The Zion Traverse is a 50-mile backpack through Zion National Park (ZNP), that starts at Lee Pass Trailhead in Kolob Canyon and ends at the East Rim Trailhead off HWY 9. You can do the route east to west or west to east. My friends and I chose to do it from east to west, which is not the most popular route. Most people prefer to start at Lee Pass Trailhead to avoid the steep climb out of Zion Canyon to the high point of the West Rim Trail (approximately 3,100 ft of gain).
Unfortunately, in August 2019, a piece of sandstone that weighed over 31,000 tons broke away from Cable Mountain, causing an avalanche of debris that ultimately blocked access to the East Rim Trail from Zion Canyon. The rock side was so massive that Zion National Park has closed all trails affected, indefinitely.
Rather than wait and hope this section opens again, those who want to do the Traverse now must end, or start, at The Grotto and forgo the 12 miles stretch of the East Rim Trail.
Since my group opted to start at The Grotto and end at Lee Pass Trailhead, that’s the route I’ll discuss in my write-up.
In this post, I’m going to cover the following:
- Online permit process
- Route
- Campsite selection
- Recommended gear
Online Permit Process for the Zion Traverse
Half of the backpacking campsites in the Zion Wilderness can be reserved online. If the Traverse is your goal, I don’t recommend waiting and trying for a walk-In permit, which can only be obtained the day before or day of your trip. So, unless you want to cover 40 miles in 3 days / 2 nights (or less), I highly recommend trying to secure your campsites online.
1
Steps
- Create an account on recreation.gov.
- Research the campsite options along the West Rim Trail, Wildcat Canyon, Hop Valley & La Verkin Creek
- Once you have created an account, and researched which campsite(s) you want, you are all set to begin! Beginning March 5th, reservations open at 10:00 AM MST for the following month and the two months after that. For example, if you want to go sometime between April – June, you’ll want to make your reservations on March 5th. For some odd reason, permits are available January 5 – March 31 beginning January 5, leaving a gap from January 1-4.
Pro Tips
1. The West Rim sites are by far the most popular, so add a site on this section to you cart first and have a plan B & C. For example, we wanted site 4 or 6 and ended up settling for site 8. (Here’s a picture of me at the turn off to West Rim Trail Site 8, our site on our first night of the Traverse.)
2. Log-on to recreation.gov then go to the Zion National Park Overnight Wilderness Permits page a few minutes before 10:00 AM MST and be ready to pounce on the campsites you want. After you’ve secured a spot along the West Rim Trail, secure a site in La Verkin Creek and then a site in the Wildcat Canyon Camp Area. If you don’t get a site in La Verkin Creek, Hop Valley is not a bad alternative.
3. You can only add one campsite to your cart at a time, so it’s not a bad idea to tag-team reserving the sites with someone else who plans to join you. I got a site on the West Rim Trail while my friend and other co-founder, Angelique, got a site in La Verkin Creek. Wildcat Canyon is the easiest area to get a reservation, so leave that for last.
4. Know your group size ahead of time. This will determine the size of site you need. The smaller the group the more options you’ll have.
5. I recommend doing this in 4 days and 3 nights, so it’s not a death march. Most of the groups we ran into had to do it in 1 or 2 nights because they did not follow pro tip #1 – #3. They started with reserving a site in La Verkin Creek because they were starting at Lees Pass Trailhead.
6. Stash water at the Hop Valley Trailhead. There are no reliable springs between the Wildcat Canyon Camping Zone and La Verkin Creek.
The Grotto to Kolob Canyon Route
As I mentioned earlier, we opted to start in Zion Canyon at The Grotto and end in Kolob Canyon at Lee Pass Trailhead. Here’s the route we followed and the sites where we camped.
Day 1
With 3,000 ft elevation gain, the first 8 miles were probably the hardest part of the entire trip . If you have ever hiked to Angel’s Landing, times that by 2 and you’ve made it to the top of the West Rim Trail.
Right before you reach the top of the West Tim Trail, down on a side trail to the right, you’ll find Cabin Springs, the first reliable spring of the trip. Stop here and filter water if you are camping at any of the sites on the West Rim Trail.
Because Cabin Springs is a shallow spring with dirt and sediment that can get stirred up, a pump filter was helpful here. We were able to pump enough water to get to our first campsite, which was near Potato Hollow.
Once you’ve reached the top of the West Rim Trail, you’re greeted with amazing canyon views to the south and east.
At mile 10, we reached our campsite at Potato Hollow (West Rim Site #8).
In May, when we did the Traverse, the Potato Hollow Spring was a large shallow pond that looked pretty scummy. We filtered from it and lived to tell the tale. This spring isn’t reliable, so call the Zion backcountry office before your trip to check on the water situation.
Day 2
We got an early start knowing we had about 10.5 miles to cover before reaching the Wildcat Canyon Camping Zone. This portion of the trail has just over 100 feet of elevation gain and is the only reliable spring until you reach La Verkin Creek.
Because we were able to fill up at Potato Hollow (again, not a reliable source), we didn’t stop at Wildcat Springs, which was about 7 miles west of Potato Hollow (1.5 miles from the junction of Wildcat Canyon Trail and the West Rim Trail) on the north side. You can’t miss it.
You get sweeping canyon views along this section of the trail!
We found a nice spot off the Northgate Peaks Trail with sweeping views. We also hiked over to Northgate Peaks. Since we had already planned to camp off this 0.9 mile trail (easiest to find camping here), it wasn’t too far to check out the “peaks.”
Day 3
On day three, we got up early (as usual) for our 12.7-mile trek to La Verkin Creek campsite 5. We stopped at the Hop Valley Trailhead to pick up our stashed food and water and then used the restrooms there. What a treat that was!
We also talked to some fellow hikers who were doing the Traverse in the opposite direction. They, unfortunately, had to do the backpack in one night and were very interested in how we were able to get sites in each of the zones.
Although this section of the trail has an elevation loss of 1,700 feet, the 6-mile Hop Valley section was slow-going due to lack of shade and long sandy sections. There are some water crossings as well. We found it best to just ford across than waste time trying to find a way to stay dry.
FYI: There is a private cattle ranch nearby, so it’s not recommended that you filter water in Hop Valley as it’s most likely contaminated.
There’s a bit of an uphill climb to leave Hop Valley and drop into La Verkin Creek. Once you’re at the top, you are greeted with a view of high canyon walls and red rock.
La Verkin Creek Campsite #5 was secluded and not too far from a reliable unnamed spring near campsite #7.
After setting up camp, we opted filter at Beatty Spring, located where the trail crosses the creek after heading down from the climb out of Hop Valley. It was a pretty good waterfall and easy to filter from.
NOTE: It is currently NOT safe to filter directly from La Verkin Creek. Microcoleus, Tychonema, and Nostoc, all belonging to the cyanobacteria genus, have been identified there and are known to produce the cyanotoxin anatoxin-a, which has an adverse effect on the nervous system.
Day 4
The 5-mile hike out of La Verkin Creek has an elevation gain of 976 feet and should be easy, but after 4 days on the trail, it felt more like 2,000!
We celebrated at Lee Pass Trailhead with a beer and the burial of my hiking boots . . .
Campsite Selection
In order to break up the mileage, I recommend trying for these sites:
Night 1 or 3 – West Rim Trail
1st Choice ~ Site 4
2nd Choice ~ Site 6
3rd Choice ~ Site 8
Night 2 – Wildcat Canyon Camping Zone
Night 1 or 3 – La Verkin Creak (sites on the north side of the creek best)
1st Choice ~ Site 8
2nd Choice ~ Site 5
3rd Choice ~ Site 4
4th Choice ~ Hop Valley (no water or spring near by)
Recommended Gear
Here’s a list of some of my favorite backpacking items. I used most of the items specifically for this trip.
Backpack
I love my Granite Gear Crown 2 backpack! I have done multi-day trips (up to 4 nights) with this pack for 5 years now. It has held up to a lot of abuse. BONUS! My BearVault CV500 bear canister fits perfectly in this pack!
Sleep System Set Up
Tent: I love my Nemo Dragonfly 3P and splitting it with someone to reduce my pack weight. It has room for 2 people and their gear!
Sleeping Bag: NEMO makes some great bags for women. Female-specific bags have extra insulation in key areas, like the footbox. I also prefer 100% down bags because they weigh less and pack down smaller.
Sleeping Pad: Big Agnes Boundary Deluxe Insulated Sleeping Pad – if you have trouble sleeping on the trail, this is the place to splurge. I’ll carry extra weight if it means a good night’s rest! This pad is super comfortable, insulated to keep you warmer, and provides 3.5 inches of cushion.
Pillow: An Ultralight Inflatable Camping Pillow can also improve your backcountry sleeping situation.
Down Blanket: A Packable Down Throw comes in handy if you need a little extra warmth in your sleeping bag or when you are just hanging around camp!
Camp Kitchen Gear
Water Filter: I use the Platypus GravityWorks filter almost exclusively. However, the Katadyn Hiker Pro is my filter of choice when I’m not able to dip a bag in my water source.
Water Bottles: I always take 2 Vapur 1L Collapsible Water Bottles for a convenient and lightweight way to carry extra water while on the trail and to drink from / use while at camp.
Stove: Jetboil Stash – This stove weighs in at just 7.1 oz and allows you to boil up to 27 oz at a time!
Mug: GSI Outdoors Backpacker Mug
Plate & Bowl: I love the Fozzils Snapfold solo plate, bowl, and cup set. They pack down flat and are super durable.
Fork / Spoon: A long-handled spork is my go-to and great for eating / digging re-hydrated backpacking meals out of their bag. I have the Sea to Summit Alpha Light Spork.
Clothing / Shoes
Down Jacket: Another item I rarely backpack without is a down jacket. I love my Black Diamond Approach Down Jacket.
Rain Jacket / Shell: Rain jackets are not just for rainy days; they are also great for blocking those chilly winds. I took my Black Diamond Stormline. It’s lightweight and has pit zips (super important!).
Camp Slippers: We Wine Hikers can almost always be found hanging out at camp in our slippers. The perfect camp shoe should be lightweight, packable, and have a hard sole.
Gloves: I love my TrailHeads Women’s Power Stretch Convertible Mittens. I can flip back the mitten part when I need to use my fingers, and the rest of my hand stays warm.
Other Gear
- Wag Bags
- pStyle (Ladies, this one’s for you! Use code WINE10 for 10% off!)
- Kula Cloth (Here’s another one for just the ladies!)
- Organizers
- Backpacking Chair (This one is pricey but one of the lightest backpacking chairs out there.)
- Headlamp
- Tent Light
- First Aid Kit
- Blister Kit – I use mole skin & 2nd skin together. Cover blisters with 2nd skin and then place a strip of mole skin over the blister with a hole the size of a blister cut out. This provides some relief and prevents rubbing.
- No-Rinse Bathing Wipes
- Portable Wine Bottle
Is the Zion Traverse on your bucket list? What questions do you have? Scroll down to post your questions.
