The Narrows at Zion National Park
Unlike the Grand Canyon, I knew very little about Zion National Park in Southern Utah. But as I planned our Grand Canyon road trip, I came across stunning photos of this wilderness area and knew it was somewhere we had to include in our road trip.
Zion was named when Nephi Johnson, the first permanent European-American settler, declared, “A man can worship God among these great cathedrals as well as in any man-made church – this is Zion.” Its heavenly landscape does look like it’s been carved from above with its fiery red and orange sandstone cliffs and canyons. Warning: It’s very hard to keep your eyes on the road as you drive through it.
Hiking in the 229 square mile national park can range from easy paved trails like the Lower Emerald Pool Trail to the challenging Angel Landing, where you’ll have to navigate steep switchbacks and vertigo inducing cliffs to reach the summit and the reward of a jaw-dropping vista of Zion Canyon.
We decided to do one of the parks most famous hikes, The Narrows, an excursion that’s different than most as the trail is a river. With cold water that can be up to waist-high deep and varying currents, it’s essential to prepare for this hike. Fortunately, there are several outfitters in the nearby town of Springdale that can set you up for a Narrows hike. We visited the Zion Outfitter, just outside the park’s entrance, and came out wearing a bib dry suit that looked like rubber overalls, neoprene socks and water shoes and holding a wooden walking stick. Among the other visitors wearing shorts and a t-shirts, I felt somewhat conspicuous as I boarded the park shuttlebus to the Temple of Sinawava, our point of departure and last stop of the shuttle. “They’re doing The Narrows hike,” I heard one woman whisper to her friend.
“That’ll be the day,” I heard the friend whisper back. Although she could have said, “I’d like to do that one day”. I was a little worried about what I was getting myself into.
The hike began with the Riverside Walk, a paved trail that follows the Virgin River. But instead of turning back at the end of the trail, we stepped into the water and proceeded from there. Because of the currents and varying depths, we’d often wait for others to cross before we tried to traverse a particular stretch. Other hikers did the same and at one point, where the water seemed particularly fast, another couple stopped. We all looked at each other with the unspoken question hanging in the air: “Who’s going first?” It didn’t matter in the end, since not far behind us were a group of young college students who crossed effortlessly. I tried to follow their lead, but my knuckles were white from gripping the walking stick so tightly.
It was well worth the effort, however, for the incredible soaring views. The deep orange cliffs towered above us at heights of up to 200 feet and the width could taper to 20 feet at spots. I felt completely dwarfed by the grandeur of it all. We trekked for about two hours before turning back, but more ambitious and athletic hikers could go as far as Big Springs (a five-hour hike) without a permit.
However the hike was enough time for me to forget any problems at home, work or what’s on the nine o’clock news. Enough time to appreciate just how incredible these National Parks are. And to know that I need to spend more time hiking.
If you go: We stayed at the Best Western Red Hills in Kanab. Once again it was a comfortable base for our South Utah excursions, and the helpful staff gave us excellent recommendations for dining and hiking within town. The town of Kanab is an ideal hub for exploring as it’s in easy driving distance of some of America’s most scenic wonders including Lake Powell, Bryce Canyon National Park, Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monument and, of course, Zion National Park.
