ZION NATIONAL PARK, Utah — The Zion National Park Lodge is celebrating its 100th anniversary, marking a century of hosting visitors among 200-million-year-old rock formations.
And for nearly a decade of that, one man has led a team trying to maintain its bones.
Completed in May 1925 by the Utah Parks Company, a Union Pacific Railroad subsidiary, the lodge was built to boost tourism. Designed by architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood in a "Rustic" style, the lodge is now a National Historic District.
The lodge's original construction used 265,000 board feet of lumber to blend into the landscape. The site itself is near the location of the canyon's first permanent homestead, built by Isaac Behunin in 1863.
Today, reservations are booked months or even a year in advance. Maintaining the historic site is a massive undertaking led by Chris Bullock, the head of maintenance.
"It's quite something to be able to maintain it. It's a full-time job for sure. I have a really good crew that helps me out do that," said Chris Bullock, the lodge's head of maintenance.
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"The buildings, because the way they were constructed back then. The wood, it's hand-cut wood, they brought it down from Cable Mountain to build these buildings," added Bullock. "I've seen every nook and cranny of every building pretty much.
"You can see that it was done by hand. You can see the hammer marks, the saw marks."
The oldest buildings in the area date back to 1927 and 1929, and are known as the Western Cabins.
"So the oldest building that we have here in this area, it was built in 1927," Bullock explained. "It was part of the [Civilian Conservation Corps] when they were doing the tunnel. And so that's our oldest building, so we do maintain that."
The original main lodge building was destroyed by a fire on Jan. 25, 1966, and rebuilt in just 108 days. A major renovation in the 1990s returned the exterior to its original 1920s appearance.
The lodge has weathered other historic events, including a massive landslide in 1995 that blocked the Virgin River, creating a new lake and damaging the road. The event briefly trapped 450 guests and staff at the lodge.
On Friday, U.S. Sen. John Curtis attended the unveiling of a new portrait by artist Allen Brockbank to commemorate the centennial. The painting highlights the scenery and a historic tree at the lodge where generations of visitors have gathered.
"I think if you look at that picture, you see this harmony between the lodge when it was originally built to fit in and look like it belongs here," Curtis said. "Like so many people, Zion holds a place in my heart, my family's heart, so many memories here."
For Bullock, the work of maintaining the century-old lodge is a labor of love. He travels an hour each way from his home in St. George for the job he has held for more than a decade.
"We have people that's never been out West. And just to see their eyes, the smiles, and how excited they are to be here," Bullock said. "I travel an hour each way because it's just such a beautiful place.
"I just feel lucky to be here."
