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Beautiful Photos of Zion National Park

All photos from Zion: The Complete Guide

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Exploring The Narrows, Zion National Park. Located at the northern tip of Zion Canyon, The Narrows is one of America’s most incredible adventures. Stretching 16 miles from start to finish, this narrow slot canyon — less than 20 feet wide in places — boasts sandstone walls towering over 2,000 vertical feet. There is no official trail in The Narrows. Visitors must walk, wade and sometimes swim through the Virgin River, which carved this magnificent landscape over millions of years. You can explore The Narrows bottom-up as a day hike, or spend two days backpacking the entire length of the canyon top-down (permits required). + Want to hike or backpack The Narrows? Check out my new guidebook “Zion: The Complete Guide,” which features detailed trail descriptions, topo maps, and essential hiking tips. jameskaiser.com/zion #zionnationalpark #thenarrows #geology #utah #narrows #zioncanyon #visitutah #zionnarrows #virginriver #coloradoplateau #findyourpark #goparks

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Zion National Park, where clear desert air and low light pollution reveal a night sky powdered with stars. ⠀⠀ If you’re not looking up when the sun goes down in Zion, you’re literally missing half the show. The park’s best stargazing is at high-elevation areas such as Kolob Canyons, Kolob Terrace and East Zion. ⠀⠀ While scanning the night sky, look for the Pleaides. The Southern Paiute believe this seven-star constellation is a family of seven Paiutes who fled to the sky after a dispute with their father, Tu-rei-ris. When Tu-rei-ris saw them in the sky, he grew enraged and turned them into pootsis (stars). The family retaliated by turning Tu-rei-ris into a coyote. Today you can still hear coyote howling at the stars to mourn his lost family. ⠀⠀ Adapted from “Zion: The Complete Guide” ⠀⠀ #zionnationalpark #zionnps #astronomy #stargazing #findyourpark #goparks #utah #coloradoplateau #visitutah

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Descending Keyhole Canyon in Zion National Park. Canyoneering is the art and science of descending rugged slot canyons through a combination of hiking, scrambling, climbing, swimming and rappelling. The sport was born in southern Utah in the 1970s, when rock climbers started using their gear to go down instead of up. After descending previously inaccessible slot canyons, they discovered psychedelic cathedrals of stone and light, sculpted by flash floods over thousands of years. Zion National Park is home to some of America’s best slot canyons. Although guided canyoneering isn’t allowed in the park, outfitters just outside Zion offer canyoneering classes. For a list of the best outfitters, pick up a copy of my new guidebook “Zion: The Complete Guide” #canyoneering #zionnationalpark #eastzion #utah #coloradoplateau #geology #findyourpark #goparks #visitutah #navajosandstone #sandstone #keyholecanyon

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If Zion Canyon didn’t exist, East Zion would still be worthy of national park status. The same Navajo Sandstone that forms enormous cliffs in Zion Canyon blankets East Zion in rolling waves of rust-colored rocks. A 10-mile road weaves through the Martian landscape, providing access to great hikes, fabulous slot canyons, and stunning slickrock scenery. Around 200 million years ago, Utah was home to the largest sand dune desert that ever existed on earth, covering nearly 150,000 square miles. In Zion, the sand gathered to a depth of 2,200 feet. Then, around 160 million years ago, global sea levels rose and the Sundance Sea washed over the dunes. As minerals from the sea seeped through the sand, they “glued” the grains together into Navajo Sandstone. Where did all that sand come from? The answer is the ancient Appalachian Mountains, which once rivaled the Himalayas in size. As the Appalachians eroded over tens of millions of years, enormous rivers carried away the debris. One river­—which may have been as large as the Amazon—stretched as far as Wyoming, depositing Appalachian debris that blew south over Utah. Adapted from "Zion: The Complete Guide" #zionnationalpark #eastzion #utah #coloradoplateau #geology #findyourpark #goparks #visitutah #navajosandstone #sandstone

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Twin waterfalls at Birch Creek, Zion National Park. When first-time Zion visitors arrive during a rainstorm, they curse their bad luck. Meanwhile, locals and regulars are sprinting into the park. When a heavy rain hits Zion Canyon, dozens of spectacular waterfalls leap over the cliffs, creating America’s most impressive and ephemeral liquid extravaganza. If you arrive when it’s raining, consider yourself lucky. Anyone in Vegas can visit the Bellagio. Only a select few get to enjoy The Fountains of Zion. During peak runoff, water bursts out of every crevice, tumbling hundreds, sometimes thousands of feet. You can enjoy the spectacle from the comfort of the shuttle, or put on your rain jacket and venture along the trails. No matter how you experience it, waterfall chasing in Zion is not to be missed. For a list of the best ephemeral waterfalls in Zion, check out my new guidebook “Zion: The Complete Guide” jameskaiser.com/zion/ #zionnationalpark #waterfalls #utah #coloradoplateau #zioncanyon #findyourpark #goparks #zionnps #birchcreek #visitutah

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My name is James Kaiser, and I believe travel should be fun, affordable and enlightening—especially in national parks, where there's so much to experience.

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