So,
On Friday the 27th I drive up to Zion National park with 2 guys from LA. We met Joe and Adam (2 guys from TX) in the park and dropped off my car at the East Rim Trailhead in Zion. Then we all piled into Joes rental car and drove up to Cedar City. We ate dinner at a pizza place called Centro (delicious) and piled 5 dudes into a Days Inn room. The next morning we woke up and drove to the Kolob Canyons section of the park. We parked at Lees Pass put on our packs and Started hiking into our first campsite. La Verkin Creek #4.
Here is a map of the entire trip as we hiked it in case you're interested. 58+ miles.
The day started out kind of grey but quickly the skies cleared.
La Verkin Creek Falls
We made Camp at Site #4. Zion has a system where you have to reserve specific backcountry campsites in high traffic areas. Since we had a group of 5 we were limited only to the sites were reservable online and, that could fit a group that size. Site #4 was only about 5 miles from the trailhead so the hiking with a big pack on was over pretty quick. We sat for a bit and decided that since it was only lunch time we'd go to Kolob Arch "POSSIBLY the worlds longest spanning arch"
It was another 2.6 miles down the trail. We cruised there and saw this...
Kolob Arch
The light would've been much better in the morning. The viewpoint was blocked by trees and the arch was just generally unimpressive and distant. Especially when you've been to Arches NP and Canyonlands NP. We decided to slightly disregard the viewpoint and do some rock climbing to try and get a better view. It sort of worked.
at least I managed to get the trees out of the way.
Next to the bluff I climbed to there was a spring pouring directly out of the rock face creating a shower on the rocks below.
On the walk back to camp.
Some sort of wierd albino toad.
Cat tracks. Either bobcat or young Mountain Lion. My shoe for size comparison.
Evidence of Beavers was everwhere.
That night it was a bit colder than we'd all anticipated but everyone was in good spirits and feeling good physically.
The next day we repeated a bit of the same trail to a junction with the Hop Valley Trailhead. Hop Valley had been billed in trip reports as a sort of boring cow pasture. A mix of private and public land and something to get through. It was absolutely stunning. Completely undersold. We spoke to some locals who said that due to all of the rain and snow this winter the valley was green when it would usually be brown and muddy.
Some Pictures.
Back at the Kolob Arch Trail Junction
We had to filter and fill up on at least 5 liters of water at Beatty Spring. That's at least 11 extra pounds we were each carrying. The next reliable water source was 18 miles away. We couldn't drink from the Hop Valley creek because of the cattle.
At the junction.
Dylan is in most of the hiking pictures because he could keep up with me.
A huge balanced rock but the light was wrong again.
Matt
Dylan
We had made a plan at the beginning of the hike to always meet up at trail junctions. This way everyone could hike as fast/ slow as they wanted and take pictures, make films, not get lost, etc. That day we had the pleasure of one of the junctions being right next to a trailhead. We got to use toilets, throw away trash and eat lunch in a bit of shade.
Hikers have a lot in common with homeless people.
We still had 10+ miles to go so we packed up and made our way onto a connector trail. It wasn't very scenic but it would link us up to the Wildcat Canyon trail where there was a spring and open dispersed camping.
The junction with the Wildcat trail.
Since I was first I laid out my mat and took a nap while my feet aired out waiting for the rest of the guys to show up.
Northgate peaks in the distance. About the only scenic thing on this stretch. Though it was nice to walk through a old forest and in the shade.
We reached the Wildcat Canyon as the sun was getting lower.
Dylan and Adam in the Wildcat Canyon area
A view down wildcat canyon.
Joe and Matt are the tiny specks in the top right of the meadow.
We found the spring, filtered, filled, and drank a ton of cold delicious water. Then we had to find a flat spot to camp since the landscape looked like this.
Hills all around that fall into a canyon.
Eventually we found a campsite about 19 miles from where we'd started the day. It wasn't perfect but the sun was setting and it worked.
The next morning we had another big day ahead of us so we packed up pretty quick and got hiking. When I had reserved the sites online the best I could do was a site 7 miles from where we were, Site #8. Since it was a really flat day we were SUPER lucky to change it to site #1 at the wilderness desk which was more like 12 miles away. Lucky because that would take 5 miles off of day 4 which was going to be monster day and also because the water source next to site #8 was dry but the spring next to Site #1 was flowing.
Today had been billed as walking through a burn area (hot no shade) but really really scenic in the reports we'd read. It was both of those things.
Starting out the day.
Old farm Equipment near the west rim trailhead and Sawmill spring
Adam Matt and Joe headed into sawmill spring
The promised burn area. Super hot and shadeless with a big climb to get out of it.
Once we got out of the burn the views really opened up. We could see the entire East side of Zion.
Adam
Dylan
Island in the Sky
Super Narrow slot canyons
A few panoramas.
That nights camp was amazing. We could look down upon the main Zion canyon as the sun set. We also had deer going through camp almost constantly in the evening.
The 4th day we woke up and hiked down into the main canyon after a stunning sunrise and breakfast.
The hike down was really steep and really scenic. Once we got to the middle section things became really green and lush.
Bridge over a slot canyon.
My feet on bridge trying to show how high it was. (didn't really work)
Another super lush little crack in all that rock.
We booked it down the canyon to get to one of the most famous hikes in Zion, Angels Landing, before it got too crowded.
The top of that fin is Angles Lnading
It stands out into the main canyon.
Part of what makes it so famous is that for most fo the hike you have a good 6 feet of trail and 2000ft cliffs on both sides.
Fall off and you're dead.
View From halfway up.
View from the top.
It was already pretty crowded up there by 9 am.
Looking 200ft down at the Virgin river and a parking lot.
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There was a surprising amount of wildlife up there.
The chipmunks were super aggresive.
Dylan
Dylan trying to die.
The group shot.
Joe
Joe and Adam
Me.
Me trying to die.
You can barely make out switchbacks going straight up the other side of the canyon. That is where we were headed next.
The walk down was FULL of slow moving people who were super terrified of the hike and clinging to the chain for dear life. It was a little like Disneyland. We'd all be grouped up waiting for one group to come up a little bit of a climb then the next group would wait for all of us to go down. It took a while to get to the bottom.
The trail up from the main canyon was paved... and full of people who were never going to make it.
We had a short road walk to the next trailhead.
Halfway through the road walk we detoured to the virgin river and did a polar bear plunge / laundry (no pics on account of partial nudity)
We successfully climbed out of the canyon and had a rain shower in the afternoon before reaching stave spring and the next camp. Again no pictures b/c this day had almost 7kft of up/down and was 14 miles long. (5 miles shorter than originally planned thanks to snagging site #1 at the wilderness desk)
We camped that night in the East Rim area. In the morning we woke up to frost on our tents and packs. While I was packing up I looked for my keys since my car was at the East Trailhead which we would reach in a few hours.
Nowhere
to
be
found.
I emptied my pack.
Still nothing.
I had either left them in the Hotel room in Cedar City or In Joes car at the opposite side of 5 days of hiking...
We surmised that there was no cell service at the East trailhead and therefore no reason to hike out to my locked car. We hatched a plan to hike back into the main canyon where there were rangers to ask questions of, Tourist to ask for rides, and cell service.
On the hike back into the main canyon I snuck a few cell phone shots.
When we reached the main canyon we took the shuttle with a bunch of clean people who were clearly offended by our stink to the wilderness office. There they had the names of a few shuttle companies. Joe and I would ride back to lee's pass and get his van. $70 for a 1.5 hour ride. Cool. We rode with a guy who chatted us up about the area and the park. When we got to the car my keys were THERE!!!!
We drove back to springdale where the rest of the guys were hanging out eating massive amounts of food on a restaurant patio. Joe had to have his rental car back to Vegas by 4:30 so we said our goodbyes and Joe and Adam left to return the car and be on a flight back to TX by 8pm. I drive the 6 hours home dropped of Dylan and Matt got in his car and drove back to LA.
It was a really great trip and we were lucky to have such a wet year. The scenery was beautiful and the company was great.
The end.
Coming up on the blog next week we have a 7 year old girl birthday sleepover party... hip... hip...ugh...
