Zion National Park

After flying into the Las Vegas airport, and visiting the Valley of Fire, we visited at Zion National Park. To be honest, I was a little intimidated by this park. During the months of February through November, the only way to get into the depths of Zion are through shuttle bus. Up until two weeks before we left, the park was using tickets to control the number of people riding the shuttle. They had just discontinued that system, but I knew that attendance was up at every national park in the area. The other thing that worried me was that the main parking lot for the shuttles is the Visitors Center lot. If you do not get a spot in that lot, you must park in paid lots in the nearby town (Springdale) and ride a shuttle bus to the park shuttle bus route. The town’s shuttle bus system only runs until 6 pm. Since the hike I really wanted to do was the farthest stop on the park shuttle system, I was worried about enjoying my time in the park while watching the clock. The whole reason I enjoy national parks is because there is no sense of time (normally) while I am enjoying gorgeous views or fun hikes! And then there’s that hot weather I’ve been mentioning….

My fears were not necessary, however. Because of the time change between Valley of Fire and Zion not being in our favor, we arrived at Zion at 2:30 pm. This actually worked out well, since many people left in the afternoon due to the heat – we had many spots in the Visitors Center lot to choose from. By the time we visited the bathrooms, refilled water, scoped out the Visitors Center area, and such, there was a park system shuttle waiting for riders (no line!). We hopped on (masks required), and rode all the way out to the Temple of Sinawava. We wanted to do the Riverside Walk (2.2 mile) trail to the beginning of the Narrows. Most of the other stops were actually closed due to large rockfalls, so this was one of the only hikes that we had on our list that was still open.

The Riverside Walk was fantastic – none of the members of my family complained about the length, as the walk was on mostly paved, smooth paths, and there was a lot of shade to be had. There were plenty of beautiful views of the river and the big rock walls the whole way. You could also see waterfalls and hanging gardens. Then, when we got into the river for the section of the Narrows we did, the girls had such a blast! They loved the cold water and the fun of trying to walk anywhere (my husband wasn’t so sure…hahaha).

Though we really, really enjoyed the views from the Riverside Walk and the Narrows, we also loved the drive out of the park. You are allowed to drive your car on the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway, which goes off to the East from the park. If you are headed to any of the other national parks in Utah, there is a good likelihood that you have to go this way anyway. You get to drive up the East Rim through a series of switchbacks and tunnels.

We loved all of the canyon views and the Checkerboard Mesa. There was definitely so much to see in Zion, and we hope that next time we go, the rockfalls will not limit what we can see/do! This was one of my favorite stops in our trip because of how amazing the views were everywhere you looked!