Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
chapter 3, see “Hikes & Other Outdoor Pursuits in Zion National Park”; also see
chapter 9, “A Nature Guide to Zion & Bryce Canyon National Parks.”
For a unique hiking experience as well as a close-up look at the power of water,
venture into the
Narrows
★★★, a section of the Virgin River, where the canyon
walls are less than 30 feet apart in spots but stand over 1,000 feet tall. To travel
between these delicately sculpted rock walls, you'll hike and wade. The Narrows
can be experienced as a short day hike, a long 1-day through-hike, or an overnight
hike—although caution is needed because the Narrows is prone to flash flooding.
For details, in chapter 3, see “Hikes & Other Outdoor Pursuits in Zion Nation-
al Park”; also see chapter 9, “A Nature Guide to Zion & Bryce Canyon National
Parks.”
An often-overlooked area of Zion National Park is the
KolobCanyons
section,
in the park's northwest corner. With its narrow canyons and brightly colored cliffs,
this is a somewhat different world than Zion Canyon. There's a scenic drive with
spectacular overlooks, and several hiking trails. See the section “Seeing the Park by
Car and Shuttle,” below, as well as “Hikes & Other Outdoor Pursuits in Zion Na-
tional Park” in chapter 3.
Wildlife Viewing &
bird-watching
It's a rare visitor to Zion who doesn't spot a critter of some sort, from
muledeer
—often observed
along roadways and in campgrounds year-round—to the numerous varieties of lizards seen from
spring through fall, including the park's largest lizard, the
chuckwalla,
which can grow to 20
inches long. There has been an increasing number of sightings of
desertBighornsheep
and
even an occasional
mountainlion
along Utah 9 (the Zion-Mt. Carmel Hwy.), on the east side of
the park. Along the Virgin River, you'll see
bankbeaver,
so named because they live in burrows
dug into riverbanks instead of dams.
If you're interested in spotting birds, you're in luck at Zion. The
peregrine falcon,
among the
world's fastest birds, is sometimes seen along the Angels Landing and Cable Mountain trails and
in the area of the Great White Throne. It sometimes nests in the Weeping Rock area, where you're
also likely to see the American dipper, canyon wren, and white-throated swift.
Baldeagles
some-
times winter in the park, and you might also see golden eagles.
Red-tailedhawks
are fairly com-
mon, as are great blue herons, American kestrels, Gambel's quail, mourning doves, great horned
owls, western kingbirds, common ravens, piñon jays, Steller's Jays, yellow-rumped warblers, wild
turkeys, and American robins.
Snakes include the poisonous
GreatBasinrattlesnake,
found below 8,000 feet elevation; there
are also nonpoisonous king snakes and gopher snakes. Amphibians found in the park include
the Arizona tiger salamander, Great Basin spadefoot, red-spotted toad, and northern leopard frog.
Tarantulas,
those large, usually slow-moving hairy spiders, are often seen in late summer and
