As mentioned, visiting Zion and the southwest was something of a spontaneous thing – with not much preliminary research – driven more by a desire to get away and a continuation of our efforts to visit some of the National Parks.  The November timing meant somewhere in the south.  Zion fit the bill – sort of most of the Grand Canyon, without all the Canyon stuff…

We had 3 days of hiking planned for Zion.  Reading most internet sites, the Angel’s Landing hike is, by far, the most dramatic, mainly due to the knife edge near the end, supported by chains bolted into the rock.   Though with that drama, also comes popularity and crowds – which we tend to avoid.  Instead, our plan was to hike Observation Point on one day, the Kolob Arch trail on another, leaving the third day left available for some spontaneity.   Of course, there are many trails, so we opted for a few which would give us a good overall park experience.

For lodging, we stayed at the Cable Mountain Lodge.  Wonderful place, location couldn’t be beat – walking distance to the park entrance – and certainly big enough for us to ‘spread out’ for a few days.  The room had a serviceable kitchen area, with sit-down table, a large bathroom, and a couch.  Would definitely recommend it.  Oh, and did I mention the outside hot tub – with an unmatched view (check out the photo to the left).

Observation Point Hike

This was our first day out on the trails – the weather was slated to be mid-60’s, cooler in the morning.  Just right for hiking!   Not knowing what to expect for crowds and all, we set out early.  The park still had the intra-park shuttle running, so it was a short walk to get onto the shuttle, and dropped directly at the trail head.

The trailhead stop – at Weeping Rock trail – followed the stop for Angel’s Landing, so it was a relief that the nearly-full shuttle, emptied but for us and another couple – it meant fewer on the trail.   Hoping off the shuttle, it was exciting to see a grazing deer – definitely a nice way to start off a vacation to the National Parks!  Some last minute gear adjustments, and we were on the trail, ascending nearly immediately!   There’s general consensus on the internet was that this hike is strenuous – some switchbacks, and a fairly constant ascent, but the footing was good (unlike our New Hampshire rocks!)

It was still early in the day, only shortly after 8am, which brought some vivid contrasts to the scenery; setting the stage for a beautiful hike.   At this hour, we didn’t pass anyone on the trail – quiet and relatively secluded.  And as we began to gain elevation, the scenery became more and more breath-taking, bringing us through a canyon, then out into a cirque.   As we neared Observation Point – we began to meet up with a few people, who’d set out earlier than us.   Speaking to one person, we discovered he was good friends with the son of one of our friends – small world!

Shortly afterward, we reached Observation Point.  True to its namesake, we had stunning views looking southward of the Zion Canyon itself, enabling us to look down at the Angel’s Landing – you could barely see people walking out to that vantage point – ants on a hill!

It was still relatively early in the day – shortly after 10am when we arrived at the point.   There were a few other people at the point, but not very crowded at all, enabling us to be in the moment and soak up some of the beauty of the park.   We sat for a bit, and enjoyed our trail lunch – consisting of blocks of cheese, baby carrots, and pieces of chicken-apple sausage.   yum, good protein!

It was hard to leave – the view was just stunning, but a few more people were gathering, disrupting some of the quietude, so it was time to shove off…

The descent was just as stunning – still more beautiful scenery – what was in the rear-view mirror on our way up.  And we did pass many more people headed up – probably 2 dozen or more – especially as we descended further.

As we finished up, and before hoping on the shuttle, while in line for a quick pit stop at the rest rooms, we were exchanging stories with some other hikers.  They suggested we check out Bryce – only a few hours away, and some good hiking as well. As Jeanne says, all it takes is for someone to plant the seed – and they did.  You can read more about Bryce in another posting.

Kolob Arch Hike

Our second planned hike in Zion was to Kolob Arch, nestled in the Kolob canyon section of Zion.   Billed as one of, if not the longest natural arch in the world, it sounded worthy of a bit of effort to see it.   This hike, while not listed as strenuous, it is long, over 15 miles, with the trailhead beginning on the western side of the park.  That meant we had to drive nearly an hour to get to the trailhead.

As usual, we were up and out early – not knowing what to expect for crowds, parking spaces and all.    We arrived at the west gate, shortly before their 8am opening – to be greeted with a surprise – veteran’s day weekend, the park was free. In we went, joining only a few other cars at the trailhead.  Getting our gear together, we set off.

Interestingly, the trail begins with a descent – nearly all of our hikes ascend mountains (!) – but meaning, we would be ascending at the end of the day when we were tired. That’s just what the trail brings.   Giving up nearly 1000 feet of elevation over the course of 3 miles or so, the footing was good, so we made good headway pretty quickly.

Unlike Zion Canyon itself, the immediate scenery was punctuated by trees (scrub-bark junipers?), and the amber/reddish walls of the Kolob Canyons towering to the east of the trail.    Being in a canyon doesn’t offer the same sort of  stunning vistas such as we had from the day before, but there was still much to see.

Passing through an area known as ‘the confluence’ – merging of the La Verkin and Timber creeks – dry river beds at this time of year, one could imagine the torrent of flash floods, or the persistence of running water in carving the canyons eons ago. This trail was even less traffic’d than the day before – in total we saw less than a dozen people the entire hike, oddly enough evoking thoughts of being completely isolated from civilization.  On the one hand being the goal of taking more remote trails, but slightly unsettling none the less.

A good portion of this trail follows the La Verkin creek, running east-west through the canyon.  The trail itself was frequently sandy, making the going sometimes difficult in a different sort of way. Turning northward, there was a short (~0.5mi), well-marked spur which lead to the arch itself.  It too, followed a creek bed – this one had some running water, and again, showing signs of significant erosion/wear both from floods and deep, running water.

Reaching the end of the spur seemed a bit anti-climactic – it seemed to just end in the woods at a small clearing section.   We didn’t see anything that looked like an arch, until we looked up (where else would an arch be??).   The arch was still far off in the distance – but still an impressive sight to see.

We took a bit of time to sit by the creek and enjoy a trail lunch – with not a soul around.  Nice to be away from it all.    But soon enough, it was time to make our way back.  Did I mention this trail was long?   and sandy?   It was a long day, and a different experience both from the day before, and our more typical hiking days in the mountains of New Hampshire.    Enjoyable nonetheless.

Read about our spontaneous day-trip to Bryce Canyon.