The Imlay Boulder is bathed with reflected light surrounded by the roar of river cascades.

The bottom-up hike into the Narrows is a ten-mile round trip from the shuttle stop, and while there are amazing sights around every corner most people chase the glow that travels throughout the canyon.  In certain corridors the walls are illuminated for hours at a time allowing you to soak in the soothing scenery while contemplating all of life’s problems.  However in other pockets such as this passage in Wall Street, the glow lasts mere minutes.  I arrived at the Imlay Boulder with  about two hours to spare despite maintaining a slow pace to enjoy the views downstream.  I already had the composition in mind and did not want to wander too far away in case another ambitious photographer arrived so I spied an adjacent boulder that looked awfully comfortable.  There I laid, with my backpack a makeshift pillow, watching puffy clouds slowly migrate across the stripe in the sky framed by the high canyon walls.  For the next hour and a half I drifted in and out of sleep, with the tranquil sound of flowing water, singing birds, and light wind blurring the division between dreams and reality.  Taking a nap in the Narrows was one of the most relaxing experiences I’ve ever had.  When time came, I marveled as the matte, dull brown walls suddenly spring to life as it was bathed by the reflected light. Five minutes later it was gone, a reminder of how quickly conditions can change in this part of Zion Canyon.