We took the bus up to the Weeping Rock trailhead we had visited yesterday, but today's hike would take us way up into the high canyon walls to observation point for a dramatic overlook of Zion Canyon.
Just passed the trailhead was sign warning that people had fallen to their deaths on this trail in the past. The trail started innocently enough. The surface of the trail was a hard rock that almost looked paved, but wasn't. The trail switchbacked for about 500 feet, climbing the canyon walls. Even in the early morning cool, we were both huffing and puffing by the time we reached the intersection with the Hidden Canyon Trail. The parking lot and road below looked like something out of a matchbox set by this point. The walls of the West Canyon started to glow orange in the growing sunlight.
We were treated to an aerial show by two Peregrin Falcons. They dropped down off a cliff above us and plunged towards the canyon floor in pursuit of a song bird. Peregrin Falcons can fly over 200 miles per hour when diving from a high point. Watching them reminded me of fighter jets in a dogfight scene in a movie.
Following the junction the trail continued to switch back high over the canyon floor. We could soon see past Big Bend, where the Virgin River snaked around Angel's Landing. The drop offs on the canyon side of the trail rapidly grew as we hiked. We were certainly close to a thousand feet over the canyon floor.
I was expecting the trail to continue switchbacking all the way to the top of the wall. It was a pleasant surprise then, when it turned into a side canyon and began to work its way back away from the main canyon. A slot canyon appeared to one side. The floor of this new canyon gradually climbed up to meet the trail. Trees grew on all sides of the trail during this stretch, evidence that water does find its way down this canyon during floods. We were glad today wasn't one of those days!
As the trail continued to climb through the canyon the walls turned to sandstone - a brilliant shade of orange that I would expect to find in a contemporary living room. The air was cold and crisp in these enclosed canyon walls. Every sound we made echoed into the abyss below us.
The trail eventually broke out onto the other side of the wall. We were now on the East side of the canyon wall. The sun shone down relentlessly. I was glad we started hiking early, as the air was quickly becoming oppressively hot. The trail resumed switch backing up the East side of the canyon wall. The views to the East were spectacular - towering domes of rock stretched as far as the eye could see. The trail was lined with Juniper and Pinyon Pines and the occasional cactus. It was a surreal environment to hike through.
After an hour of climbing through the hot desert sun, the trail finally broke through to a ridge. It climbed gradually along the ridge and made its way back to the west side of the canyon wall. We were then treated to a soft sandstone and sand trail surface for hiking and occasional shade from Ponderosa Pines and large Pinyon Pines. The views were now to the West - providing a stunning perspective of Zion Valley.
We broke out onto a large flat area - the top of a messa. We were surrounded by low brush and cacti through this stretch of the hike. The trail was delightfully flat as we made out way the rest of the way to observation point.
The views from observation point were stunning. The Virgin River looked like someone had drawn a scribbly line in the sand with a pencil. Angel's Landing was south and below us. With my binoculars I could make out people standing at the edge. Vultures, Ravens and White Throated Swifts circled high overhead while we ate our lunch.
After a lengthy lunch break to enjoy the views, we made the knee-pounding descent back to the trailhead the way we had come up. The mid-day heat settled in, and the hikers passing us on their way up looked miserable!
We finished our hike in a little under five hours. We took the shuttle bus up to the Zion Lodge and treated ourselves to ice cream cones. The afternoon was spent napping in the shade underneath a giant Cottonwood Tree in front of the lodge. Not bad for a Tuesday!
