Latest / Wildlands Podcast — National Parks, Public Lands & Survival / #006 - Zion, Part 2: The Visit | Angels Landing Permits, the Narrows & Beating the Crowds

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#006 - Zion, Part 2: The Visit | Angels Landing Permits, the Narrows & Beating the Crowds · Wildlands Podcast — National Parks, Public Lands & Survival

0:10
Four and a half million people visited Zion last
0:13
year. That makes it the third most visited national
0:15
park in the country, behind Great Smoky Mountains
0:18
and the Grand Canyon. And here is what four and
0:22
a half million people looks like in a canyon
0:24
that has one road in and one road out. It looks
0:27
like a parking lot, a long shuttle line, And
0:30
a trail so crowded, you're essentially hiking
0:33
in a conga line through one of the most beautiful
0:35
places on Earth. The good news is that Zion's
0:40
crowds are almost entirely concentrated in about
0:43
six miles of canyon. The park is 229 square miles.
0:48
Do that math, and there's a lot of room left
0:51
over if you know where to look. This episode
0:55
is about how to actually visit Zion. Not how
0:58
to survive it, how to enjoy it. The shuttle system.
1:02
The permit lottery for Angels Landing. What to
1:04
know before you set foot in the Narrows. And
1:07
the parts of this park that most people drive
1:08
straight past. This is Wildlands. I'm Sean. Know
1:14
the land before you reach it. Let's start with
1:18
the single most important logistical fact about
1:20
visiting Zion. From roughly early spring through
1:25
late fall. You cannot drive your own vehicle
1:27
into Zion Canyon. The park shut down private
1:30
cars on the main canyon road back in 2000. When
1:33
it became clear the road couldn't handle the
1:35
traffic, and honestly, banning cars was one of
1:38
the better decisions the park service has made
1:40
in recent decades. What replaced them is a free
1:43
shuttle system running the length of Zion Canyon,
1:45
stopping at every major trailhead from the visitor
1:48
center up to the Temple of Sinawava at the far
1:50
end. The shuttle runs every 5 to 10 minutes.
1:55
and covers the full route in about 45 minutes
1:57
end -to -end. There's also a separate Springdale
2:01
shuttle that runs through the Gateway Town outside
2:03
the park, which is useful if you're staying in
2:05
Springdale and want to skip the parking situation
2:07
entirely, and you do want to skip the parking
2:10
situation. Parking at the main visitor center
2:13
fills up early. On a summer weekend, we're talking
2:16
full by 8 in the morning. The move is to either
2:20
stay in Springdale and walk or shuttle to the
2:22
park entrance. or get there at first light. If
2:25
you arrive at 10 on a July Saturday expecting
2:28
to find a spot, you're going to be spending your
2:31
morning in a line of cars circling a full lot.
2:34
Plan around the shuttle, not against it, and
2:37
it actually works well. It's just that most people
2:39
don't think about it until they're already in
2:41
the car. One more thing on the shuttle. Download
2:44
or screenshot the route before you get to the
2:47
park. Cell service in the canyon is unreliable
2:50
enough that your phone may not load anything
2:52
in real time. Same goes for any permits, which
2:56
we're about to discuss. Angels Landing. If you
3:03
have spent any time looking at Zion before coming
3:06
here, you know this trail. The ridge walk, the
3:10
chains, the exposure. It deserves its reputation,
3:14
and it deserves the planning we are going to
3:17
give it. First, the permit. As of 2022, The National
3:21
Park Service requires a permit to hike the final
3:24
half -mile section of Angels Landing, the part
3:26
above Scout Lookout where the chains are. You
3:29
can hike all the way up to Scout Lookout without
3:31
a permit, and Scout Lookout itself has a spectacular
3:34
view. But to continue to the summit, you need
3:37
a permit, and hiking without one is a federal
3:40
violation with fines up to $5 ,000. They check.
3:45
There are two ways to get that permit. The seasonal
3:48
lottery opens on recreation .gov roughly four
3:52
to six months before a given season and lets
3:55
you apply for specific dates or a range of dates
3:58
up to six people on one application at a $6 non
4:02
-refundable entry fee. If you win, you pay $3
4:07
per person. The day before lottery opens every
4:09
day at midnight and closes at three in the afternoon.
4:12
Mountain time, you apply for the next day's hike
4:15
and find out that evening. Day before odds are
4:17
better than you might expect, somewhere in the
4:20
range of 10 -20 % depending on the season. So
4:24
don't write off the day before if you're already
4:26
in the park and the weather looks good. Either
4:29
way, download your permit confirmation before
4:31
you leave your lodging. Screenshot it. The trail
4:34
has no reliable signal, and rangers do check
4:37
IDs against the permit on file. Your permit is
4:41
non -transferable and has to match the name on
4:43
your photo ID. Don't try to share it with someone
4:46
who isn't listed. It won't work, and it isn't
4:48
worth the trouble. Now, the trail itself. It
4:53
starts at the Grotto Shuttle Stop 6 and climbs
4:57
roughly 1 ,500 feet over about 5 miles round
5:01
trip. The lower section is a solid, well -built
5:04
trail through forest and canyon wall. Then...
5:08
You hit Walter's Wiggles, 21 tight switchbacks
5:11
cut directly into the cliff face in the 1920s
5:14
by the park's early builders. They look alarming
5:17
from below and are not that bad once you're on
5:20
them, just steep. At the top of the Wiggles is
5:22
Scout Lookout, a flat saddle with a bench and
5:25
a view that would anchor most trails. This is
5:28
where the permit zone begins. Above Scout Lookout,
5:31
the trail becomes a ridge walk. The chains are
5:34
bolted into the sandstone at the steep pitches,
5:36
and you pull yourself up hand over hand while
5:38
trying not to think too hard about how far down
5:41
the other side goes. The exposure is real and
5:44
continuous, not one scary step, but a sustained
5:47
half mile of narrow rock with significant drop
5:50
-offs on both sides. Some people love every second
5:54
of it. Some people get 50 feet past Scout Lookout
5:56
and decide that's far enough. Both are valid.
6:00
Know which type you are before you commit. The
6:03
summit is a broad, flat -topped fin with views
6:06
in every direction. The Great White Throne, the
6:10
Narrows Slot cutting into the plateau, the whole
6:13
bend of the Virgin River below. It is worth it.
6:16
Just go with clear eyes about what getting there
6:18
involves. Time this one for early morning. Beat
6:21
the heat and beat the crowds on the chains both
6:23
get worse as the day goes on. And check the weather
6:26
before you go, because that exposed ridge is
6:29
no place to be when an afternoon storm rolls
6:31
through. The Narrows is a different kind of experience
6:35
entirely, and in some ways a better one. You're
6:39
not climbing above the canyon, you're walking
6:41
into it. Into it. As in, you're in the river.
6:46
The bottom -up Narrows hike starts at the Temple
6:49
of Sinawava, shuttle stop 9, the last stop on
6:53
the line. A paved riverside walk leads you one
6:56
mile along the Virgin River to the point where
6:59
the canyon walls close in and the trail ends
7:01
and the river becomes the path. From there you
7:04
wade. The walls rise a thousand feet on either
7:07
side, close enough in places to nearly touch
7:09
both walls at once, and the light comes down
7:12
in ribbons. I have hiked in a lot of places and
7:14
the narrows still stops me. There is nothing
7:17
quite like standing in a river inside a stone
7:19
slot and looking up at a strip of sky a thousand
7:22
feet overhead. A few things to know before you
7:26
get your feet wet. The bottom -up hike requires
7:29
no permit you walk until you want to stop and
7:32
you turn around. Most people go to a section
7:34
called Wall Street, about three miles in, where
7:38
the walls are tightest and the canyon is narrowest.
7:41
That's a roughly nine -mile -a -day round trip,
7:43
so plan your time accordingly. The Narrows closes
7:46
when the Virgin River flow rate exceeds about
7:49
150 cubic feet per second, or when the National
7:52
Weather Service issues a flash flood warning.
7:55
Check the park's current conditions before you
7:57
go, not just a weather app, but the NPS flow
8:00
rate. The canyon can flood from a storm 20 miles
8:04
upstream under a perfectly clear sky where you're
8:06
standing. The Field Skills episode after the
8:09
Zion series covers exactly how flash floods form
8:12
and what to watch for. If you're planning the
8:15
Narrows, listen to that one first. On gear. Get
8:18
a walking stick. The park rents them, or you
8:21
can buy a cheap collapsible one. The river bottom
8:24
is slippery in a way that is hard to overstate,
8:27
and a stick will save you multiple falls over
8:29
a long day. Water shoes or neoprene socks are
8:33
worth it, especially in cooler months when the
8:35
river is cold enough to cause real problems if
8:37
you're unprepared. In summer, the water is refreshing.
8:41
In October, it is cold and moving fast, and people
8:44
underestimate it every year. Angels Landing and
8:49
the Narrows get 90 % of the attention, which
8:52
means everything else in this park is relatively
8:55
peaceful. Let me give you the honest picture
8:58
of the other trails. Observation Point is, by
9:01
most measures, a better viewpoint than Angel's
9:04
Landing. The trail is 8 miles round -trip and
9:09
climbs about 2 ,100 feet. It's more effort than
9:13
Angel's Landing, but it ends at a viewpoint that
9:17
looks directly down at Angel's Landing from above,
9:20
with the whole canyon laid out below you. No
9:23
permit required, and on a busy weekend, you'll
9:26
have a fraction of the company. I have been up
9:29
Observation Point, and I have been up Angel's
9:32
Landing, and the view from the top of Observation
9:34
Point, looking down at Angel's Landing from above,
9:37
with the whole canyon spread below you, is the
9:40
one I think about more. You can see the whole
9:42
shape of Zion Canyon from up there, in a way
9:45
the canyon itself doesn't allow. If you are fit
9:48
and have a full day, this trail is worth every
9:51
step of it. Emerald Pools is where you go when
9:54
you want scenery without suffering. A series
9:57
of three pools with waterfalls, connected by
10:00
trails that range from paved and easy to moderately
10:02
steep. The lower pool is half a mile from the
10:05
Zion Lodge, essentially flat and genuinely beautiful.
10:08
The upper pool adds more elevation and fewer
10:11
people. Good option for families. Good option
10:14
for a rest day between harder hikes. The Canyon
10:18
Overlook Trail is one I always recommend, and
10:21
almost nobody has on their radar. It's only a
10:24
mile round trip. with modest elevation gain,
10:27
and it leaves from the east side of the Zion
10:29
Mount Carmel Tunnel, the side you rarely hear
10:32
about. The view at the end looks out over the
10:34
canyon, and the white and orange slick rock of
10:37
the east side. No shuttle required, just drive
10:41
to the trailhead. The view at the end looks back
10:43
into the canyon from a perspective most visitors
10:46
never get. Do it in the late afternoon if you
10:48
can, the light on those walls from the east side
10:50
is something else entirely. And then there's
10:52
Kolob Canyons. which is technically the same
10:55
park, but almost nobody treats it that way. It's
10:58
a separate entrance off Interstate 15, about
11:01
30 miles north of the main canyon, and it offers
11:04
five -fingered red canyon country with almost
11:06
none of the crowds, a short, scenic drive, a
11:10
handful of good trails, and the option to connect
11:13
into serious backcountry. If you're there for
11:15
two or more days, spend an afternoon in Kolob.
11:18
It will recalibrate your sense of how crowded
11:20
the main canyon is. Let me add two more that
11:25
belong on the list, if you have time and the
11:28
right preparation. The subway is a slot canyon
11:31
in the Kolob Terrace area, a section of sculpted
11:34
sandstone that forms a curved, tube -shaped passage
11:37
over an emerald pool, and the name tells you
11:40
exactly what it looks like. Photographs of it
11:43
circulate endlessly on social media. Getting
11:46
there requires a permit, either a seasonal lottery,
11:49
or a day before drawing, and the bottom -up approach
11:52
is a moderate six -and -a -half -mile day with
11:55
creek crossings and boulder scrambling. It is
11:58
more committing than anything in the main canyon,
12:00
but less technical than true canyoneering, and
12:03
the canyon itself is as photogenic as anything
12:06
Zion has. Apply for the permit and treat it as
12:09
a bonus if you get it. Same advice as Angels
12:12
Landing. And then there is canyoneering, the
12:16
technical version of canyon exploration with
12:18
ropes, harnesses, and rappels. Zion is one of
12:22
the premier canyoneering destinations in the
12:24
world. Mystery Canyon, the Narrows top to bottom,
12:28
heaps canyon. There is a whole tier of this park
12:31
that most visitors never touch, accessed by rope
12:34
and technical gear, and a wilderness permit.
12:36
If that is in your skill set, Zion deserves a
12:39
dedicated trip built around it. If it is not
12:42
yet in your skill set, Zion is an excellent reason
12:45
to go learn. Either way. Permits are required
12:48
for all technical canyons in the Zion wilderness
12:51
and are available through recreation .gov. Hire
12:54
a guide if you are new to it. The consequences
12:57
of an error on a rappel in a slot canyon are
12:59
serious, and this is a craft worth learning properly.
13:04
One thing that gets lost in all the permit and
13:07
logistics talk, the canyon is alive in ways that
13:10
reward the people who slow down enough to notice.
13:13
California condors soar above the canyon walls.
13:17
The park has been part of the condor recovery
13:18
program for years, and they are spotted regularly
13:21
from the Angels Landing Trail and near the tunnel
13:24
on the east side. The first time I saw one overhead,
13:27
I thought it was something wrong with my eyes.
13:30
With a wingspan pushing 10 feet, a condor at
13:33
close range reframes your sense of scale completely.
13:36
Mule deer move through the riparian corridor
13:38
along the river, sometimes crossing the shuttle
13:41
road at dawn. Ring -tailed cats and spotted skunks
13:45
live in the canyon but are nocturnal and rarely
13:47
seen. And the bird life in the cottonwoods along
13:50
the Virgin River is exceptional. If you have
13:53
any interest in birding at all, the canyon sits
13:56
at that three -province junction we covered in
13:58
Part 1, which means species from desert, woodland,
14:02
and forest environments all overlap here. The
14:06
Virgin River itself is worth watching. After
14:09
a rainstorm upstream, it runs brown and fast.
14:12
That's the flash flood potential we keep mentioning.
14:14
But on a calm morning, it is clear and shallow,
14:17
and you can stand on the bank and watch trout
14:19
holding in the current. In a desert canyon, a
14:23
clear river full of fish is the kind of thing
14:25
that stops you in your tracks if you let it.
14:29
Let's talk honestly about timing, because Zion's
14:32
popularity is not a minor inconvenience. It fundamentally
14:35
changes the experience depending on when you
14:38
go. Summer June through August is the busiest
14:40
and hottest. The canyon floor sits at roughly
14:43
4 ,000 feet and bakes. Midday temperatures in
14:47
July regularly top 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The
14:51
shuttle lines are long, the trails are packed,
14:53
and the narrows can close from flash flood risk.
14:56
If summer is your only option, go early in the
14:59
morning and be somewhere cool by noon. The park
15:02
at 6 a .m. is a different place than the park
15:05
at 11. Spring and fall are the sweet spots. April.
15:10
May, September, October. More comfortable temperatures,
15:14
better light, thinner crowds. The Narrows in
15:17
October, with the cottonwoods turning gold along
15:20
the river, is one of those things that makes
15:22
you want to never leave. Spring brings wildflowers
15:26
and the risk of high water in the river check
15:29
conditions before hiking the Narrows in April
15:32
or May. Winter is genuinely underrated, and I
15:37
will say that plainly. I have been in this canyon
15:39
in January, with a light snow on the canyon floor
15:42
and almost nobody else around. And it is a completely
15:46
different place. The red walls against white
15:49
stone, ice on the hanging gardens, the river
15:53
dark and fast. Some upper trails may require
15:56
microspikes or traction devices, and the Narrows
15:59
is cold enough to demand a dry suit if you're
16:01
going in. But for photographers... For people
16:04
who want the canyon mostly to themselves, winter
16:07
is worth the planning. Just check what's accessible
16:10
before you drive three hours to find out the
16:14
upper trails are iced shut. One more honest timing
16:17
note. Weekdays versus weekends is not a minor
16:20
difference at Zion. A Tuesday in September is
16:23
a genuinely different park from a Saturday in
16:25
July. If you have any flexibility in your schedule,
16:28
use it. Midweek visits in the shoulder seasons,
16:32
late April, May, September, early October, are
16:35
as close to having this canyon to yourself as
16:37
you can realistically get. The shuttle runs faster,
16:40
the chains on Angel's Landing have breathing
16:42
room, and the narrows at 6 in the morning in
16:44
October with nobody else around is one of the
16:46
better things I have done outdoors. One thing
16:51
this show takes seriously, and I won't skip over.
16:54
Zion kills people from heat and dehydration.
16:58
at a rate that should be higher profile than
16:59
it is. This is a desert canyon. The sun reflects
17:03
off the red sandstone walls and raises the effective
17:06
temperature significantly. There's limited shade
17:09
on most trails, and the hikes are longer than
17:12
they look on a map when you factor in altitude,
17:14
heat, and the energy drain of a river environment.
17:18
The rule is simple. Carry more water than you
17:21
think you need, start drinking before you feel
17:24
thirsty, and turn around before the heat does
17:26
it for you. A liter per hour of active hiking
17:29
is the standard recommendation in hot conditions,
17:32
and the canyon in summer qualifies. Salty snacks
17:36
help your body retain that water. This is not
17:38
paranoia. It's why the rangers at the visitor
17:41
center hand you a piece of paper about dehydration
17:43
when you walk in. And the river in the Narrows
17:47
is not a substitute for carried water. It's silty
17:50
and untreated. Bring enough to drink. A filter
17:54
can help in a pinch, but is not a plan. Before
17:59
we leave the canyon, a few stops that earn their
18:01
place without any real effort. Weeping Rock is
18:04
a short half -mile round trip from Shuttle Stop
18:07
7. The trail leads to an overhang where water
18:10
seeps out of the sandstone in a constant drip
18:13
rain that fell on the plateau above and has been
18:15
working its way through porous rock for a thousand
18:18
years or more before it emerges here. Under that
18:20
overhang grows a hanging garden. Maidenhair ferns,
18:24
monkeyflower, columbine, moss. that has no business
18:29
being in a desert canyon. The contrast between
18:32
the red baking walls and that cool green pocket
18:35
is something I did not expect the first time
18:37
I walked in there. It is genuinely surprising
18:40
in a park where you think you know what's coming.
18:43
The trail is accessible and short enough that
18:46
there is no excuse to skip it. The Riverside
18:49
Walk is an easy one -mile paved path from the
18:52
Temple of Sinawava along the Virgin River. The
18:56
same trail that leads into the Narrows at its
18:58
far end. Even if you are not going into the river,
19:01
walk this. The canyon walls close in overhead,
19:04
the water is close and clear, and the hanging
19:07
gardens line the cliffs. Accessible to most fitness
19:10
levels, good for an early morning or a late afternoon
19:13
when the light is coming down the canyon in long
19:15
angles. It is not dramatic in the way Angel's
19:18
Landing is dramatic, but it is genuinely beautiful
19:20
and consistently underrated. Then there is the
19:24
east side of the park, which most people experience
19:27
only as the tunnel they drive through to get
19:29
somewhere else. That is a mistake. The Zion -Mount
19:33
Carmel Highway coming out the east side of the
19:35
tunnel opens onto a completely different landscape,
19:38
pale cream and orange slick rock, vast expanses
19:42
of cross -bedded sandstone, a horizon that feels
19:45
much wider than the canyon below. Checkerboard
19:47
Mesa sits right there. A rounded dome of Navajo
19:50
sandstone etched with a grid pattern from vertical
19:53
joints and horizontal bedding planes, looking
19:55
exactly like someone stretched a checkerboard
19:57
over a hill. Worth stopping and walking up to
20:01
it. Worth just looking at it. The Canyon Overlook
20:04
Trail is a mile -round trip from the east side
20:07
of the tunnel and ends at a viewpoint looking
20:09
back into the canyon, a perspective most visitors
20:13
never get because they entered from the south
20:15
and never drove the other. Direction. 20 minutes
20:19
of walking for a view that reorients everything.
20:24
A few honest things about what not to sweat over.
20:27
You do not need to do Angel's Landing to have
20:30
a great trip to Zion. The permit system is real,
20:33
the crowds on the trail are real, and Scout Lookout,
20:36
which requires no permit, gives you a view that
20:39
most parks would make their centerpiece. If the
20:42
permit lottery doesn't work out, walk to Scout
20:44
Lookout and call it a success. Don't let Angels
20:48
Landing become the thing your entire trip hinges
20:50
on. You do not need to do every major trail in
20:54
one visit. People try to run from Emerald Pools
20:57
to Angels Landing to the Narrows in a single
21:00
day and end up exhausted, overheated, and not
21:03
really present for any of it. Pick two things.
21:06
Do them well. Come back for the rest. And you
21:09
do not need to see the canyon only from the shuttle
21:11
stops. The Parus Trail runs along the river between
21:14
the visitor center and the start of the canyon
21:16
and is paved, flat, and allows bikes. It's an
21:20
easy morning walk with good bird life and canyon
21:22
views, and practically nobody treats it as a
21:25
destination. Same with the Watchman Trail, a
21:28
moderate climb out of the campground area with
21:31
some of the best views of the canyon's lower
21:33
end. Neither of these is a hidden secret, but
21:36
they're consistently overlooked in favor of the
21:38
headliners. If you get into the Kolob Canyon
21:42
section, add the Kolob Arch Trail to your list.
21:45
It is a moderate 14 -mile round trip to one of
21:49
the largest natural arches in the world, spanning
21:51
somewhere around 300 feet. You will share it
21:54
with a fraction of the people on Angel's Landing.
21:56
And when you stand in front of something that
21:58
size in a canyon that quiet, the scale of it
22:01
lands differently than it does in a photo. Most
22:04
people who visit Zion never make it to Kolob
22:06
Arch. which tells you something about how much
22:08
of this park stays quiet even now. And a note
22:13
for people who brought bikes or want a slower
22:15
pace in the canyon. The Parus Trail is the only
22:18
trail in Zion open to bicycles, running paved
22:22
along the Virgin River from the visitor center
22:24
up toward the canyon entrance. On a morning before
22:27
the shuttle lines form, it is a genuinely pleasant
22:30
way to move through the lower park. Flat, paved,
22:33
river views. Good bird habitat in the riparian
22:37
corridor. Not a destination trail, but a good
22:40
way to start a day before things get busy. So
22:44
the shape of a good Zion visit, ride the shuttle,
22:47
book the Angels landing lottery but don't plan
22:49
your whole trip around it, hike the narrows on
22:52
a low water day with the right footwear and a
22:54
weather check, and spend at least one afternoon
22:57
somewhere that isn't on everyone's highlight
22:59
reel. The park is bigger and quieter than most
23:03
people realize. You just have to want to find
23:06
that. Next episode is Part 3, Where to Stay.
23:10
Zion Lodge inside the canyon, the two campgrounds,
23:13
Springdale, and how to use the surrounding BLM
23:16
land to find the space that Zion Canyon doesn't
23:18
always have. The Field Skills episode after the
23:22
Zion series is Flash Floods, specifically how
23:25
they form in slot canyons under clear skies and
23:27
what to watch for. If the Narrows is on your
23:30
list, that episode belongs on your list too.
23:33
Everything for the Zion series, permit links,
23:35
shuttle schedule, current conditions is at wildlandsnews
23:39
.com. I'm Sean Spanauer. This has been Wildlands.
23:47
Know the land before you reach it. See you Thursday.