Zion National Park

Tommy

Just a Millennial living in the real world...

Like most of us who are stuck at home due to the stay at home orders, I’m dreaming of traveling again. I wanted to share my experience at Zion National Park, which I had the opportunity to visit with my family in October 2019 after running the St. George Marathon. Zion felt like Heaven on earth, literally. The views looked like they came out of a movie. I it find it incredibly fascinating of what nature can do to create Zion Canyon. This was the the first national park that I have visited that I could remember (visited Grand Canyon National Park when I was younger) and now I can see why the U.S. National Parks are some of the most extraordinary places on earth.

About the Park

Established in 1919, Zion is Utah’s first national park. Zion is located in the Southwest corner of Utah near the town of Springdale and it’s about a 2 hour and 30 minute drive from Las Vegas. The park is about 146,000 acres and has over 4 million visitors per year, making it one of the most popular national parks in the United States.

Where to Stay?

There are a decent amount of hotels, lodges, and inns in the town of Springdale. Prices fluctuate based upon supply and demand. Expect to pay anywhere in between $100 – $300 per night depending on peak times. There are also 3 campgrounds. The South Campground and Watchman Campground are located near the south entrance of the park while the Lava Point Campground is about an hour drive away from Zion Canyon on Kolob Terrace road. Reservations for the South and Watchman Campgrounds are recommended as campgrounds are typically full by mid-morning.

My family and I stayed at the Best Western Plus, which was great. The hotel was nice and updated. A small breakfast buffet was included in the rate. The Desert Pearl Inn shuttle stop is right outside the entrance of the hotel, which is very convenient. Also, they have a pool & hot tub and they had some outdoor firepits to stargaze at night, which was really neat.

What to Do?

Zion National Park is a Hiker’s paradise as they have 15+ different hikes ranging from easy to strenuous. Most hikes can be done within a day, but you can find multi-day hikes. The most popular hikes are the Angel’s Landing and The Narrows.

Other activities that Zion has to offer include camping, bird watching, bicycling, rock climbing, horseback riding, stargazing, and more.

Where to Eat?

After finishing the St. George Marathon, we drove to Springdale from St. George, which took about an hour. I was a little hungry so we ate lunch at the Zion Canyon Brewpub and had a beer to celebrate. I needed something lighter so I ordered the hummus to share, which was pretty good. Zion Canyon Brewpub has your standard pub food so think burgers, salads, and appetizers. Also, they brew their own beer, which was quite good. I had the Zion Pale Ale and Conviction Stout. Prices were about $15/meal and $7/beer.

For dinner, we ate at the Whiptail Grill, which is a Mexican restaurant. The atmosphere was basically a small garage with a small outdoor patio. All of the seating was pretty much outdoors on the patio. The food was very good. We ordered chips/salsa/guacamole as an appetizer. The salsa had a kick and the guacamole was very fresh. For my entree, I ordered a steak burrito, which was also very good. It came with lots of steak and their house dressing on their side salad really stood out. We were there for a long time because our server definitely forgot to place our order, but we really didn’t have anywhere to be that night. Prices ran about $18/entree.

Other Options:

Cafe Soleil: Coffee Shop near the park entrance.
Oscar’s Cafe: Breakfast, lunch, and coffee.
Porter’s Smokehouse & Grill: Burgers and BBQ.

What to Bring?

During the Spring and Fall, the weather can change pretty drastically. Lows can be in the 30s-40s and highs can reach in the 70s-80s. During Summer, expect highs to be anywhere in between the 80s-90s and lows of 60s. So during the Spring and Fall, it’s best to wear layers of clothing. Here are a few things you should bring when you visit Zion:

Backpack/drawstring bag: You will want something that you can put your belongings in. Also, it’s smart to pack some snacks or a lunch for those longer hikes.
Hiking shoes: You need shoes that have good traction especially if you are going to hike Angel’s Landing, Observation Point, or Hidden Canyon due to their steep drop offs.
Water bottle: There are water fountains around the park to refill your water bottle. However, there are not many water fountains on the hiking trails. You will want to bring water with you if you go hiking as some of the hikes are strenuous especially during the warmer months.
Sunscreen: There wasn’t a cloud in the sky when I reached the top of Angel’s Landing. Bringing sunscreen is a good idea so you won’t get burnt.

Things to Know:

Use the Shuttle System:

There are two shuttle systems, (Springdale & the Zion Canyon) which are both free to use and shuttles come around about every 15 minutes. Both shuttle maps can be found here.

The Springdale Shuttle travels through the town of Springdale to the Zion visitor’s center and there are 9 stops. Depending on the season, the first shuttle departs from Majestic Lodge at 7:10am or 8:10am and the last shuttle is 9pm or 10pm.

The Zion Canyon Shuttle starts at the visitor’s center and takes you deep into Zion Canyon. There are 9 stops. Depending on the season, the first shuttle departs from the Zion Visitor’s Center at 6am or 7am and the last shuttle is 8:30pm or 9:30pm.

Limited Parking:

Zion National Park has very limited parking so that is why I recommend using the shuttle system. If you don’t get to the park before mid-morning, you will have a lot of trouble finding a spot. The visitor’s center can maybe fit 50 cars. You can park in the town of Springdale, but there might be another 50 spots for cars.

Fees & Passes

All visitors are required to purchase a weekly pass. Private vehicles are $35, motorcycles are $30, and for people with no cars are $20. You can also buy an annual pass for $80. Active duty military admission is free. A senior annual pass is $20 or a lifetime senior pass is $80.

Angel's Landing

Angel’s Landing is one of the most popular hikes in the park as it has breathtaking views, it challenges you, and you can hike it within a day. The hike is 5.4 miles roundtrip and it can take anywhere between 3-5 hours. To get to the trailhead, you can take the Zion Canyon Shuttle and hop off at The Grotto (Stop #6). The hike is pretty strenuous and I would recommend being in good shape before hiking Angel’s Landing.

Angel’s Landing is not for people who are afraid of heights or for people who are in a rush. The final part of the climb or last 1/2 mile is chain assisted for good reason as there are steep drop offs of about 1,000 feet on each side and it’s very narrow. 10 people have died since 2004 with the most recent fatality being in November 2019, a month after I hiked it. There are parts of the hike that are one way and you have to be courteous to your fellow hikers. If you rush, then you are putting yourself and other people in danger. So it’s best to take your time, but don’t freeze up there as that puts everyone in a dangerous situation.

On a Sunday, I woke up at the crack of dawn at 5:30am so I could eat breakfast and I could be one of the first people in line for the shuttles at that start at 7am. Crowds are a major problem at Zion and I wanted to avoid them when hiking Angel’s Landing. I trust my hiking abilities and good judgment, but dealing with other people can be wild cards.

I arrived in line for the shuttles at around 6:30am and there were already people waiting in line. Even though I was there at 6:30am, there were so many people already that I had to settle for the second shuttle of the day. As you can see Zion is still quite popular in October.

The drive through the canyon on the shuttle was very cool! There was a recording that talked about the park’s history so you could learn about the park during the ride. It’s crazy to think how the park was created over millions of years ago by nature. Also, I was able to see some deer and the views of the canyon were amazing. Once I arrived at the Grotto, I went to the restroom, filled up my water bottle, and started the hike.

The trail starts off easy with slight elevated incline on the West Rim Trail. But after about 30 minutes of hiking is when the real work begins. The hike starts to get a lot steeper and you warm up with some switchbacks.

Then you hike through Refrigerator Canyon, where there is lots of shade and a good resting area. Then the biggest physical challenge of the hike comes next.

After Refrigerator Canyon comes the Walter’s Wiggles, which are 21 steeply inclined switchbacks. These definitely work up a sweat and I had to take a few breaks going up them.

Once you get through Walter’s Wiggles, you arrive at Scout Lookout. This is the point of no return before you make the final climb to Angel’s Landing. This is a good resting point and offers some views of the canyon. If there has been recent rainfall, then it is recommended to skip the final part of Angel’s Landing as the trail can become very slippery.

The final climb to Angel’s Landing starts off with slight elevation and is pretty safe in general. It’s a good spot to practice holding onto the chains for the scary stuff. But things ramp up very rapidly.

The middle part of the climb is where things become pretty scary. The path becomes very narrow and there are steep 1,000 foot drop offs on both sides. My heart was racing quite a bit. Some parts of the trail are one way traffic and you have to take turns with other hikers. So this is where the trail can get very clogged up during peak seasons. If you are scared of heights or slightly scared of them, then I would recommend not to look down.

When you are climbing, make sure you always have a hand on the rails at all times when possible. Also, you always want to make sure you have good footing. You don’t want the sandstone to break away when you are climbing. Every step I took, I pressed my foot down hard on the sandstone to make sure my footing was secure.

I’m a pretty fast hiker and made it to the top in about an hour and 30 minutes. There were probably about 20 people at the peak when I got there around 9:30am. You will be rewarded with spectacular views like these.

Angel’s Landing was an incredible experience! It was physically and mentally challenging. I think coming down was a little bit harder than going up because of all of the people. It took me about an hour to hike back down. When I was hiking down from the peak, I had to wait several times due to the one way paths. There were a lot of people coming up and it was really starting to get crowded around 10am. It’s an experience that I probably won’t do again unless someone really wants to do it as I don’t like heights and there are a lot more things to do in the park on a second visit. I would love to come back and hike The Narrows, Observation Point, and Hidden Canyon trails some day. I would highly recommend visiting Zion National Park!