Zion Days 3 & 4: Kolob & The Northern Reaches
Three days ago, I did a very long hike. The next day was always going to be a rest day of sorts, but I had hoped that would be a responsible choice rather than a necessity. Unfortunately, though, my right knee was still a total wreck when I woke up the next morning (seemed like a meniscus strain, but I didn’t want to overthink anything). I don’t recall feeling that sort of discomfort after a hike or long run in at least a couple years. The most I could safely handle that day would be a drive to someplace pretty.
We opted for a change of scenery and a nice mountain drive up to Pine Valley, north of St. George. I got out and slowly limped around a pretty forest trail for about half a mile, and that was enough. Back home for more ice packs, heat, stretching, repeating, ibuprofen, beer, and trying to not freak out. We had one more lengthy hike planned for Zion, and I was very hopeful I’d recover in time. I threw myself into looking at activities for the trip post-Zion; we’d be heading out into some truly remote wilderness to the east, and that excitement was starting to set in.
Yesterday morning, I woke up and could straighten my knee without that painful catch I’d felt the previous 36 hours. It was still a little stiff, but things were looking up. We decided to drive out in the afternoon to the area of the park northwest of the main canyon, but south of Kolob. I had considered a big hike from Wildcat Canyon to the West Rim Trail and down, but that would have to wait. We’d do a shorter hike from that trailhead down to the Northgate Peaks, about a 4-mile round trip with minimal gain.
This is a beautiful, easy hike, mostly in sparse Ponderosa forest mixed with desert sage. The slickrock outcroppings are much more sporadic in this part of the park, so we definitely knew when we reached our destination: the east and west Northgate Peaks, flanking monolithic North Guardian Angel in the distance. I wanted to scramble around on the two closer rocks so bad, but we hadn’t allowed time. Also, even though my legs seemed completely back to normal, I couldn’t risk fucking it up and blowing the big hike we had planned for today!
We wanted to hike to Kolob Arch via La Verkin Creek four years ago but were thwarted by some crazy weather. A full-on April blizzard blew through on our second-to-last night in the area and rendered the trail muddy and awful. Seeing what was long thought to be the world’s longest free-standing arch has been high on the list ever since. We talked sweet Dad into dropping us off and picking us up at different locations, allowing us to turn a 14-mile out-and-back into a 14-mile through-hike. Twice as much beauty, twice as much fun!
Part of the reason for the hike yesterday was also to scope out where Dad would drop us off early this morning, as the Hop Valley Trailhead is only a mile away from Wildcat Canyon. We’d gotten confirmation from a ranger that, although often muddy in spring, Hop Valley Trail was in great shape, so we decided to hike that trail up to Kolob Arch, and then continue up La Verkin Creek to the Lee Pass Trailhead in Kolob Canyons.
We were hiking just before sunrise, although with tall cliffs immediately to the east of our trail we didn’t see the sun for most of the first hour of our hike. It was another chilly morning, but this trail was wide open and glorious, sagebrush in every direction. We could see the sunshine on the high red rocks of Kolob Canyon miles north of us. About an hour into our hike, the trail passed through private property and the sage was replaced by beautiful green meadows.
Shortly after that the trail descended into a much tighter valley with cliffs on both sides. It was around this point that we noticed fairly fresh footprints along our trail. We passed the time debating whether it was a big coyote or a mountain lion. I never stopped to take a picture of them, but whatever it was had followed our trail for nearly a mile. Both Mom and I became increasingly enamored with Hop Valley the longer we hiked. It was so lush, and although the frequent water crossings could be a bit tedious, we were always able to find a solution that kept our feet dry. We met quite a few through-hikers who had most likely camped near Kolob Arch the previous night.
About three hours in, our trail left the valley and headed up to a pass. We had finally reached the red mountains we’d been looking at all morning. After a fun, steep descent we reached La Verkin Creek and the spur trail up to Kolob Arch, our halfway point for the day. My knee hadn’t acted up once, and I was feeling great!
The mile-long trail up to the arch was the best hiking of the day. The trail is much rougher than anything we’d seen, zig-zagging through rough terrain to avoid what must be an often-turbulent drainage. I jumped out ahead of mom at this point, as we would surely stop at the arch for a long snack break. I wasn’t totally confident where the arch was situated in relation to the trail, so the last couple tenths of a mile I spent frantically searching the high rocks in every direction to make sure I didn’t miss it. Finally, I spotted it far above me to the left, and the trail abruptly dead-ended.
I was surprised how primitive the viewing area was. The trees surrounding the small open area are so tall that it takes some searching to find good vantage points. I managed to scramble up on some rocks to get 30 or 40 feet higher and avoid some of those trees. It’s pretty damn majestic, though. The hike up Hop Valley was worth it on its own, and seeing remote Kolob Arch was the icing. We rested our legs for a bit, then set back off.
I don’t have a ton to say about the La Verkin Creek Trail, other than I’m very glad we didn’t hike out-and-back by that route. Once the trail turns toward the north, it’s incredibly monotonous, and the view of Kolob Canyons just to the east is almost always blocked by foothills. I set my mind on just getting back as quickly as I could. The final climb up to Lee Pass was fun, as I knew the end was approaching, and those beautiful peaks came more into view. Last time I saw them they were covered by fresh snow!
Dad showed up in the Jeep about 10 minutes after I reached the trailhead, and we hung out, chatted, and watched for Mom while I ate every peanut M&M I could find. Today was a fantastic day, and I was relieved that my legs came back to me completely. Being consistent is one thing, but learning about my capacity to heal is something I’ve been lucky to avoid.
It really feels like our time at Zion has come to a natural close this time. I anticipate next time here will involve a lot more water on my feet, but we have other ground to cover on this trip. I’m so excited to get into some truly unfamiliar territory in the next few days!
