Let's Travel to Zion National Park (Going West Part 2 of 3)

Sadly, if you were currently trying to get into Zion National Park it would be closed on account of the government shutdown. However, once the shutdown is over, I would highly recommend a visit. Zion was stop number two on the great western adventure. (See Part 1 here)

First, I will qualify that we did not hike the most famous trail at Zion - Angels Landing. I searched around for a good pictorial representation of why and found this one from Heidikins.com 

I think that explains it. 

However, we did hike the second most famous, and completely amazing, trail - the Narrows. (PS. I love that it sounds like a trail straight out of Batman.) The Narrows trail was created by the Virgin River which carved a gorge about 16 miles long in the upper reaches of Zion Canyon. You hike in the river,  and at times the trail is only 20-30 feet wide between the rock. 

Because you are hiking through a river I would strongly advise sturdy water hiking boots. We rented these and walking sticks from Zion Adventure Company. I felt bad for the people in sandals because the rocks are slippery when wet!

The water level varies throughout the hike (in general it depends on recent rainfall or snow melts) and for the most part the water was only a couple feet deep but here you can see Paul with the water up to his chest. The weather was quite warm in late May when we were there so the water was nice and refreshing. If it were cooler weather I would recommend a water proof "dry bag", which you can also rent, with at least a sweater inside. 

If your really inspired to do a long hike, it's possible to get a permit and the length of the Narrows, but I found our in and out - around 6 miles total - very satisfying.

Other trails we hiked in Zion were the Weeping Rock Trail, very short but pretty because the water flow supports more flora and fauna than in other places of the park (pictured above). We started the Hidden Canyon Trail, only made it about half way up because its another trail with some sheer drop offs that are not so good for people with a fear of heights, and we completed the full Emerald Pool Trail System, which was steep but without sheer drop offs. :)

It is possible to book rooms inside the park, but we decided to stay just outside in Springdale, at Canyon Vista Lodge, a bed and breakfast. For us, this was the right move. The facilities inside the park looked nice, but there were a lot of tour and school buses parked outside. I can see the convenience if you are with a big group or family, but with just the two of us I found the outside of the park more laid back, and we didn't have any issues finding parking inside the park each day. Another plus to staying outside the park is that there are some fantastic food options. The first is Bit and Spur. We liked this so much we went there for dinner twice. We sat outside both nights and enjoyed yummy drinks, fresh fish, and some amazing ribs. If you decide to stay in the park, its worth a venture out for this place. The second must recommend is Oscar's Cafe, we ate breakfast here for our entire stay. Wait, didn't we stay at a bed and breakfast? Yes, and one of the best things about the Canyon Vista Lodge is that your breakfast is just whatever you want from this local, amazing, cafe. You just order off the menu, and leave a tip.

With full bellies, slightly frightened height awareness, and the best water hike ever, we set out through a hole in a mountain to continue on the great west adventure. Though, of course, we hit traffic.

Have you been to Zion? Did you brave Angels Landing?