Our next stop on our tour around the country was Colorado, but Sam got an unexpected week off in between rotations so we decided to make the most of it! Heading to Zion wasn’t exactly on our way from Phoenix to Longmont, but it was worth the extra hours in the car. Sam had been to Zion twice before and really wanted me to experience it, too. We weren’t there for long but I feel we made the most of our time and experienced plenty of the park in 1.5 days!
We left Phoenix early on Saturday and got to the park in the afternoon. Coming from the East side, we drove through the park before arriving at the Visitors Center. It was nice to see the park from the drive. We already had an Interagency Pass, so we didn’t have to pay extra for admission. Getting an Interangency Pass made sense for us, and might be worth it for you too if you plan to visit more than one park. The price per park is $35, and the Interagency Pass is $80 for a year.
We did one hike the afternoon we arrived, grabbed dinner, then spent the next day doing Observation Point and hiking in the Canyon. All of this is outlined with details below, and you can click on each hike to find its page on AllTrails!
Stay
We stayed at the Best Western Plus in Le Verkin, about 25 minutes West of the park. Honestly, it was fine but nothing special. The La Quinta next door seemed brand new and nicer, so may be worth checking out for price comparison. We didn’t mind staying outside of the park, but the town of Springdale is directly outside the park with plenty of hotels and restaurants if you’d prefer to be closer. The convenience does cost more, but could be worth it based on the amount of time you have. You also have the option to take the shuttle from Springdale into the park, which could be convenient.
We wanted to do a short hike upon arrival, and decided on the Watchman Trail. The nice part about this trail is you don’t need to take the shuttle to get to the trailhead. It starts directly across from the parking lot at the Visitor Center, so it’s very easily accessible if you don’t have a lot of time.
The trail is short and moderate, providing nice views along the way and at the top. You can also do a small loop once you reach the top, increasing your hike by a very short distance.
I enjoyed this hike and found it perfect for the short amount of time and energy we had.
Observation Point via Stave Spring (~11 miles)
The next morning we got up and left around 6:45am to head towards the Stave Spring trailhead, which is located outside the park on the East side. Since we had to drive through the park again, it took us a little over an hour to get to the trailhead. We parked off the road directly before the trailhead and only saw 2 other cars there.
This hike is really hard, but was so enjoyable. You start in a forest surrounded by pines, slowly move into a field, and then begin your descent into the canyon. Like I said, it’s a challenging hike. The descent into the canyon is steep and technical, and my legs started to get tired very early on! But we really enjoyed the variety of scenery on the hike, plus the fact that we didn’t see a soul for 3 miles. It was very peaceful.
The trail is pretty well marked with cairns along the way, so it’s important to look out for them once you get to the slickrock. We took a wrong turn and got lost for a bit, but eventually found our way back to the path.
The unfortunate thing about heading down into the Canyon is that you have to go back up. The switchbacks along the side of the mountain were tough! But ultimately, the view at the top was pretty spectacular. You get an expansive view of the park and Canyon, plus the iconic hike up Angels Landing. We saw several more people up top than we did on the trail, but still were able to find a spot to sit and enjoy lunch.
Instead of taking the same trail back down, we opted to go a different route on East Mesa Trail. If you’re wanting to get to Observation Point without the difficult hike into the canyon, you could take this in and out. It’s definitely less interesting but it’s also much easier and shorter! We knew that taking it out would still require us to walk down a gravel road all the way back to our car, but decided it was worth it to not have to hit another 1200 feet of elevation gain on the way back. We got very lucky on our walk back as a shuttle van for the nearby resort stopped and asked if we wanted a ride! As we rode in the van, we realized how much further we would’ve had to walk and were eternally grateful for the ride. Ultimately, seeing how far our car was down the gravel road, I think it would’ve been better to take the same Stave Spring trail back. Just be sure your legs are feeling strong and energized!
Zion Canyon Scenic Drive
It was already around 2pm by the time we made it back to our car, so we drove back through the park and parked at the Visitors Center. We hopped on the shuttle and took it all the way back to the last stop, also the same stop as the Narrows. We walked along the shuttle route back down, taking in the views of the canyons from the road. There is a dirt path that runs along the stream for parts of the way, but it was too buggy for us to stay on so we walked alongside the road instead.
We planned to just walk down to the next shuttle stop, but ended up continuing our walk much further. The views were really neat and the walk was mostly quiet and peaceful, so we enjoyed ourselves. Many of the shuttle stops along the way were closed, so we hopped back on at stop 5 (where the Angels Landing hike begins). I’m really glad we ended up doing this and it may have been my favorite part of the trip. Something about seeing the canyon walls from down below and the serenity of not being on a crowded trail really made me happy.
We drove through the park once more on our way out the next morning before heading to Bryce Canyon. Although we were only there for about a day and a half, the hikes we did coupled with driving through the park several times felt like we saw what we needed to see. I would’ve liked the do the Narrows Hike, so that would be my extra recommendation if you have more time. Make sure to read up on all that’s needed for the hike beforehand, since rental equipment is required!
Overall, I found the enormity of Zion to be beautiful. Have you been? What was your favorite part?