Zion National Park is located in the southwest corner of Utah east of I-15 (Interstate highway 15 in Utah). It is roughly 300 miles south of Salt Lake City, near Springdale and 160 miles northeast of Las Vegas.
Zion National Park encompasses some 150,000 acres of natural canyon country east of St. George, Utah, including the narrow, multicolored Kolob Canyons to the north and many miles of largely impenetrable mountain wilderness.
Zion offers probably the best, most varied hiking of all national parks, including the famous Narrows Trail along the upper stretches of the Virgin River. The park is known for its incredible canyons, including The Narrows, which attract canyoneers from around the world.
The main canyon in Zion is reached by a turning off state highway 9; the through road continues east via a dramatic tunnel into more open land in route to Mount Carmel Junction and onwards to Bryce Canyon National Park.
Zion National Park contains the richest diversity of plants in Utah with almost 800 native species. Differences in elevation, sunlight, water, and temperature create "microenvironments", like hanging gardens, forested side canyons, and isolated mesas that lend to this diversity
75 species of mammals, 271 birds, 32 reptiles and amphibians and 8 fish make their home in Zion National Park. Commonly seen animals include mule deer, rock squirrels, lizards, and many species of birds.
Rare or endangered species include the Peregrine Falcon, Mexican Spotted Owl, Southwest Willow Flycatcher, desert tortoise, and the Zion snail, found nowhere else on earth.
Evidence of ancestral peoples, formerly known as the Anasazi, date from about 2,000 years ago; Paiutes from about 800 years ago to present. Mormon settlers arrived in southern Utah in the 1860s.
The Virgin River now serves as a natural corridor for exploring the park. There are several easy, self guiding trails along the river, along with more challenging hikes where the river and its tributaries cut through narrow canyons.
The world famous scenery of Zion National Park attracts hikers and climbers from around the world. A rich history, unique geography, and an unusual diversity of plants and animals have made Zion one of North Americas most popular National Parks hosting almost three million visitors each year.
In 1909, U.S. President William Howard Taft named the area a National monument to protect the canyon, under the name of Mukuntuweap National Monument. The name Zion is a Hebrew word referring to a place of safety or refuge, given to this canyon by Mormon pioneers settling southern Utah in the 1860s.
However, in 1918, the acting director of the newly created National Park Service changed the park's name to Zion as the original name was locally unpopular. The United States Congress established the monument as a National Park on November 19, 1919. The Kolob section was proclaimed a separate Zion National Monument in 1937, but was incorporated into the park in 1956.
The beauty of Zion Canyon has gained worldwide recognition, with over three million visitors coming to the park in 1993.
However, because of the severe and growing automobile congestion inside the park, the National Park Service recently announced plans to limit private vehicles in Zion Canyon by providing a public transportation system that would restrict private vehicles to areas outside the park.
On April 12, 1995, heavy rains triggered a landslide that blocked the Virgin River in Zion Canyon. Over a period of two hours, the river carved away 190 m of the only exit road from the canyon, trapping 450 guests and employees in the Zion Lodge.
A one-lane temporary road was constructed within 24 hours to allow evacuation of the Lodge. A more stable, albeit temporary, road was completed on May 25, 1995 to allow summer visitors to access the park. This road was replaced with a permanent road during the first half of 1996.
However, the vast majority of visitors come only to see Zion Canyon, probably the most immediately spectacular of the many geological wonders in Utah, where sheer red and white sandstone cliffs tower up to 760 m above the North Fork of the Virgin River, and gradually become closer together upstream until only 10 m apart in places.
Zion National Park is open year round. The lodge and Watchman Campground are available year round but most of the campgrounds are accessible March through October.
The majority of park visitors come during spring and fall and there are fewer visitors in December through March. The park is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The visitor's center is closed on Christmas.