I had the opportunity to spend a week in Utah last October. I've finally finished editing and uploading photos, so I figured I'd share some of my favorites here as well as some quick write ups of my travels. Hopefully this can facilitate some escapism among those (like myself) that are currently stuck inside.
Day 0: Kanab Dinosaur Tracks
Upon a late-afternoon arrival to my friend's apartment in Kanab, we took a quick nighttime hike up to a set of dinosaur tracks located along a ridge not far off of US 89, perhaps about a mile outside of town to the north. The hike was a bit rugged but short and the tracks were pretty neat to see. The trail doesn't appear to get much use, which was shocking- if there were a short hike to dinosaur tracks anywhere on the east coast, it'd be a pretty popular hike.
No photos unfortunately- as this hike was conducted entirely in the dark.
Day 1: Zion National Park: Angel's Landing, Emerald Pools, and the Narrows
Link to full photo album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/nsYnRTNmp7c3QDGY6
Day 2 I dedicated to the main Zion Canyon, which is the more popular part (by far) of Zion National Park. The main canyon is accessed via a shuttle bus system- you park at the visitor center and then hop on a bus which takes you up into the canyon, stopping at various points of interest and trailheads along the way. Even late in the season and on a week day, there was no shortage of shuttle buses- they ran every 5 minutes or so. There's also an interpretive audio tour that plays on the shuttle bus during the ride, pointing out various geographic and geologic features and talking about the history of the park.
There was also no shortage of visitors, either, although I never found the park to be overly crowded (at least not beyond my expectations and my accordingly tempered willingness to encounter lots of other visitors). I'm sure weekends during the height of the tourist season can be a different matter entirely, however.
My first destination of the day was to climb Angel's Landing. The first 3/4ths of the hike was fairly straightforward- decently uphill (enough to get the blood moving pretty good and to necessitate occasional breaks to catch my breath) but not all that challenging otherwise. Once you get to Scout's Lookout is where the real fun begins- the trail follows a precipitous ridge, with sheer drops on either side- easily 500+ feet on the right side of the trail, and 1,000+ feet on the left side of the trail. It was a puckering experience to be sure.
To be honest, though- I think it looked (and felt) a lot more exposed than it actually is. With one exception that I can remember where the trail is a mere 2 feet wide or so, for the most part any slip or trip is pretty unlikely to actually send you over the edge. There's steps cut into the rocks, and also a system of chains for added stability. However, given the hikes popularity bottlenecks do form along the ridge- and the really sketchy thing that I observed frequently was hikers who left the trail to scramble around particularly slow movers... and passing much to close to the edge for comfort, in my opinion. I did also pass a few slower moving hikers, but I waited for a good spot to do so each time, and announced to them that I was going to pass them so that they had the opportunity to at least be prepared to share the narrow trail with me for the second or two that it took me to scramble up past them.
The views from Angel's Landing were nevertheless spectacular, and it's easy to see why the hike is so popular. I guess the Park Service will on busy days limit the number of hikers by posting a ranger at Scout's Landing and only allowing a few hikers at a time to start further up the trail (and there's talk of a permit system in the future) but on my mid-day visit at least, the summit wasn't too crowded.
My next hike was to the Emerald Pools, a set of pools on the west side of the main canyon, beneath cliffs that turn into a waterfall if and when it rains. Honestly, the pools were kind of lackluster after Angel's Landing, but there were still some nice views from the trail to the pools.
After Emerald Pools I decided to check out Zion Narrows, another of Zion's quintessential hikes. Permits are needed to thru-hike the Narrows (generally a multi-day trip), but no permit is needed to day hike the Narrows from the downstream end.
Most who hike the Narrows rent dry suits and wear boots- so I certainly stood about a bit in my crocs. Still, the crocs gave good grip even on the wet rocks and even though the water was cold, I found it bearable for a few hours of hiking. At it's deepest it came up to just shy of my waist, but for the most part it ranged between knee and thigh deep. I traveled probably at least 1 mile up up the Narrows before turning back, but with all of the twist and turns it was hard to keep track of the exact distance.
My last stop of the day was a short hike out to Canyon Overlook on the east rim of the main Zion Canyon for sunset.
Day #2: Kanab Cliffs
Link to full photo album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/RZutZywXdGg6mqPx8
On my second day, I took a short hike up the Kanab Cliffs Trail just outside of Kanab. Apparently the Kanab Cliffs Trail is to Kanab what the Mt. Baker Trail is to Saranac Lake, or the Cobble Hill Trail is to Lake Placid- a short climb just on the outskirts of town that is frequented by the local populace.
It was a short but nice climb with some decent views. The trail could use a little more maintenance in spots but generally speaking it was in pretty good shape.
Continued in next post...
Day 0: Kanab Dinosaur Tracks
Upon a late-afternoon arrival to my friend's apartment in Kanab, we took a quick nighttime hike up to a set of dinosaur tracks located along a ridge not far off of US 89, perhaps about a mile outside of town to the north. The hike was a bit rugged but short and the tracks were pretty neat to see. The trail doesn't appear to get much use, which was shocking- if there were a short hike to dinosaur tracks anywhere on the east coast, it'd be a pretty popular hike.
No photos unfortunately- as this hike was conducted entirely in the dark.
Day 1: Zion National Park: Angel's Landing, Emerald Pools, and the Narrows
Link to full photo album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/nsYnRTNmp7c3QDGY6
Day 2 I dedicated to the main Zion Canyon, which is the more popular part (by far) of Zion National Park. The main canyon is accessed via a shuttle bus system- you park at the visitor center and then hop on a bus which takes you up into the canyon, stopping at various points of interest and trailheads along the way. Even late in the season and on a week day, there was no shortage of shuttle buses- they ran every 5 minutes or so. There's also an interpretive audio tour that plays on the shuttle bus during the ride, pointing out various geographic and geologic features and talking about the history of the park.
There was also no shortage of visitors, either, although I never found the park to be overly crowded (at least not beyond my expectations and my accordingly tempered willingness to encounter lots of other visitors). I'm sure weekends during the height of the tourist season can be a different matter entirely, however.
My first destination of the day was to climb Angel's Landing. The first 3/4ths of the hike was fairly straightforward- decently uphill (enough to get the blood moving pretty good and to necessitate occasional breaks to catch my breath) but not all that challenging otherwise. Once you get to Scout's Lookout is where the real fun begins- the trail follows a precipitous ridge, with sheer drops on either side- easily 500+ feet on the right side of the trail, and 1,000+ feet on the left side of the trail. It was a puckering experience to be sure.
To be honest, though- I think it looked (and felt) a lot more exposed than it actually is. With one exception that I can remember where the trail is a mere 2 feet wide or so, for the most part any slip or trip is pretty unlikely to actually send you over the edge. There's steps cut into the rocks, and also a system of chains for added stability. However, given the hikes popularity bottlenecks do form along the ridge- and the really sketchy thing that I observed frequently was hikers who left the trail to scramble around particularly slow movers... and passing much to close to the edge for comfort, in my opinion. I did also pass a few slower moving hikers, but I waited for a good spot to do so each time, and announced to them that I was going to pass them so that they had the opportunity to at least be prepared to share the narrow trail with me for the second or two that it took me to scramble up past them.
The views from Angel's Landing were nevertheless spectacular, and it's easy to see why the hike is so popular. I guess the Park Service will on busy days limit the number of hikers by posting a ranger at Scout's Landing and only allowing a few hikers at a time to start further up the trail (and there's talk of a permit system in the future) but on my mid-day visit at least, the summit wasn't too crowded.
My next hike was to the Emerald Pools, a set of pools on the west side of the main canyon, beneath cliffs that turn into a waterfall if and when it rains. Honestly, the pools were kind of lackluster after Angel's Landing, but there were still some nice views from the trail to the pools.
After Emerald Pools I decided to check out Zion Narrows, another of Zion's quintessential hikes. Permits are needed to thru-hike the Narrows (generally a multi-day trip), but no permit is needed to day hike the Narrows from the downstream end.
Most who hike the Narrows rent dry suits and wear boots- so I certainly stood about a bit in my crocs. Still, the crocs gave good grip even on the wet rocks and even though the water was cold, I found it bearable for a few hours of hiking. At it's deepest it came up to just shy of my waist, but for the most part it ranged between knee and thigh deep. I traveled probably at least 1 mile up up the Narrows before turning back, but with all of the twist and turns it was hard to keep track of the exact distance.
My last stop of the day was a short hike out to Canyon Overlook on the east rim of the main Zion Canyon for sunset.
Day #2: Kanab Cliffs
Link to full photo album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/RZutZywXdGg6mqPx8
On my second day, I took a short hike up the Kanab Cliffs Trail just outside of Kanab. Apparently the Kanab Cliffs Trail is to Kanab what the Mt. Baker Trail is to Saranac Lake, or the Cobble Hill Trail is to Lake Placid- a short climb just on the outskirts of town that is frequented by the local populace.
It was a short but nice climb with some decent views. The trail could use a little more maintenance in spots but generally speaking it was in pretty good shape.
Continued in next post...
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