Mapped: The 16 Least-Crowded Zion National Park Hiking Trails for Avoiding People
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Loading... - Abigail Thompson
- 11 Apr 2022
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TRYING TO AVOID PEOPLE in Zion National Park’s main canyon is like trying to avoid its sand — you can’t really do it. Each year, millions of people visit the park to see southwestern Utah’s rust-red cliffs and striking sandstone formations. Most visitors enter through the nearby town of Springdale, take a shuttle down Zion Canyon Scenic Drive, and congregate on a handful of hikes, which can mean long wait times to get see landmarks like Angels Landing and The Narrows (and tons of people in your photos). And Angel’s landing requires a permit now, by the way.
Far fewer visitors begin at the east entrance (along Route 9) or at the Kolob Canyon Entrance to the north, leaving a surprising amount of the park relatively untouched. For adventurers looking to experience the more remote and rugged Zion national park hiking trails, we’ve teamed up with the outdoor recreation app AllTrails to scope out the 16 least-crowded options. These are those trails, with firsthand feedback from hikers who’ve done them.
Note: There’s no guarantee that these trails won’t be crowded, since the number of AllTrails recordings is influenced by factors like extreme summer heat, the average age of visitors, and the length of the trail — the shorter it is, the less likely a user may be to record it. But they will give you a general sense of which trails have the greatest chance of being empty. AllTrails is free for anyone to join and access trails, but you’ll need a pro membership if you want to be able to download and follow the maps while offline.
What are the most popular Zion National Park hiking trails?
1. Angels Landing Trail
Distance: 4.4 miles
Elevation gain: +/- 1,604 feet
Difficulty: Hard
Number of 2021 recordings: 6,677
Angels Landing isn’t just Zion’s most popular trail. It’s up there with the most famous trails in the entire US National Park System. The trail’s sandstone formation got its name in 1916 when minister Frederick Vining Fisher declared it so tall that only angels could land there. On average, more than 550 daring hikers record a trek to prove Fisher wrong each month. It can be a bit scary as the final stretch is a narrow ridge with 1,000-foot drop-offs, though there is a chain railing to help steady hikers. Even if you don’t make it to the end, Angels Landing is a leg-burning hike with a beautiful plateau roughly 500 feet from the top that makes a nice viewpoint if you don’t go to the end. The trail begins at the Grotto Trailhead at the sixth stop of the Zion Canyon Shuttle.
2. Watchman Trail
Distance: 3.1 miles
Elevation gain: +/- 636 feet
Difficulty: Moderate
Number of 2021 recordings: 3,566
The Watchman Trail is an excellent choice for hikers entering the park from the main entrance who want a steady yet moderate incline that yields views of the Temples and Towers of the Virgin (a sweeping string of monoliths on the west side of Zion Canyon), as well as Watchman Peak, which marks the end of the trail. The trail is conveniently less than a mile from the visitor center, so there’s no shuttle necessary, which likely helps explain why it’s one of the most popular Zion National Park hiking trails. If you’re looking to add on some mileage, try combining the Watchman Trail with the 3.4-mile out-and-back Pa’rus Trail, which begins on the opposite side of the Virgin River and winds up at Canyon Junction Bridge, one of the park’s most-photographed spots.
3. Zion Canyon Overlook Trail
Distance: 1 mile
Elevation gain: +/- 187 feet
Difficulty: Moderate
Number of 2021 recordings: 2,373
Spanning just one mile out and back, the Zion Canyon Overlook Trail is more about the views than the workout. It’s one of the few official trails in the park’s Upper East Canyon and cannot be reached by shuttle, so you’ll need to park near the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel off Route 9 to access the trail. The (relatively) easy trail has a shady section at the halfway mark where you can stage a photoshoot surrounded by verdant ferns, then continue on for the panoramas at the end. With railings running along much of the trail, this is a great choice for groups with kids, although the drop-offs can be somewhat steep, and you’ll still want to mind where you’re walking.
The least-crowded Zion National Park hiking trails, from most to least trafficked
1. Deertrap Mountain via Stave Spring Trailhead
Distance: 10.6 miles
Elevation gain: +/- 1,233 feet
Difficulty: Hard
Number of 2021 recordings: 79
The Deertrap Mountain Trail has no dedicated trailhead. Hikers access it via the East Rim Trail for a 20-plus-mile round-trip out-and-back hike, or can start at the Stave Spring Trailhead, which cuts the hike roughly in half. While much of the trail is relatively flat, expect ups and downs in the home stretch as the final few miles traverse multiple hills in the upper plateau. Along the way, hikers can expect to pass foliage ranging from ponderosa pines to wildflowers, depending on the season, but it can also get overgrown and muddy. This is one of the best Zion National Park hiking trails if you want a view of Angels Landing (from Deertrap Mountain) but don’t want to deal with the Angels Landing crowds. More information.
2. Coalpits Wash
Distance: 7.2 miles
Elevation gain: +/- 524 feet
Difficulty: Moderate
Number of 2021 recordings: 56
Like much of Zion’s backcountry, Coalpits Wash is an exercise in scrambling up loose rocks. But unlike on the more harrowing trails, the biggest obstacles here are overgrowth and questionable trail markings. The trail up the wash starts fairly gentle — mostly flat with a few steeper sections and lots of muddy areas — and eventually yields to some easy bouldering. With little competition from other hikers, Coalpits Wash is a nice place for beginner backpackers to overnight at the campsites along the route. The trail also intersects Scoggins Wash (listed below) and the two can be done in tandem as a loop for a more exciting day hike. It truly is a “moderate” trail, both in terms of distance and elevation gain. More information. Read More...
