River and is about 15 mi (24 km) long and 0.5 mi (0.8 km) deep. Rocky domes dot the canyon walls, which contain an abundant fossil record. Excavation has yielded evidence that prehistoric peoples once inhabited the area.

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 dramatic landscape of colourful deep canyons, high cliffs, mesas, and forested plateaus in southwestern Utah, U.S. The park lies on the northwestern edge of the Colorado Plateau about 30 miles (50 km) northeast of the city of St. George (Saint George). Cedar Breaks National Monument is nearby to the northeast, Bryce Canyon National Park and Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument are nearby to the east, Pipe Spring National Monument and the north rim of Grand Canyon National Park are to the south, and Parashant National Monument is to the southwest.

      The park's principal feature is Zion Canyon, which received its name from the Mormons who discovered it (1858) and settled there in the early 1860s. A portion of the area was first set aside as Mukuntuweap National Monument in 1909. The monument was enlarged and renamed Zion National Monument in 1918 and was established as a national park in 1919. The park was enlarged in 1956, by the addition of adjacent land that had also been named Zion National Monument but is now called Kolob Canyons; the entire park now occupies 229 square miles (593 square km).

 The park's layers of sedimentary rock give evidence of its geologic origins; the area has, in the past 230 million years, been underwater, uplifted, covered with volcanic ash, dried into a windswept desert, flooded again, and, 13 million years ago, thrust upward once more. Rivers heavy with sediment began the erosion process responsible for Zion's dramatic canyon and valley formations. Zion Canyon, for example, carved by the Virgin River, is about 15 miles (25 km) long and some 2,000 to 3,000 feet (600 to 900 metres) deep. The rocky domes and pinnacles that dot the canyon walls range in colour from rust-red at lower elevations to nearly white at the summits. The abundant fossil record of the walls has yielded evidence that prehistoric peoples (Basket Makers [see Ancestral Pueblo (Ancestral Pueblo culture) culture] and Pueblo Indians) once inhabited the area. The Great White Throne, a giant monolith on one canyon wall, rises 2,394 feet (730 metres) above the canyon floor. Among the park's other sites are Emerald Pools, Weeping Rock, and the Temple of Sinawava, all in Zion Canyon, and Kolob Arch, in the Kolob Canyons area.

      Zion's wildlife includes mule deer, golden eagles, mountain lions, peregrine falcons, and the Zion snail, which is endemic to the park. Bighorn were reintroduced to the park in 1973 after having died out two decades earlier. The nearly 800 native species of plants include mainly semiarid types such as cactus, but cottonwood, willow, and box elder grow along the canyon floor, and juniper and pines are found at higher elevations.

      Hiking and horseback riding are popular activities. The park has several scenic drives; however, excessive traffic congestion and parking problems led to the creation of a shuttle bus system in 2000, and from April through October the main route through Zion Canyon is accessible only by this bus.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Zion National Park — IUCN Category II (National Park) …   Wikipedia

  • Zion National Park — Zion Nationalpark Zion Canyon von Angels Landing aus gesehen …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Zion National Park —   [ zaɪən næʃnl pɑːk], Nationalpark im Trockengebiet von Südwestutah, USA, 594 km2, eingerichtet 1919. In den mehrere 100 m mächtigen, hellroten bis bräunlich weißen Sandsteinschichten sind als Folge von Abtragung und Verwerfungen tiefe… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Zion National Park — Parc national de Zion Parc national de Zion Zion National Park Catégorie II de la CMAP (Parc national) …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Zion National Park — noun a national park in Utah having huge canyons and gorges carved by mountain rivers • Instance Hypernyms: ↑national park • Part Holonyms: ↑Utah, ↑Beehive State, ↑Mormon State, ↑UT * * * a park in SW Utah. 148 sq. mi. (383 sq. km). * * * Zion… …   Useful english dictionary

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Zion National Park — This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Zion National Park. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Zion National Park, Utah, United… …   Wikipedia

  • Zion National Park — Zi′on Na′tional Park′ n. geg a national park in SW Utah: colorful canyons and mesas. 229 sq. mi. (593 sq. km) …   From formal English to slang

  • Zion National Park — geographical name reservation SW Utah centering around Zion Canyon of Virgin River …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Historical buildings and structures of Zion National Park — Multiple Resources for Zion National Park U.S. National Register of Historic Places …   Wikipedia

  • The Narrows (Zion National Park) — The Virgin River Narrows The Narrows in Zion National Park, (near Springdale, Utah) is a section of canyon on the North Fork of the Virgin River. The hike of The Narrows is one of the premier hikes on the Colorado Plateau. The term The Narrows… …   Wikipedia

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