Zion National Park Pictures

Doctor makes rare finds at national park visits

BLOOMINGTON -- Dr. Meng Horng of the Twin Cities was a little boy when his father first hooked him on photography. He took a camera to school everyday. Early photos focused on people in his life.

Retired now, the habit of taking a camera along has been with him a lifetime, but now his subjects are natural settings, landscapes and animals from around the globe. Horng has photographed all seven continents. He's been to Africa nine times. He cruised to Antarctica and landed on shore in a dinghy to photograph penguins. For the past three decades, he's made it a point to go on a "long trip" every year.

But the United States and its national parks remain among his favorites. He and his wife took their two children to national parks every year when they were growing up.

During a recent interview, he smiled while he fished through his wallet to retrieve his $10 lifetime senior pass to national parks that saves him $15 every time he visits.

"I love them," he said.

Ask Horng what national parks he likes best and he quickly mentions the rugged American Southwest, especially parks in Colorado, Arizona and Utah. He fell in love on his first visit to the Grand Canyon in the early 1980s. Never mind the snow on the rim when he began his descent. The temperature rose the farther down he went and he hiked in shirtsleeves at the bottom to dip his hand in the icy Colorado River.

He's been back to visit the canyon several times. His latest trip was to lead a class reunion of 40 of his classmates from medical school in Taiwan to the Grand Canyon and several other national parks and national monuments in the area last fall. The itinerary included Bryce Canyon National Park, Zion National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Arches National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Monument Valley National Park, Rainbow Bride National Monument and Lake Powell.

"The Southwest probably has the best parks in all of the United States," Horng said.

When Horng defines "best," he means the most photogenic. The region's rough terrain transforms into beautiful landscapes at sunrise and sunset. Because the point was to record the best digital images possible, Horng hired guides from www.tourthesouthwest.com who were photographers. They short-circuited the trial and error normally needed in nature photography. They knew the location of the best scenery and the best times to view them. For example, despite its name Sunset Point, the guides knew the light was best to photograph the spot at sunrise. Because they were familiar with each place, the guides also could make suggestions based on experience on what aperture settings and exposures to use.

Wildflowers in Zion National Park | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

At the start of June, spent three wonderful days in Zion National Park in Utah. I wasn't quite sure what to expect out of this park a few hours northeast of Las Vegas. Because of the limited time, I decided to concentrate on Zion Canyon itself, although the park spans a much broader area. I knew there would be towering canyon walls but not much else. This ecosystem on the boundary between the Colorado Plateau and the Great Basin proved to not be a disappointment.
Most thrilling was the concentration of live along the Virgin River that rushes down the center of the canyon. The river, which was in full flow after a wet winter, creates a veritable oasis full of cottonwood forests, reptiles, mammals, and birds. And the wildflowers! It must have been the peak of the season for it seems every wildflower in the park was in full bloom. When the light was right, and often when it wasn't, I couldn't walk ten feet without plopping down my tripod to setup another shot. Overall, we identified two-thirds of the wildflowers in Welsh's Wildflower of Zion National Park. Also added eight more bird species to my life list. Quite a haul for three days.
Here is one of my favorite photographs - the Western Columbine, Aquilegia Formosa - taken along the Riverside Walk in the north end of the canyon just before it narrows and starts its climb toward to the plateau. Please take a look at a slideshow of my other photographs from this visit.

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Zion National Park

An educational guide to the national park system

Southwest

Zion National Park

Frommer's Zion & Bryce Canyon National Parks