ZION Off-Trail Hiking Non-Technical Slot Canyons
I consider a slot canyon a canyon where you can touch both sides at the same time. There are many slot sections of canyon in Zion, but most are part of technical canyons. Where can a person enjoy a slot canyon experience without ropes and helmets and permits and all that jazz? In Zion, there are not many options, but there are a few.
The BEST - Middle Echo from the Bottom
"From the bottom" means entering the canyon at some point and then moving UP canyon as far as you can or want to, and then coming back to where you started.
The middle section of Echo canyon is the best. The entrance to this 'hike' is protected by two pools that require swimming, which keeps the riff-raff away. Are you riff-raff? If not, swim these pools and head on in. There is a short scramble up a log jam, maybe another swim, deep wade or such; and a bit of scrambling. It is all very underground. The walls soar upward and in many places overlap to block the sky. One extensive chamber is known as The Echo Chamber for its marvelous acoustics. After about an hour, the intrepid scrambler will arrive at a pool and the final rappel of the technical route. Return the way you came... which is likely to look much different, as the light is continually changing down under.
Access: Middle Echo is accessed via the Observation Point Trail, starting in the Main Canyon at Weeping Rock Shuttle Stop. Hike steeply up the Observation Point Trail as it zig-zags up the slope, then traverses left into Echo Canyon. The Trail crosses the drainage.
[With the Weeping Rock Trail closed, this can be accessed from the Top, though it is quite a bit more of an adventure. Can be combined with Observation Point. Start at either the East Mesa Trailhead or the Stave Springs Trailhead. Hike. Descend into the Echo Canyon basin. Hike down until you hike through a spot where the trail is cut into wall. Cross a bridge. Continue past a place where you could easily walk down into the canyon. A few minutes later is another place you can walk into the canyon - this is where to start. ]
Leave the trail and walk and swim up the drainage. After 5 minutes, the walls relent and an open area allows access to the trail, on the left. That was the appetizer!
Continue up the drainage, which soon turns left and enters the subterranean. Soon after, a short swim and a climb up a pile of logs usually blocks the way. This is often the most-difficult obstacle in the canyon. Above this, there is a small bit of scrambling and sometimes some wading. Go as far as you can, or as far as you want, then return the way you came.
Preparation: In high summer, this can be done without wetsuits, but you will want quick-dry clothing and a sweater, plus a drybag to keep your stuff dry. It tends to be chilly inside the canyon. In winter and spring, there may be great piles of snow that limit upstream travel in the canyon. In all cases you will want shoes that work well while wading in murky water and that protect your feet. Sandals do not work for this kind of adventure.
Timeline: The hike to the mouth takes about 45 minutes. Expect to spend 2 hours IN the canyon, and then another 30 minutes to hike back down.
The most accessible: Shelf Canyon from the Bottom
Shelf is a shorter and drier adventure, perhaps the most family-friendly slot canyon in Zion. Most people will complete it up and back in about an hour. Slipping into this cool chasm is delightful on a hot summer day.
Access: Shelf Canyon starts just north of the main parking lot at Tunnel East, the east end of the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel on Highway 9. Drive through the tunnel. On the right is a small parking lot (and very stinky restroom) that you should just drive past. One hundred feet further is a larger parking lot on the left; park here if you can. If not, there are a number of parking spots along the road in the next quarter mile.
From the larger parking lot, Shelf Canyon is conspicuous directly north. Walk east on the road a few feet from the parking lot and a small trail leads to the bottom of the wash. Walk up the wash and into the mouth of the slot canyon. Walk deeper and deeper into the gloom.
Shelf Canyon ends is a series of ... wait for it ... shelves! It is possible to scramble up a ways, though some people have found it much more difficult to get back down and had to send for rescue. Don't do that.
Return the way you came. Consider hiking the Canyon Overlook trail afterwards.
The Swimmiest: Keyhole Canyon from the Bottom
If you have seen people wearing wetsuits in the heat of summer just off the highway in east Zion, this is probably why. Keyhole is a popular short technical canyon that involves a little bit of rappelling and a lot of swimming. If you don't mind cold water, it can be a marvelous non-technical adventure as well.
Keyhole holds its water well. Plan on wetsuits for this. If it hasn't rained in a month or two, the water can get quite stinky, and you will appreciate the protection a wetsuit affords, even if you don't NEED it for warmth. From the bottom, the first pool encountered tends to be warm. This is the ONLY pool that will be warm.
Access: Keyhole is just north of the highway in east Zion, about half way between the small tunnel and the East Entrance. There is a three-car pull out right at the canyon and a couple other places to park nearby. Measure mileage as 2.1 miles from the East Entrance or 1.9 miles from the small tunnel.
Descend into the drainage; hike upcanyon. Descend into the water and swim/wade/hike/scramble upcanyon as far as you can, or as you want. Return the way you came.
