Canyon Overlook Trail, Zion National Park

Start of the Trail

The trailhead has a small parking area, near the tunnel entrance, though this often fills up early and there is no room for RVs. Often vehicles have to be left up to half a mile away along the highway, parked at roadside pull-outs. The path starts with a short flight of steps cut into the rock face, opposite the car park. The first half mile is mostly up and along the side of a cliff, across a footbridge at one point, through one huge overhang and past a cool side-ravine. Below, the canyon tapers to a thin crevice - the Pine Creek narrows, where the rock walls become only a few feet apart but still hundreds of feet deep.

The Viewpoint

Cliff face along the trail

The second half of the Canyon Overlook Trail crosses more level, rockier land. The overlook at the end is situated right at the edge of a vertical cliff, fenced off for safety, and has a panorama board identifying all the prominent peaks on view. The round trip is easy, a good hike for children, with only a 160 foot elevation gain to the overlook, and should take less than an hour. A brochure available at the trailhead describes 20 points of botanical and geological interest along the route, such as a natural water seep from the boundary between two rock strata, around which ferns and a variety of wildflowers grow.