Backpacking

Zion - Featured Trips Inside the Park.jpg

Zion - Featured Trips Outside the Park.jpg

Featured Trips Inside the Park

The Zion Narrows - Top-down Backpacking Trip

Permits and Reservations

Online Reservations -- IMPORTANT: when reserving permits online, all you need is a campsite. The capacity of your campsite will be the number of people you can bring in your party. There's no need to reserve additional top-down day use permits on top of that.

Permits & Overnight Parking Pass -- While picking up your permits from the Zion Visitor's Center, don't forget to get a free overnight parking pass for any vehicles you'll be leaving in the parking lot. I'd also recommend checking with the rangers on additional campsite options. Only half of the campsites in the Narrows are available online. In our case, we were able to snag a site further downstream, which gave us a shorter hike out on the second day.

Shuttle Reservations -- It's a 1.5 hour drive from the Zion visitor's center to the Narrows trailhead at Chamberlain's Ranch. If you have multiple vehicles and some time to spare, you can set up your own shuttle with a car at the top & bottom of the trail. If you'd rather save yourself 3 hours of extra driving time, shuttle rides to the top of the trailhead run around $40 per person. Most of the gear rental shops provide that service. If you don't go with them, use Red Rock Shuttle.

Gear Rentals -- The gear you rent will depend on the time of year and water temperature. At the minimum, you'll need a basic gear package, which includes a pair of neoprene (wetsuit) socks, water resistant canyoneering shoes, and a walking stick. For two days, that came out to roughly $48. Once temperatures start cooling off (i.e. October), you may need to rent some drysuit pants as well (another $30-40). If you don't have one already, you'll also certainly need to rent a large dry bag for an unavoidable swimming section on day two (see below).

Campsite -- The night before your Narrows trip is one instance I'd recommend staying at Watchman or South. They're right next to the Zion Visitor's Center, and make transport that much easier for your early morning wake-up call.

What to Pack

Water Filter & Purification Tablets -- You'd probably be fine with just a filter. Per the rangers' recommendation, because cattle ranchers are upstream, we brought purification tablets as well.

Water Resistant Clothing -- It's especially important that your pants/shorts are not made of cotton. Anything else that absorbs water will feel like a brick in your pack.

Day of the Hike

Shuttle Ride -- budget two hours from the Visitor's Center parking lot to the start of the trailhead. For example, we left the parking lot at 9am, started our hike at 11am.

Hiking Time -- Because you're hiking through water, this hike takes much longer than expected. With an 11am start time, we arrived at our campground (#5) at 5:30pm. If you're down at site #12, budget additional hour.

Unexpected Challenges

Mileage -- Everyone will tell you it's a 16 mile hike from top to bottom. Straight down the middle of the river, that's absolutely true. Tracking our mileage on a pedometer, we were baffled why it read 23 miles. Then we realized that throughout the entire hike, we were had been zig zagging across the river, which was unavoidable to safely navigate the current. Just be prepared for a harder hike than you're expecting.

Photography -- The difference in exposure levels between the bright sky and dark canyon floor was tricky in photos. Everyone had their own methods of keeping their phones dry. Ziploc Bags were a pain. A waterproof phone or case would be really awesome here.

Fuzzy Intruders -- Field mice were really aggressive at the campsite. Normally not worth mentioning, but they chewed through my friends' bags within an hour of putting our gear down. Bring some paracord to hang your food from trees.

Swimming -- There's a 40 ft. long section on Day 2 where you'll swimming with your pack on. Pack your gear on Day 2 so your important items are safe in your dry bag.

Resources

Bearfoot Theory - Hiking the Narrows (Permits and Planning)
Joe's Guide to Zion - The Narrows Top-Down

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The West Rim Trail (Lava Point to the Grotto) - Top-down Backpacking Trip

Summary - An 18.5 mile descent featuring all the best grandiose views of Zion Canyon. This trip starts from the upper West Rim, with each viewpoint improving as the trip progresses. The big finale is a picturesque hike down through the White Cliffs into Zion Canyon near the Angel's Landing trailhead.

Permit required if you're splitting it into a two-day backpacking trip (no permit needed for a day trip)

Resources

Joe's Guide to Zion - West Rim Trail, Top-down from Lava Point

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Featured Trips Outside the Park

The Barracks/East Virgin River

Summary - Located on the East Fork of the Virgin River, The Barracks is considered by some to be even more beautiful than its close North Fork cousin, the Zion Narrows. Preparation is key for this 20 mile one-way hike through remote Zion canyons, which will require strong navigational skills as you backpacking through tight, sustained narrows in knee to chest deep water. Coordinated shuttle rides are mandatory on this remote thru hike. You also have the risk of flash flooding anytime you're in a narrow canyon. Don't let the logistics of a Barracks adventure scare you--the beauty and solitude are legendary.

This trek is on BLM land--no permit required!

Resources

Canyoneering USA - The Barracks, Zion National Park
Youtube - Jamal Green - Zion to Arches 02: The Barracks (see video link below)

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Water Canyon to Canaan Mountain

Summary - A backpacking adventure with an optional canyoneering route through a fun watery narrows that leads to the beautiful elevated views of Canaan Mountain slick rock and surrounding wilderness. This adventure is located about an hour south of Zion. The best time to plan is spring and fall, as the hike takes up most of the day, and the exposed landscape on upper Canaan Mountain gets incredibly hot. Strong navigational skills and equipment are required, because it’s easy to get lost in the upper sections of this hike.

This trek is on BLM land--no permit required!

Resources