Last updated: April 4, 2024

In my efforts to see all of America’s national parks, I jumped at the chance to take a nine day group travel adventure with GAdventures to hike the five national parks in Utah. These parks are affectionately referred to as The Mighty Five by national park nerds like myself and include: Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, and Zion.

What I didn’t realize at the time of booking was what a beautiful journey I’d experience and the amazing people that would accompany me. Utah is already beautiful with all it’s rock formations, but the five national parks it holds are truly spectacular.

Accommodations

After spending the day at Bryce Canyon, we loaded up and drove 2.5 hours to Zion Canyon RV Resort & Campground. We had planned to hike Watchman’s Trail when we arrived, but they had the trail closed due to the search of a 79-year-old hiker. They later found him (alive and well). We grabbed some special hiking gear to hike The Narrows the next day (water shoes and hiking sticks) and settled into camp. I was pretty wiped out from the day, so I showered and crashed out (in a tent this time as there were no cabins available!). 🏕

Zion National Park

Let’s talk about Zion National Park. At over 4 million visitors each year, this park is quite popular and it’s a pretty amazing:

• The oldest of Utah’s Mighty Five
• Fourth most visited national park
• Only 3 hours from Las Vegas
• The first Anglo-European settlers, Mormon pioneers, arrived in the area in the late 1800s. They named the area Zion, which is ancient Hebrew for sanctuary or refuge.
• Before Zion National Park was called Zion, it was a monument known as the Mukuntuweap National Monument and was first protected in 1909 by President William Howard Taft. After 10 years, the park expanded and was renamed Zion. It became established as a national park on November 19, 1919.
• 148,733 acres
• Due to an overwhelming number of visitors, the park eliminated vehicle traffic on the 6.5-mile scenic drive. Visitors during the off-season can still drive their own cars but must take the Zion Canyon Shuttle System during the shuttle season.

We arrived about two hours before the first shuttle was scheduled to arrive so we could be the first in line and not have to wait. It’s a good thing we did because before too long, the lines were miles long. People likely waited hours just to get on a shuttle, which wasted precious daylight.

We hopped off at the 6th stop for the Grotto Trailhead, which is the start to one of Americas most dangerous hikes, Angels Landing. We crossed the hiker’s bridge over the Virgin River and followed the paved trail north and up the west side of the canyon. After almost two miles of hiking, we landed on the West Rim Trail and then the real hiking began as we entered Walter’s Wiggles.

Walter’s Wiggles is a series of switchbacks that takes hours to accomplish. I didn’t even know what a switchback was before this, but any mention of switchbacks now and my legs involuntarily start shaking. These 21 steep, zig-zag switchbacks were honestly the most ingenious engineering of a trail I’ve ever seen as it’s literally carved into a cliff. The are named after Walter Reusch, the parks first superintendent who, in 1926, constructed these crazy switchbacks which are the last hurdle before reaching Scout Lookout to the Angels Landing summit.

Scouts Landing ends Walter’s Wiggles and is the turnaround point for those unwilling to tackle Angels Landing. Although my legs and lungs begged me not to do it, I headed toward Angel’s Landing with determination to finish the remaining 2.2 miles left of this epic (albeit quite dangerous) hike.

Angel’s Landing was coined in 1916 when Frederick Fisher, a Methodist minister, stood in awe of its majesty and stated only an angel could land on it.

It is considered one of America’s most dangerous trails and for good reason. To date, 13 people have fallen to their deaths.

I don’t know what else to say about this hike other than I’ve never hugged and clung to so many strangers in my life. There is no room to turn around, let alone have a left and right lane of traffic. This hike has crowds of people and when you’re going up and their coming down, there’s no choice other than to hold onto each other and climb over top of each other. Seriously; be prepared to get your snuggle on with total strangers. It will happen.

UPDATE: As of April 2022, a permit system is now in place for Angels Landing due to the crowds being dangerous and unmanageable. Apply for the seasonal lottery well in advance or the day-before lottery to hopefully win your chance to do this hike. Details can be found on the NPS Angels Landing Permits page.

There are several times during this hike that you’ll think you are at the top. Do not be fooled. You still have further to go.

I actually did make it to the top, and my hair tells the tale of what it took to get there. Enjoy the views!

Getting back down was it’s own adventure and although it’s downhill, it’s still STEEP and was not easy. Once I made my way to the bottom of Angels Landing, I made my way back down those insane switchbacks and landed right back where we started. If you ever decide to do this, plan for six hours; four hours up and two hours down. What I would have liked to do is have lunch on the top of Angels Landing, so add some time for that if you decide to go that route. After all that hiking, a 45 min lunch at the top would be a good idea.

So, I made my way back to the beginning of Grotto Trailhead, but alas, we were not finished. The Narrows awaited!

The Narrows is the narrowest section of Zion Canyon. This gorge, with walls a thousand feet tall and the river sometimes just twenty to thirty feet wide, is one of the most popular areas in Zion National Park. The hiking shoes are a must as they allowed my feet to stay a comfortable temperature and allowed me to navigate the rocky river bed.

Now, I’m no longer a young whipper snapper, so there was no way I was finishing this 15 mile water hike. What I would have liked to do is take a day for Angels Landing and then a second day for The Narrows to have time to really enjoy the experience in it’s entirety. Because we only had one day, we had to cram both of the very strenuous hikes into about 10 hours. It was rough, but I’m so glad I experienced both of these adventures.

The next morning, we skedaddled out of Utah and I said my goodbyes to the beautiful rock formations and gas stations carved into mountains.

Utah really is a mind blowing place with all of the gorgeous rock formations. I would love to hear about your Utah adventures, especially if you’ve been to Zion.