Hiking Angels Landing In Zion National Park
One item on my bucket list was hiking Angels Landing in Zion National Park. I am happy to say I have successfully marked that item off of my bucket list but if that is something that is on your bucket list, there are things you should know beforehand!
Angels Landing in Zion National Park is famous for a reason. The hike itself is challenging but the views are truly out of this world. The name “Angels Landing” comes from Methodist minister Frederick Vining Fisher, who visited Zion Canyon in 1916. Admiring the cliff above him, he remarked that only angels might land there.
First things first, you need a permit to do this hike. At first, that annoyed me. But after completing the hike, I am super grateful there is a permit system. After seeing pictures of how crowded the hike used to be before the national park implemented the permit system, I had a lot of safety concerns. The hike itself is already dangerous without adding thousands of more spectators. So the permit system is actually a good thing but there are two ways to secure a permit.
Seasonal Permit
You can apply for a permit before your trip. You have to know your dates a few months in advance for this option. If you are planning to visit Zion National Park in the coming months, get more information on a seasonal permit here.
Day before permit
This is the option we did. You can apply for a permit the day before your planned hike. So for us, we knew we wanted to hike Angels Landing on Saturday, October 21. Because we were aiming for that Saturday, registration for permits open up at 12:01 a.m. the day before. So we happened to be up at midnight when Thursday turned to Friday, so we registered right when registration opened. You don’t have to stay up until midnight to register. Registration stays open until 3:01 p.m. When you apply, you have to pay a $6 non-refundable fee. You can apply up to 7 times and you choose your time frame. After registration closed, we got an email not too long after saying we had been accepted.
If you don’t get a permit
The reality of it is, Angels Landing in Zion National Park is one of, if not the most popular trail in the entire park. A lot of people are going to be aiming for this permit to hike it. Going into this trip, I was really worried about what we would do if we didn’t get it. It turns out you can pretty much hike the entire thing without a permit, you can’t just climb to Angels Landing. You can hike to Scout Lookout on the West Rim Trail without a permit. It’s still a strenuous climb and still offers very scenic views of Zion Canyon. What you need a permit for is the half mile route with chains to Angels Landing that starts at Scout Lookout.
Hiking Angels Landing
Be prepared! It is a hard hike. There are a lot of switchbacks, change in altitude, rock scrambling and more. There’s also a really good chance you’ll be in direct sunlight for a good bit of it. We brought plenty of water as well as snacks. My biggest piece of advice is to go at your own pace. You will not be alone on this hike, but you shouldn’t let the movement of others make you go faster than you need to go. Especially on the chains, take your turn, wait if you need to.
Another thing to note
Make sure you’re aware of the shuttle system. Our permit let us hike anytime after 12noon. The last shuttle leaving Zion National Park was at 7:15 p.m. If we didn’t make that shuttle back to the visitor’s center, they made it very clear we’d have to walk that back which was MILES.
Overall this was the hike of the lifetime, if you have any questions feel free to message me on Instagram, @_nicoleweaver.
Check out the photos below:
