Trip Recap: Zion National Park, Utah

This wouldn't be an adventure blog if I didn't actually recap my adventures, right???

Once a year a few friends and I get together and go on a prolonged camping/hiking trip to somewhere amazing. Last year we hiked the South Kaibab Trail at the Grand Canyon, a 16 mile hike with a total of 4,000 feet elevation gain. We took our time, camped out at the bottom, and slept under the stars. It was a surreal experience and one that I'll likely never forget.

This year we decided to go to Zion National Park in Utah, a place many of my friends have dubbed the most beautiful in the world, where we adventured for 5 days and spent some time getting to know the locals. In total we did three hikes: The Narrows, Angel's Landing, and Kolob Canyon.

On day 1 we hopped on the 11am shuttle bus at Watchman Campground, which sits at the south end of the park, and took the bus all the way up to the Temple of Sinawava stop at the northern end of the park - a ride that takes about 40 minutes one way. We jumped out of the shuttle, walking sticks in hand and water proof clothing in tact, and hiked the paved, mile long pathway up to the start of The Narrows, an exhilarating and challenging route that requires you to trek, and sometimes swim, up current through the Virgin River.

With canyon walls stretching thousands of feet above our heads and the river at our feet we made our way, weaving through some of the most glorious landscapes I've ever encountered. My breath was taken away more than once.

Eventually we reached a fork in the river and elected to take the road less traveled. Headed right up the river we climbed over rocks, logs, and waterfalls until we hit the backcountry and had to turn back. We then explored the left side of the fork that was a little less exciting, but equally as beautiful. In total we did about 7 miles up and down the river in 6 hours, and upon returning to camp we were tired but satisfied and ready for the next day's adventure.

Photo by Andrew Tomlin

Day 2 brought us to Angel's Landing - a grueling 5 mile round trip hike. We started at the Emerald Pools shuttle drop off and hiked through the Grotto to the Angel's Landing trailhead. The first mile of the trail, known as Refrigerator Canyon, is relaxing and shady, but then the real hiking begins... After coming out of the Canyon we hit a steep set of switchbacks known as Walter's Wiggles. Taking a deep breath we pushed up the trail without stopping to take a break. If we had I don't think we'd have made it up! Seriously, check this out:

Walter's Wiggles - Google image, not mine, but look at those things!

Little did we know that this was only the beginning of our ascent. From there we navigated a treacherous, but surprisingly well traveled pathway that had us climbing rocks, dangling off the edge of the cliff's side, and hoisting ourselves up using chains installed in the mountain that guide hikers up to the landing. But after all that work it was worth it. The view was absolutely incredible, and our meager lunch consisting of Clif Bars and trail mix was highly appreciated.

Word to the wise - start this hike in the morning before it gets too hot out. If we'd started any later it may have been brutal.

Angel's Landing - Another Andrew Tomlin original - I just had to show you the view from the top!

You'd think that after two days of hiking we'd be exhausted, but Day 3 brought with it an early rise and a 14 mile round trip hike to the largest (but not the longest!) free standing rock arch in the world: the Kolob Arch.

From our campground it took us about an hour to drive out to Kolob Canyon where we checked in with the rangers there and headed up to the trail head. The day was relatively cool as we began our descent toward the arch. Our goal was to hit the arch by 1pm, hang out until 4pm, and then hike back out - so we had a couple hours to go about 7 miles before the heat really hit. The first 6 miles were quiet and easygoing leaving us plenty of time to admire the scenery around us (and to get bitten really, really hard by some bugs by the river, at which point we'd run out of bug spray). The seventh and final mile until our first glimpse of the arch was a lot more animated and exciting! The trail dropped off here and there and we often had to scramble over rocks and fallen logs and march through shrubs and brush to find it again. But when we finally reach the arch at about 12:30pm (Ahead of schedule! Yay!) we were pleased with what we found:

Kolob Arch

We only took about 45 minutes to relax before getting restless, so we headed back down to the river looking for a place to crash for a little while. We hiked out for about 2 miles before stopping and cooling off. At this point we were in the heat of the day with little to no shade cover in that area of the canyon, so naturally we jumped in the river for a few minutes and then decided that, despite the brutal heat, we'd hike out and grab dinner somewhere in town.

The hike out was merciless on our legs, so we got a great but tiring workout in throughout the next 5 miles. The last mile of the hike was probably the worst, but we muscled through it and reached the top sighing with happy exhaustion. This was probably one of the most scenically beautiful hikes I've ever been on and I would highly recommend trying it out if you're ever in Zion!

Phew! That was a long post, but I hope you enjoyed it!

Here's a high school throwback jam from my Zion trip. Perhaps it'll resonate with some of you, too.