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I know this is HAZ but I wanted to see if anyone had done any hiking in the Southern Utah area. I spent some time near Zion recently and didn't get to hike, but everything was so pretty. If anyone has any info I would appreciate it, I'm planning a trip up there before it gets cold.

The area has exgtensive hiking, especially the parks, Bryce and Zion. I believe Zion has some of the "best" trails in the west. A good one is the one way or round trip journey from Lava Pt. to the canyon and back. The Kolob area is great as all trails on the east rim as well. If it is too hot there, try Bryce with the best trails being the Fairyland loup, and the Under the Rim Trail. Plenty of info on the web about these parks and much more in southern Utah.

I enjoyed hiking Capitol Reef N.P. Its less accessible and less well known than the other Utah parks; therefore, it is also less crowded. The terrain is really interesting (there's a highly technical geological description for you). I noticed a couple businesses that offer shuttle service, the Fremont River is fishable there, and some of the local restaurants are quite good.

I have hiked partly up the Narrows in Zion, and have done a few trails in Bryce Canyon.

The possibilities are endless. I was up there last May and there are way too many options. We hiked Bryce and several other places but the one that really blew us away was Coyote Gulch in the Escalante river system. A brief discription here-> Coyote Gulch

This place is awesome and there are so many other canyons in just this local area not to mention Canyonlands etc, etc, etc. It is almost unearthly. Enjoy!

Wow! The pictures of Coyote Gulch are amazing! Thanks for the insight folks.

Recommended hikes in Zion NP:

Virgin Narrows - a 16 mile hike through the canyon beginning outside the park and ending up inside. Not to be missed if you are there in the right season with low probability of rain.

Devils Landing - nice hike with good exposure.

flechenbones wrote:Devils Landing - nice hike with good exposure.

Angel's Landing.

You may want to review hiking guides of the area by Mike Kelsey.

I will be in utah for a wonderful 2.5 weeks starting around the first of october- Kelseys guides are good- you may want to allow more time than he gives. Steve Allens Canyoneering series is very good- covers Escalante and San Rafael Swell. The site utahcanyoneering.com is good for weather and river/stream flow rates. Falcon guides are ok. Lets see- Escalante- Coyote Gulch, Harris Wash, Willow Gulch, Fifty Mile Canyon, Fence into Neon,Golden Cathedral/Ringtail. The Dry Coyote Gulch slots- Spooky, Peeka Boo and Brimstone.
Kanab area- Buckskin Gulch, The Wave, Hackberry Canyon, Round Valley Slot, Bull Valley Gorge, Willis Creek, Lick Wash and No Mans' Mesa.
Cedar Mesa- Grand Gulch, Road, Lime Canyons, Slickhorn, Fish and Owl Creek Loop.
Capitol Reef- Upper and Lower Muley Twist, Cathedral Valley.
Hanksville area- Access to the Maze of Canyonlands, Horseshoe Canyon,
Dirty Devil wilderness area, Happy Canyon, Poison Springs Canyon.
San Rafael Swell- Crack and Chute Canyons, Wild Horse Canyon, Little Wild Horse and Bell Canyon Loop, Ding and Dang Canyons.

Most of these hikes are doable solo, you will need a car shuttle for some. A lot of these hikes should afford some solitude. Have fun and good luck.
If interested you can go to http://community.webshots.com/user/redroxx44- I have some area shots of the above places in utah.

Thanks RedRoxx, great info!

In response to Glitter's reply:
When you're near Peek-a-Boo & Spooky (off Hole-in-the-Rock Rd.),
I suggest that you take the time to visit Egypt 3 (slot canyon)
If you're down on 89, half-way between Page & Kanab, there's a good camping place (+ dinner on Fri., Sat.- best BBQ for 100 miles) "Paria Guest Ranch".
Easton also has horses, a climbing wall & zip line, as well as showers & laundry. He'll also shuttle you if you want to do Buckskin/Paria.
Also, try & get a permit for Coyote Buttes North (Paria Ranger Station is right next to Easton's Ranch) to go & see the Wave.

Hey Glitter!
Hikeaz has some good ideas! Zion is cool and I only had a day to spend there over Labor Day weekend, but Paria and Coyote Buttes areas are wilderness, so you can escape the crowds, car and bus fumes and other general annoyances that National Parks can bring.
If you do go to Zion, the Observation Point hike gives you a great view of the main canyon there. It is 8 miles round trip with +-2200 ft of elevation gain and loss (redundant, I know). You'll top out at 6508 ft and have a commanding view of everything. Angel's Landing looks like a cool hike because of the exposure. Geez, there's too much to do. Just have fun!

We were in Zion for the 4th of July weekend. Even though it was a holiday weekend, the crowds were not too bad. We did the Angel's Landing hike which was really great! (unfortunately here we got stuck behind a tour group that had several people who were afraid of heights) Great views from the top and pretty much the whole way up.

We also hiked the whole narrows. It was fun, but I wouldnt do that part again. the great part of the narrows is closer to the part you can access from inside the park on the bus. So my recommendation would be to start there and hike up to the Big Springs and back. The Big Springs were really cool waterfalls with lots of lush greenery in a place that is mostly rock.

Meg

I was in Kanab on the 4th of July and almost made it to Zion. We ended up cruising around the Coral Sand Dunes NP. Very interesting area, a giant bowl of orange sand. I'm looking forward to getting back up to this area, it's so beautiful! :rollH: