“Dad,” Kyra said a few months ago, “I’ve never been backpacking. Can you take me sometime?”
Of course! We talked about some options, and given her limited time off work, we settled on “something in Utah”. Last year’s epic Canyonlands trip with Thom came to mind, and I worked out a route through the Needles District (which he and I hadn’t explored). I scouted campgrounds, presented my plan to Kyra for her approval, and went to make arrangements for the backcountry permits. I was dismayed to learn that permits for Canyonlands are available in the spring, sell out almost immediately, and thus weren’t available for an October trip. Back to the drawing board.
Zion, it turns out, has a completely different reservation system (why?) and permits are available a month prior to departure. Again, they’re snatched up immediately, but I managed to get in the three-minute window and snag the ones I wanted. We were set for a trip to Zion.
Our first morning dawned with a crystal-clear blue sky and temperatures in the 50s (it would warm up later in the day) so we headed to the Zion shuttle station. Only the official NPS buses are allowed to run up and down Zion Canyon, so you have to wait in line to jump on a bus. And what a line it was! It felt like a morning at Disneyland…
This photo doesn’t even do it justice– the line snaked back and forth well outside the frame. We made our way through this morass of people for about 45 minutes before finally boarding a bus. That adjusted my plans for the day a bit; we’d have to take these incredible crowds into account when considering the timing of everything. I guess I’m used to smaller crowds on my backpacking trips in late September and early October, but in southern Utah the temperatures hover in the 70s and the days are beautiful, so people gravitate there (much more than, say, the North Cascades).
As we wound our way through the canyon and eventually hit our first trail of the day, I was in awe of the scenery. Glacier has incredible vistas of valleys and mountains, and Zion mirrors that with canyons and sandstone cliffs. Here’s a view south through the canyon:
These sheer orange cliffs are stunning…
… Especially when you’re at the base looking up.
We’d originally planned to hike the Narrows. Thom and I made that hike nearly twenty years ago, and I brought the whole fam on our 2015 road trip, so I was hoping to repeat that awesome trek through the water. However, the water was running high: nearly three times its normal flow, with a water temperature around 50 degrees. So instead of ankle- or perhaps knee-deep cool water, the Virgin River was a torrent of chest-deep frigid water. In the words of the park ranger who’s navigated the Narrows hundreds, of time, the hike was “outside her fun zone”. Instead, we took a few smaller hikes in Zion Canyon.
As the afternoon waned, we had to make our way to our first campsite. It was in a neighboring area called Wildcat Canyon, which was advertised as having “outstanding views of Zion Canyon”. However, as we traversed the trail, we were disappointed. Large outcroppings of rock blocked our view of that area.
Nonetheless, we found a good site and set up camp. It was a cool area, despite the lack of views as promised.
Kyra did well hiking that day. I think we covered around eight miles.
The night was chilly (probably around 40 degrees) but we were both cozy in our sleeping bags and tent. It was Kyra’s first night in a tent that wasn’t in a campground, and as we enjoyed some breakfast and hot cocoa in the cool morning air, she remarked that it was pretty awesome.
Our backcountry permit for the next night was in Kolob Canyon, but we learned that part of the road had washed out and we weren’t able to get to the trailhead for the area. There’s an alternate trail that goes “the long way around”, but it was something like ten miles each way, and wouldn’t fit in our schedule. Instead, we decided to hike a different part of Kolob Canyon and then head home a bit early.
But first, we donned our eclipse glasses.
The annular eclipse occurred while we were driving up to the Kolob area, so we pulled over at a little roadside stop and spent about twenty minutes admiring the celestial phenomenon. It was funny to see other people stopped alongside us, or just along the shoulder of the road, staring through their eclipse glasses.
Kyra was impressed.
Although we weren’t in the area where the full “ring of fire” was visible, we were close. It was cool to watch, and I’m looking forward to next year’s total solar eclipse.
We continued up to Kolob and started our hike of the canyon. The trees were in full autumn color, and it was an absolutely beautiful hike.
We covered about six miles, stopping frequently to admire the sandstone and the leaves.
As we approached the end of the out-and-back trail, it looked like it might slip into a slot canyon. Kyra was excited because she’s never hiked in a slot canyon, but it turned out the trail simply ended abruptly. We hefted our packs, turned around, and returned the way we’d come. By the end of the hike, she was pretty worn out. We’d done nearly twenty miles in two days, which is far more than she’s accustomed to walking. Good for her!
We hopped back in the car and headed north, stopping for dinner at Olive Garden and absolutely gorging on breadsticks. It had been a great trip, and hopefully one that convinced her we should go backpacking again. Although the scenery was stunning, my favorite part was just spending time with my favorite girl.