Zion National Park
Exploring Zion National Park
USA
When planning the trip, I wasn’t sure if Zion National Park was worth the hype and the inconvenience of taking the shuttle bus into the park. But once I got a glimpse of the massive sandstone cliffs towering over us like a castle in the sky, it was all worth it. We spent 2 days at the park and thought that was a good duration to see the sights along the valley.
We parked our car at Springdale and took the Springdale shuttle to the entrance of the park, it cost $12 USD for all day parking. The wait for the bus was about 10 minutes and it took you to the area near the visitor center. The bus was crowded but we managed to squeeze in!
On our second day in the park, we took the shuttle to "The Grotto" stop to hike the West Rim Trail up to Scout Lookout. This hike is a must do at Zion! The trail was a very steep 305 m ascend with 21 switchbacks, but it was mostly paved and was very doable even with a baby on our back.
Prior to doing the research, we didn’t know that it was the same trail for the famous Angels Landing, where you dangle off the side of a cliff holding a chain and people have fallen to their death!
The hike up to Scout Lookout was very scenic, with areas to look back down the series of switchbacks and an area where you need to stay quiet in order to not disturb the wildlife.
We didn’t hike the Angels Landing but had lunch when we got to the top of Scout Lookout. We didn't let Aliya out of the carrier as the edge of the viewpoint were sheer drop-offs. If you keep going up the West Rim Trail for a few more minutes, you can see the thin area that people hike to get to Angels Landing.
Once we got into the park, the Zion park shuttle buses came more frequently, we never had to wait more than 10 minutes for the shuttle during peak hours. We rode the shuttle all the way to the last stop, which was the stop for The Narrows.
During our visit, The Narrows was open as the flood risk was lower, and many other visitors were donning the waders to walk up the cold river into the canyon. We were able to use a stroller to walk through the easy 1.5 km Zion Riverside Walk trail and turned around when we reached the river crossing.
On our way back on the shuttle we stopped at the weeping rock where the majority of the trail was stroller friendly but the last portion required us to carry Aliya, as there were some stairs and the trail was steep. The Weeping Rock in Zion National Park is a unique rock formation, and is named after the constant flow of water that seems to "weep" from its porous sandstone surface.
The water originates from a hidden spring, slowly seeping through the rock layers before cascading down in delicate droplets. As sunlight filters through the lush vegetation surrounding the rock, it creates a magical scene, with the water shimmering and glistening like tears.
Next, we stopped at the Museum stop to check out the displays. We were lucky that there was a Ranger presentation happening at the same time, and we got to learn about the history of the valley and the challenges that the people lived here faced.
The back of the museum faces a meadow which leads to some cliffs in the distance. A very picturesque backdrop to the museum and learning about the park.
Gazing up at the towering sandstone formations will forever be etched in our minds, as the park is so unique with such a rugged landscape. Make the trip and explore this magnificent natural marvel. Happy exploring!
