Aud Trek

Hiking the Narrows- What you need as a non-hiker

Posted by:

Audrey

|

On:

|

, , , , ,

I am from the Midwest and decided to hike the Narrows in Utah. I do not have much hiking experience under my belt and little to no equipment. The Narrows is a breathtaking hike through a canyon 20-30 feet wide and 2000ft deep. You don’t need much gear to get through this hike, but let me tell you what to watch out for before embarking through the Virgin River.

How To Enter

You will need a National Parks pass to enter Zion National Park, which is where the Narrows are. It’s $80 and you can buy it right at the entree center of the park when walking up. Do not buy it online! It takes forever for shipping and is much cheaper.

After getting in the park you are going take a free shuttle and get off on one of the last stops. I would suggest getting there early to avoid crowds. After getting off the shuttle you will take the Riverside Walk down a mile until getting to the Temple of Sinawava. This is just the starting point and can be very crowded. From here you will be hiking in water for the rest of the time,

No Equipment, No Problem

I went with pretty much no equipment. Lots of people like to rent water shoes, hiking sticks, waterproof back backs, and wetsuits. I just went with a camel-bake backpack filled with 2L of water and some snacks. I just wore my regular tennis shoes and a work out set.

I would recommend wearing closed toed shoes as you will be walking on slippery rocks. It sucks when you slip and your toe jams right into the nearest rock. As well, wear dry fit clothes or even a bathing suit. Be careful of chafing and be ready to be walking in wet clothes all day. You can also bring a long sleeve to protect your skin from the sun and it gets chilly when you are in the cavern.

Must Haves

  • Closed toed shoes
  • Water/ Snacks
  • Quick drying clothing/ swimsuit
  • Backpack

The only thing I would do different would to bring a water proof back pack or waterproof bag to put phones in. We did have a fall or two that soaked the phones, but everything ended up being fine.

You don’t need much except closed toed shoes, water, snacks, and quick drying clothing.

Nature Warnings

That’s just about prepared you can be on your end, but nature sometimes throws some curveballs at you. Before going check the weather and rain to make sure there are no signs of flash flooding. You will be hiking through a river and the current can get quite strong, There will also be signs in the park warning you of the water levels of the day.

In the summer, there were warnings of harmful Cyanobacteria in the water. The rangers were advising to not swim underwater for this reason. We did end up going underwater and were fine, but it is something to look out for and be aware of.

When I Went

I just wanted to tell you a little bit about my experience there so you can have something to compare it to. I went to the Narrows in the middle of August. It was peak time since it was the summer and the weather was nice. The sun was scorching by midday and then around 5 o clock it started to get really chilly.

The canyon kept us out of the sun most of the day and it didn’t get too chilly. We started at around 11am and got home around sunset. We hiked all day and only made it to Orderville Junction. This is where the trails get narrower and the water is shallower. There is about an inch of water flowing through the canyon.

The canyon kept us out of the sun most of the day and it didn’t get too chilly. We started at around 11am and got home around sunset. We hiked all day and only made it to Orderville Junction. This is where the trails get narrower and the water is shallower. There is about an inch of water flowing through the canyon.

We took about 6 hours to get to Ordervile Junction. We made many stops along the way to climb rocks, wade in the water, and take snack breaks. On our way back we didn’t take many breaks because we were about to start losing our light. It took us about 2 hours to get back, especially with the current pushing us along the way.

If you want to go even farther, all the way to the Big Springs is beautiful. We didn’t make it that far. You will need a permit to go past the Big Spring which is about 6 miles upstream.

More To Do in Utah

Posted by

Audrey

in