Utah. Flood or Fall? Treacherous Hikes of Zion Canyon
I’m not an adrenaline junkie when it comes to outdoor activities. While water doesn’t bother me, I have a healthy fear of heights and falling. So, where can someone test such phobias? Zion National Park is located in the southwestern part of Utah, near the town of Springdale. The park is positioned at the intersection of three geographic regions: the Great Basin, Colorado Plateau, and Mojave Desert. Averaging 300 days of sunshine every year, its dry climate is refreshing. Zion also has the distinction of having several world class trails. The group I was traveling with had a twofold objective. First, we would hike “The Narrows,” a slot canyon along a portion of the Virgin River. The trail involves wading through waist-high water within an area subject to dangerous flash floods. With that task complete, we would hike up to the most perilous section of the Angel’s Landing trail. Rather than risk our lives on this trail segment, we would hike to Scout Overlook before returning to the valley.
It has taken the Virgin River more than 270 million years to cut through layers of Navajo and Kayenta sandstone to form Zion Canyon. The area is extremely dry with water mostly restricted to bottomlands. Along rocky slopes there is Utah juniper, pinyon pine and ponderosa pine, Big Basin sagebrush, and rabbitbrush. The park’s mammals include bighorn sheep, mountain lion, fox, deer, rock squirrels, and the petite kangaroo mouse. Although found in the park, black bears are rarely seen. Zion has a long history of human occupation. Ancestral Pueblos farmed upper regions of Zion Canyon while Piute hunted and gathered foods along the river. It is believed that Nephi Johnson was the first European to see the Narrows in 1856. Later, Mormon settlers constructed canals through the canyon for irrigating crops. The area was first protected in 1909 as Mukuntuweap National Monument and redesignated as Zion National Park in 1919. Today, the park protects 593 square kilometers including more than 500 square kilometers of federally protected wilderness.
We parked our rented Chrysler Pacifica van near the park’s southeast entrance. Demand for the Narrows hike is high, so we arranged for our permit and equipment rental well in advance. Our rental equipment included heavy water-proof boots and Neoprene socks for warmth and padding. It was mid-March and water temperatures were still relatively low, so we also rented bibs that kept us dry up to our armpits. I elected to wear a quick drying synthetic shirt covered by a Gore-Tex rain jacket. A drybag provided protection for my phone and a rented wooden pole helped with navigating the rocky and uneven river bottom. Private cars are not allowed on the park’s scenic road during the peak season (March through late November). After picking up our equipment, we boarded the free shuttle bus to the Temple of Sinawava stop (12.4 kilometers from the park entrance). The shuttle route follows the Virgin River, making stops at Canyon Junction, the Court of the Patriarchs, and other points of interest.
The Narrows is a thin section of Zion Canyon (aka Mu-koon’-tu-weap meaning “straight canyon”). In one area, canyon walls are less than two meters apart. Centuries of erosion have shaped the canyon with periodic flash floods having done much of the work. Zion Canyon has steep sandstone walls that reach to heights of more than 600 meters. Although it’s possible to complete a one-way hike through the entire Narrows portion of canyon, we elected to walk several kilometers upstream and then return the same way. A concern was that violent flash floods can happen with little notice. During flash floods, the river’s water level rises from a half meter or less to two meters or more in a just a few minutes. Floods can be challenging to predict because they can be triggered by storms more than 30 kilometers away. We were careful to consider the day’s weather before finalizing our plans.
Disembarking at the Temple of Sinawava shuttle stop, we followed a 1.6-kilometer trail called Riverside Walk towards Gateway to the Narrows. Beyond this point it is impossible to avoid walking through deep water. The river water is murky-grey and the channel bottom, covered with gravel bars and rocks. In a few places the water level rose to waist level. Looking upwards, the red and yellow-white canyon walls had smooth sides that transitioned to shelves at higher levels. The further we walked, the narrower the canyon became. We continued past a 33.5-meter-high trickle of water flowing down the sandstone called Mystery Falls. The river current pushed hard against us when we made each of a half-dozen crossings. We found it helpful to use our wooden staffs for stability as we side-stepped the channel. The current is generally fastest near the center and along the outside of curves. After passing Narrows and Grotto alcoves, we began our return hike.
The next day we made plans to hike part-way up the Angel’s Landing (aka the Temple of Aeolus) trail. We rode the shuttle to the Grotto stop and crossed to the west side of the road. Nearby, a park ranger reminded hikers that anyone making the final ascent was required to have a permit. The permit system was implemented a few years ago to address crowding and safety concerns. Visitors can apply in advance or be fortunate enough to be assigned a “day before” permit. The Angel’s Landing Trail was constructed in 1926. The path became steeper soon after we left the valley floor. We continued upwards into an area shaded by ash and maple trees known as Refrigerator Canyon. After 20 minutes of hiking, we reached Walter’s Wiggles. The Wiggles are a series of 21 switchbacks, each about 7.5 meters long. They were named after Walter Ruesch, the park’s first superintendent. Climbing above the switchbacks, we arrived at Scout Lookout (3.2 kilometers from the valley floor), the last stop for those not interested in making the final 0.8-kilometer ascent up a rocky hogsback. On reaching Scout Lookout, hikers have gained 450 meters in elevation. The final Angel’s Landing segment is strenuous and dangerous as it transitions to a narrow path with sharp drop-offs. Since the trail has been open there have been 18 confirmed deaths. The hogback trail is not recommended for persons who have a fear of heights (like me). In a few places hikers can grip metal chains for stability. In lieu of continuing to the top of the Landing, we followed the West Rim Trail to a place that offered excellent views of the Angel’s Landing hogback, Zion Canyon’s red-orange rocks, and the Virgin River.
