Angel's Landing Trail, Zion National Park, Utah 2017  
As I flipped through years worth of old vacation pictures, I started seeing cairns popping up everywhere -- including here at one of America's most popular national parks. You'll never hike alone in Zion -- and if you look carefully, you might even see some tiny hikers in the far distance.
Snow Canyon State Park, Utah 2017  
Resist the urge to pick up those 'loose' stones next to the cairn!
It turns out these adjacent stones are often used to indicate the direction of the 'trail' -- helpful in the open expanse of this whiterock (sandstone) desert. These modest cairns can make the difference between wandering aimlessly, or making it back to the lodge in time for dinner. As I started learning more about cairns, I also started to wonder more about the people who built them.


Page 6 of 20