Zion National Park - Hiking, Camping & Backpacking

5 days of Hiking, Camping & Backpacking in Southern Utah’s Zion National Park.

We’ll be doing 3 different trips:
A West Rim Backpacking Trip
Exploring & hiking the Frontcountry Zion National Park area while car camping in Springdale, Utah.
Backcountry camping on a top-down Narrows hike, ending at the Zion visitor center back in Springdale.

Objective #1: Backcountry camp on Zion Canyon’s West Rim
Trailhead Used: West Rim Trailhead, Near Lava Point Overlook.
N37° 22.899′ W113° 01.370′

West Rim Itinerary, Day 1:

Park at the West Rim Trailhead near Lava Point.
This is a gravel lot with parking for a half dozen cars or so. It’s about a 40 minute drive from Springdale, Utah. The latter part of the drive is a dirt road, cars should be fine with a bit of care.
Head south on the West Rim Trail
Camp at West Rim campsite #4 N37° 17.144' W112° 59.030'

West Rim Hike-In Mileage: 8 miles
West Rim Hike-In Gross Elevation Gain: 1,073

West Rim Itinerary, Day 2:

Backtrack north on the West Rim Trail
Return to the trailhead lot near Lava Point.
Ghost town pit-stop in Grafton, Utah
Continue on to Springdale, Utah.
Have some tacos at the Whiptail Grill, right next door to the campground.

Objective #2: Explore Zion National Park’s Frontcountry & Springdale, Utah.

Zion Frontcountry / Springdale Itinerary. Day 1:

Take the free Zion bus, or a short walk north to the Zion National Park entrance.
Take the bus from the visitor center to Big Bend.
From the Big Bend bus stop, take the trail south along the Virgin River to Weeping Rock.
Road hike a bit along the Mount Carmel Highway.
Hop a bus back to the Zion Visitor Center.
Explore Springdale, eat some ice cream at the Zion Candy Company.

Objective #3: Hike and Backcountry Camp the Narrows, from the Top Down.

Trailhead: Chamberlain’s Ranch Trailhead (aka Zion Narrows Upper Trailhead)
N37° 23.121′ W112° 50.339′

Note: This was an end-to-end hike that required us to park a second vehicle at the Zion visitor center in Springdale to use as a shuttle back to the starting point.

Zion NP – The Narrows, Top-down Hike Itinerary, Day 1:

Park at the Narrows Upper Trailhead.
Head southwest on the trail, which is actually dirt road, for the first 3 miles.
Continue to follow the trail along the Virgin River, through the Narrows.
This trail is very easy to follow, as it is literally the river. A majority of the time is spent walking in the river bed in ankle deep to knee deep water depending on conditions, depending on current water-flow conditions.
Note for reference: The ccf reading during our trip was roughly 40 CCF. Anything under 50 ccf is considered ideal. Above 100 cfs, conditions can be difficult and hazardous. At 130 ccf, top-down narrows hikes will be closed. At 150 ccf, bottom up Narrows hikes will be closed. During a flash flood, flows can exceed 1000 cfs.
Setup camp at the Narrows campsite #12. N37° 19.982' W112° 57.373'

Narrows Day 1 Hiking Time: 7 Hours

Zion NP – The Narrows, Top-down Hike Itinerary, Day 2:

Break camp & continue south along the Virgin River.
Exit the trail & catch a bus at the Temple of Sinawava shuttle stop.
Return to the Zion Visitor Center
Drive to retrieve starting vehicle

Narrows Day 2 Hiking Time: 4 Hours

Notable Gear Seen:

Disclosure: This post & video contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through my links. Cross reference, do your own research and make your own decisions, duh ;)

[NewEnglandwilderness]

Angels landing was right by the entrance and visitor center st Zion. It was a paved switchback all the way up. To the top is narrow, handrails, drops on both sides. Great hike and vistas.

[mrrims]

Utah is so unique! It's a must place to visit.

[johnchry]

The OV guys are great and their stuff is solid. I have a bunch of their gear and I’m happy with it. The pack can carry a lot of weight and it’s very comfortable. Priced well too. Glad they gave you the opportunity! Keep it up!

[MegaSusanc]

Hey, awesome video as always 😀
Thank you for the hard work and time you put into these videos. 🤗HUGS🤗

[vshybeej]

I just saw this video. Excellent by the way!!! Thanks for sharing it. My best friend, her family, those are their relatives in that Grafton Cemetery. We've been there several times with her family and extended family. They go there every year over memorial day weekend and clean up the cemetery. I went down there with them for several years. It's been a few years now since I've seen this cemetery.

[jaxmaria]

Thanks.. you made it feel like we were right there with you... great job doing your video! I’m a fan!

[MegaMastiffman]

Very cool trip love outdoor vitals gear

[RyanTheWebGuy]

I did Bryce, Zion and Grand Canyon rim to rim in September. What a great month. This is awesome.

[LoveWander]

Thanks for sharing my family and i love Zion and Utah that looked like a adventure of a lifetime.

[FrozensAdventures]

Great scenery and video as always. Looks like the guys at OV are pretty awesome too!

[Chaucerfaux]

Absolutely lovely. All of that looked super fun, you're lucky to have been invited on that little excursion with O.V.

[KarlEQuist]

Yes! So glad you made it to this area! Your 2nd trip to Utah if I remember right. I love my state, . It's hard to beat the kind of natural diversity found here. 5 national parks!

[davidson_oldbull_sectionhiker]

Spectacular video my step daughter and a friend just returned from Zion.

[jlg]

Wow what a great video!! This should be a tv show!! Im so serious!!!

[jamiemurphy]

Have a great time thanks for the update and I'll be watching it later on

[WildlandExplorer]

If you liked Zion you would probably love Grand Gulch in Utah. No crowds; trailhead is accessible but the area is very remote.

[billfoteyjr]

That was a great trip Sean thanks for bringing us along

[dominicbarratt]

What a way to finish Sunday dinner:) got some good viewing after some good eating. Great. Thanks mate👍🏻

[GoTrails]

Thanks for sharing this beautiful view

[dannywhitlock]

Awesome hiking adventure in Zion National Park with amazing panoramic beautiful scenery. I subscribed to your channel just last week and I’m enjoying watching your hiking adventures, I’m from Ga and I love the outdoors and especially the Smokey Mountains 🏔. Thanks for sharing, enjoy and have a Blessed Sunday !!! Danny