View Full Version : Zion best park in US
I will never go to the Grand Canyon again after seeing Zion on my way back to California from Maine.
vaporjourney
10-15-2006, 15:45
Have you been to Bryce, Arches, or Canyonlands yet? I really dug Grand Canyon when I went 2 months back, but I just hated the touristy atmosphere, and the way you can just drive right up to the rim. Spoiled by backpacking, and finding my own outdoor gems I suppose. I LOVE the american west.
What made u like Zion more?
Cookerhiker
10-15-2006, 17:07
I will never go to the Grand Canyon again after seeing Zion on my way back to California from Maine.
I agree Zion is nice - I base camped there and did 3 dayhikes up the sides of the canyon a few years ago. Is it the "best park in the US?" - it's all a matter of opinion. I can't name a "best park" because there are so many of varied ecosystems with numerous attributes. Sticking to national parks, I recently returned from hiking most of the JMT. The back country of Yosemite and Kings Canyon (which you most certainly can not drive to) is also spectacular. But then again, so is Mt. Rainier, Denali, Bryce Canyon, Wrangell-St. Elias, Rocky Mountain, Yellowstone, Glacier, ...... the list goes on.
Blissful
10-15-2006, 17:30
I disliked our time at Grand Canyon too. They closed most of the trails for fear of fire danger, except the trail for the mules, and I didn't relish walking in mule dung. But I was only at the north rim. I hear the south rim is better.
Bryce was fascinating, esp hiking among the hoodoos. So is Arches. Zion was pretty hot. Wish we had done the trail that goes above the canyon. We were on a tight time schedule. We did do the Narrows though and that was cool.
Shutterbug
10-15-2006, 19:06
I will never go to the Grand Canyon again after seeing Zion on my way back to California from Maine.
I hiked the Bright Angel trail last week and loved it. If Zion is better, I look forward to hiking it next year.
I can't say which is the "best" of the National Parks because I have not hiked them all, but the best I have hiked is the Wonderland Trail in Mt. Rainier National Park.
fiddlehead
10-16-2006, 09:42
Never say Never. The Grand Canyon is pretty nice too. Perhaps you have not been down it in a raft or kayak yet and will get the chance someday. (or do an extended hike on the northrim)
I'm not saying Zion isn't nice, but it's not my favorite.
That'd be Glacier.
I will never go to the Grand Canyon again after seeing Zion on my way back to California from Maine.
BEst is truly a matter of opinion...
even the Grand Canyon has some out of the way trails....not very populated.
I loved hiking in the Teton Natl Park, & section hiking the CDT & Colorado trail for a few days in Colorado.:D
Cookerhiker
10-16-2006, 18:26
.....I can't say which is the "best" of the National Parks because I have not hiked them all, but the best I have hiked is the Wonderland Trail in Mt. Rainier National Park.
The Wonderland Trail is high on my list - probably next summer. Are permits a hassle? How much in advance can/should one get a permit?
Shutterbug
10-16-2006, 19:15
[quote=Cookerhiker;256878]The Wonderland Trail is high on my list - It has been a while since I have looked at the regulations, but I believe they start taking reservations on April 1. They issue 60% of the permits for advance reservations and hold 40% for people who just show up. I have done it both ways.
I hike sections of the Wonderland often (even last week). I have never failed to get a permit I wanted except for Summerland and Indian Bar. If you can't get a site on the east side, it is possible to get a "Crosscountry Permit" which allows you to select your own site. It has to be out of sight of the trail and at least 1/4 mile from the trail.
I have never failed to get a permit I wanted except for Summerland and Indian Bar.
Those were my first two Campsites west of the Misssissippi.
The mountain goats coming across Panhandle Gap cooperated, as did the marmots, mule deer and pika.
Not as great as the transitional zone right before treeline in the Whites, but almost :-)
StarLyte
10-16-2006, 19:43
Zion is awesome. I did a 3 week outwest tour in April/May of this year - the Narrows were closed due to recent thaw but I'll catch it next time--here's my photo album of it all....click here (http://gallery.backcountry.net/album66?page=5)
Here's the Top 10 NP's according to NG. Ironically, Acadia is the only one I haven't been to and I lived in NE most of my life....
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/0205/parks.html
TwoForty
10-17-2006, 01:37
I haven't seen them all yet, but Sequoia/Kings Canyon is my favorite so far. Few roads, all that back country, so many different evironments, huge mountains, rivers, alpine lakes, etc.
Creek Dancer
10-17-2006, 15:36
I hiked the Bright Angel trail last week and loved it. If Zion is better, I look forward to hiking it next year.
I can't say which is the "best" of the National Parks because I have not hiked them all, but the best I have hiked is the Wonderland Trail in Mt. Rainier National Park.
Hey, I was there last week too and hiked the Bright Angel trail! Well, some of it anyway. It was a day hike. I loved the Grand Canyon. Can't wait to go back. I would love to get up to Zion too.
Shutterbug
10-17-2006, 15:38
Here's the Top 10 NP's according to NG. Ironically, Acadia is the only one I haven't been to and I lived in NE most of my life....
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/0205/parks.html
I don't know their basis for rating, but apparently hiking wasn't very high on their list. I have visited Acadia many times and have hiked several of the trails. They are good day hikes, but certainly not in the top 10 for hiking. Perhaps it is rated number 1 because of the sea shore. In my opinion, the Olympic National Park sea shore is even more beautiful than Acadia.
Perhaps it is rated number 1 because of the sea shore. In my opinion, the Olympic National Park sea shore is even more beautiful than Acadia.
I think/hope the list is alphabetical order. If hiking were the criteria I'd have to go with Glacier or Yosemite/Kings Canyon.
Shutterbug
10-17-2006, 20:32
I think/hope the list is alphabetical order. ...
It would be remarkable if they just happened to rate them in alphabetical order, wouldn't it? I assumed it was their top 10 list and that Acadia was their first choice.
Alligator
10-17-2006, 23:47
Here's the Top 10 NP's according to NG. Ironically, Acadia is the only one I haven't been to and I lived in NE most of my life....
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/0205/parks.html
I've been to all those:banana !
MedicineMan
10-18-2006, 01:17
I've hiked/biked/paddled in 46 National Parks over the last 5 years and in each one done the major hike. After so many parks I've decided that there are the major NPs, the moderate NPs and the lessor NPs. Zion NP is a major park...Angel's Landing in that park is a premier hike on this continent. If you go to Zion remember that the park is divided into two zones with the smaller and least visited being Kolob Canyon, def. make an effort to get there besides the obvious Narrows and Angels Rest.
When you get bored:
www.webshots.com
in the search field type in:
Ripshinpaddler
If you go to Zion then the others close by are a must, just dont forget Cedar Breaks National Monument, most zip by it trying to get to Bryce, Arches, etc. That is a mistake because Cedar Breaks offers true wilderness for those willing to hike into it.
Zion isn't even the best park in Utah.
I vote for the Weimenuche Wilderness of Southern Colorado and along the CDT where it makes that gradual loop to the west. It is some of the most strikingly beautiful hiking I have ever done. One can go for days without seeing another person, trying to follow sporadic rock cairns along the bare remnants of a seldom used, tiny, mostly unmarked, hiking trail. The only trail indicators at all are usually just poles stuck into the ground at one of the few trail crossings, with the trail number burned into it, and just coming across one in that wilderness brings a certain measure of joy and relief. Yep, I'd have to vote for the Weimenuche, arguably the wildest wilderness of the lower 48.
halftime
11-04-2006, 11:20
Yep, I'd have to vote for the Weimenuche, arguably the wildest wilderness of the lower 48.
The Weimenuche Wilderness is one of my favorites and have to agree that if you get far away from the trailheads and horse caravans, it has some of the wildest and most natural areas I have seen.
LostInSpace
11-04-2006, 11:50
Zion has a good variety of ecosystems if one explores the different portions of the park. High water and late snow melt concentrated hikers in a limited number of designated campsites. Consequently, until campsites were availkable, we hiked and camped "at-large" in areas that we had not planned to visit. We were rewarded with a better trip than our original itinerary would have afforded.
Yep, I'd have to vote for the Weimenuche, arguably the wildest wilderness of the lower 48.
But for wild wilderness in the lower 48, I would vote for "The Frank" --- the area of Middle Fork of the Salmon River in the Frank Church/River of No Return Wilderness.
rswanson
11-06-2006, 15:44
My wife and I visited both Zion and the Grand Canyon this May. We also hit Bryce Canyon but that was just an overnighter in one of the park's campsites. In the Grand Canyon we hiked the South Kaibab Trail-Bright Angel Trail loop, the most popular in the park. We overnighted at Bright Angel campground, which was packed with hikers. The trail was deeply rutted and crowded with day hikers at higher elevations and mule trains. Not the most enjoyable trail to hike but with to the scope, granduer, and sheer immensity of the Canyon it was unforgettable. Plus, the was a real sense of accomplishment that came with hiking into and out of the canyon. We also spent a few days at the south rim resort area.
Zion gave us a much different impression. Foot for foot, I'm tempted to say that Zion was more impressive than the Grand Canyon. The scenery is breathtaking to say the least. We were very impressed by the park shuttle system, which really contributed to making the park's main canyon area very accessible. We hiked most of the day hikes in the park, including Angel's Landing (not for those with weak stomachs!). We spent a few days backpacking the backcountry east rim of the valley, an 'at large' camping area. This was a stark, arid contrast to the lush valley floor and afforded us with breathtaking views of the valley and Virgin River, about 2,000 feet below. The sunset over the west rim of the canyon from Cable Mountain was one of the most stunning that I've ever viewed from a sleeping bag. The hike out was gorgeous as well. If you haven't been to Zion, then go! It's about a 3 hour drive from Vegas. Zion is about 4 hours' drive from the south rim of the Grand Canyon.
I plan on returning to Utah in a year or two to hit the Glen Canyon NRA. All those articles in Backpacker magazine has really got me psyched to see this area!