Never did I imagine that my friend's flight would be cancelled! It was, and I was struggling for an idea to somehow have her arrive in Vegas. Luckily, an hour later, she said a replacement plane would fly her over. Whew! Crisis averted. This set back our plans by a lot, so we stayed in Vegas to grab a bite to drive to eat. Afterwards, it was a 2.5 hour drive through absolute darkness. It was 1 AM by the time we rolled into the campsite (thankfully reserved). The chill of the night and the wind immediately drove us into our tent.

Why did I mention this? Well, when we woke up, our jaws dropped. Since we missed all the scenery on the drive into Zion, the beauty we woke to in the morning simply stunned us. It was a very welcoming sight!

We head out into town so my friend could get a jacket. The town of Springdale has a moderate grocery store, outfitters stores, restaurants, coffee shops, and some hotels. Sorry everyone, no chain stores here; everything is local.

Zion National Park

We found out that the shuttle service in the park had began its operating season early (Usually April through October). So, we happily hopped on. The shuttle has two parts with plenty of seats, though it did get crowded in the afternoons, and at some points, standing room only. Around 45 minutes later, we arrived at Temple of Sinawa, the final stop and our destination. The nice thing about this spot is that there are public bathrooms and a place to refill bottles before venturing in. The path starts out paved, before it abruptly ends at the river. Either turn around for a leisurely walk back or forge on!



We gingerly placed our feet into the river, and immediately felt a cold shock. The river is freezing! As we continued our trek upstream, we realized that yeah, it's better to rent some dry pants or a dry suit for the cold water. We decided to charge forward, knowing that going back into town and starting the hike over again would take a very long time. As we continued, we marveled at the high canyon walls, which made the arduous hike upstream, navigating the river crossings and slippery rocks worthwhile.






My friend wanted to stop just before Orderville Canyon. I decided to continue further, and found that the canyon width is even more narrow, with more majestic views. The trail led to some pools with a deep blue with a hint of emerald green.




As I made my way back out to the main branch of the Virgin River, I stood in shock at the spectacular afternoon sunlight beaming all around the canyon. I feel so lucky to have witnessed something as special as this.



I sighed, taking in as much of the beauty as I could, and turned around, heading back to where my friend sat relaxing so we could continue back to the trailhead. On the way back, we noticed several things: There were a lot more hikers like us (not well equipped). There were many without water (huge NO. Always carry water with you, especially when you go hiking). The sun made its way overhead, warming up the water, which made for an enjoyable trek back. Also, walking downstream is so much easier. Props to salmon and steelhead trout who swim upstream every year to lay eggs. We made it back to the trailhead, and sat, relaxing, taking in all the wonders of the Narrows.

Shuttle stop: Temple of Sinawava
Trail: The Narrows
Duration: 6-8 hours round trip (for day hikers reaching Big Springs), depending on speed and experience (*Another option: Heading upstream for a short distance for the experience and then turning around)
Length: 9.4 miles round trip (to Big Springs)
Outfitters: Zion Adventure Company in Springfield, Utah

Afterwards, we stopped by the Weeping Rock to squeeze in a land-based hike. This hike is very short, and very steep. The nicely paved trail leads to an overlook where beads of water stream down the sandstone face, forming a beautiful curtain. For this hike, I didn't adjust the camera settings well, so no photos because they're all very blurry.

Shuttle stop: Weeping Rock
Trail: Weeping Rock
Duration: 1/2 hour round trip
Length: 0.4 miles round trip

Cheers!
Cat