Zion National Park, Utah, USA
03.19.2022
Not to be confused with Utah’s “Mighty 5,” Zion ranks in the top 5 when it comes to America’s most visited National Parks. It’s wildly popular and equally beautiful with stunning slot canyons and colorful sandstone formations that attract visitors with a single photograph.
When to Visit
Due to this park’s wild popularity, I highly recommend planning your visit very far in advance and visiting outside of peak season. I will personally define peak season as April through September. I visited in late March as part of a Solo Southwest Road Trip and there was plenty of good weather to be had even if the trees were not green. I also arrived the first weekend the shuttle bus started running inside the canyon. Yes, that’s right, due to this park’s huge popularity and relatively small size, visitors now have to rely on the free shuttle bus to get into the canyon.
Another reason you must plan ahead when visiting this park is because the most popular hike, Angel’s Landing, now requires a permit. They are still piloting the program, but it’s looking like permits will be required year-round using the dreaded lottery system and a permit will be easier to come by if you plan to visit during the off-peak times. Here is a link to the permit application page.
Tip: If combining other Utah sites into your trip to Zion, drive though the east Zion entrance at least once. You get to drive through some of the beautiful canyons and a 1.1 mile long tunnel!
Where to Stay
- If you would like to camp, you can stay inside the park at Watchman Campground.
- If you would like to splurge, you can stay in heart of the park at Zion National Park Lodge.
- If you would like a convenient choice, stay in Springdale, the small tourist town just outside of the park’s west entrance. This is the choice I sprung for because my car wasn’t running properly and there is a free shuttle bus that transports you through town and up to the park entrance.
- If you are on a tight budget and don’t camp, you can also stay in more affordable accommodations in the nearby towns of Hurricane or St. George and drive the 30 minutes – 1 hour into Springdale, pay to park and then hop on the free shuttle bus to the park.
A note on parking and the shuttle: You likely won’t find parking inside Zion National Park as the lot is limited and visitors are encouraged to park in town (Springdale) and utilize the free shuttle. As I was staying in town, I did not have to pay to park, but the hotel rate was around $200 per night. I thought the shuttle system was highly efficient and non-cumbersome during off-peak season. There are two shuttle bus lines, one that runs through the town of Springdale and one that runs into the canyon within Zion National Park.
My Hiking Details
The hikes I chose to do during my two-day visit to Zion National Park were Angel’s Landing, Watchman Trail, and The Narrows.
Angel’s Landing
The iconic hike to the top of a rock that gives you 360 degree views of the canyon is about 5.5 miles round trip. You’ll cross the river after getting off shuttle stop #6 called The Grotto and then head up a switchback trail. After the long haul up the switchbacks you reach a narrow canyon that tracks gradually uphill to Walters Wiggles, a series of 21 cute switchbacks, pictured below. After Walter’s Wiggles you are just a few uphill steps to Scout’s Lookout, which is the resting stop (or maybe the end point for you if you’re afraid of heights) before the final .7 miles of the trail called “the chains”.
The chains are literally a line of thick chains that are simply an added safety measure as the narrow trail has drop-offs on either side. Many areas only allow for one way traffic, so people usually take turns waiting for others to pass. As I was traveling solo, I met two retired men named Bill and Dave, who made the ascent up the chains the same time I did. They were great company each time we had to pause to let other hikers pass and they thoroughly enjoyed hearing about my mysterious car troubles.
Once through the chain section, there is a lot of room at the top of Angel’s Landing, which is great so you don’t have to feel obligated to head straight back down. I spent over 2 hours at the top and met more nice strangers who offered to take my picture for me.
Plan Ahead
By starting my hike in the afternoon (around 2pm), I encountered few crowds. Many people recommend getting to this hike first thing in the morning, but the problem is everybody does that so, when you are ready to come down the chains, the crowd is still making its way up. My final descent only took 40 minutes as only a handful of people still making the ascent. That said, the weather was cloudy when I went, so sun exposure on this mostly shade-less trail was not a factor.
Overall this trail lived up to the hype. The view is breathtaking, the chains are a unique element, and, in my opinion, this uphill hike is definitely worth the effort of vying for that lottery permit!
If you want to arrive to this hike’s trailhead before the first shuttle bus, I recommend staying at Zion Lodge or prepare to hike approximately 4 miles up the canyon road (in the dark) prior to starting the 5.5 miles out and back hike to Angel’s Landing.
Watchman Trail
The primary reason why I decided to hike this trail was because it could be reached by sunrise, without a car or the shuttle bus if you are staying in Springdale. I wasn’t planning on walking through town to get to the start of this hike, but it was the wee hours of the morning when I learned my car wouldn’t start so, I hiked through town (before the shuttle bus was running) and up Watchman Trail, in the moonlight, to watch the sun rise.
The trailhead is right across from the shuttle bus stop at the Visitor’s Center and the 3.3 mile out and back trail itself is mostly pounded dirt with a few rocky areas, rated as moderate. You start out along the river, across from Watchman Campground, then it’s a steady climb up a few switchbacks before arriving at nice sized overlook with lots of space to spread out. A notable amount of vegetation and stone outcroppings add beautiful variety. The Watchman canyon formation is most prominently looking over you and the town of Springdale below. There’s also canyon views as you look deeper in to the park and, as I sat there, I watched the tips of the canyon walls turn gold as the sun rose.
For me, the best part about this hike was having it to myself. I wasn’t happy about discovering my car wasn’t running but I didn’t let it spoil my good time and this hike was definitely a “making lemonade out of lemons” moment. I didn’t see another soul until my hike back down.
My second choice of a hike to get to before sunrise would have been the Canyon Overlook trail, but you do need a car to get to that trailhead.
The Narrows
Honestly, when I looked into The Narrows hike online, I was instantly confused by what the water level would be, how to get to the trail, and how long of a hike it was. Once I got to Zion, it became a super obvious and manageable task to figure it out. Here is a link to the official Zion National Park Narrows Hike website.
The most common way to hike The Narrows, and the way I did it, is renting equipment in Springdale, getting on the park shuttle bus to the last stop #8, and hiking upstream as far as I wanted to go before turning around and heading back the same way. No permit, no arranging transport, and no guessing what equipment was needed.
The other Narrows hike option (which I won’t mention again after this sentence as it caused me confusion when I was doing research) is a 16 mile hike downstream, where you need to first apply for a permit, rent the gear, and arrange your own transportation to the Chamberlain’s Ranch trailhead.
Equipment
There are many many equipment rental places in Zion, one of them is literally at the park entrance, and they all know exactly what equipment is needed for the current water levels. My advice, don’t be the person who walks up the river in regular hiking boots. The riverbed is like walking on bowling balls and your hiking shoes are not water-draining. I rented chest-high waiters with built in neoprene socks, water-draining boots, and a walking stick for $63 from Zion Gurus (recommended to me by a local I met on the bus). The boots were beast on the rocky river bed and shed water very quickly so I was never bogged down. My feet never got sore or soaked (though they did get cold toward the end). Cannot recommend highly enough.
How to Get There
For the common upstream hike, after getting outfitted with your equipment in Springdale, enter Zion park and board the park shuttle bus and take it all the way to the last stop #8, called the Temple of Sinawava. From there you have a 1 mile hike on pavement that leads you along the river and to the mouth of the canyon where the river flows out. Once you are at the mouth of the river (which is the trail) you will enter the river and follow the river banks as far as you can until you are forced to cross, which you will do dozens of times. You are now hiking The Narrows! Don’t forget to watch your step while trying to look all around you.
The Hike
Upstream hikers must turn around at Big Spring which is approximately 5 miles upriver however, most people don’t make it this far because they tire out, especially when the water level is higher.
I stupidly did not have an All Trails map of this hike nor did I set my watch prior to departure, but I did study the map on the wall in Zion Gurus [linked here]. I knew I needed to hike at least 4 miles in to get to Wallstreet, where the canyon narrow considerably and the colorful walls go straight up. That’s at least an 8 mile hike round trip and the average hiking speed was 1 mph when going against this level of current. I easily doubled that pace but was hiking solo, so I could set my own pace and did not need to wait for anybody.
The trail was also blissfully vacant this day due to there being a slight risk of rain/flash flooding. Briefly stopping to speak with a guide in the canyon, he concurred the rental companies are often very cautious and give warnings of flash flood that rightly scare many people away from the activity. I received this same warning and, upon my own research, discovered if the threat is great enough, they do post a ranger at the trailhead and do not allow hikers to enter.
Some river crossings are over your waist, while other are merely knee deep. At times the river current pushes you around especially when it’s very rocky and you are not walking along a canyon wall. The river crossings are the most fun and unique part of this hike! If this doesn’t sound fun to you, it may not be the hike for you. Yes, I met people who fell over in the river. No, I personally did not, but there were times I thought it was going to be a possibility. Use your stick, take your time, protect you phone, and enjoy.
I ended up walking all the way through Wallstreet and turned around prior to Big Spring as there were some dark clouds looming overhead, and the insides of my thighs were becoming fatigued, and I could feel myself loosing some coordination when fighting the current.
Know your limits and, even if you don’t get to Wallstreet, it’s still an excellent experience!
Here is a link to the official Zion National Park website. You will need a Park Pass to visit Zion which can be purchased at the gates.
