Zion National Park

Location Description

Sub-locations

Kolob Canyon

251 photos

Andy drinks up before heading into Keyhole Canyon in...
Joel and Andy on the approach to Keyhole.
Andy wading through some Utah brown water in Keyhole Canyon.
Andy in Keyhole Canyon. Mike's feet in the background.
Mike dipping his feet into a wading pool in Keyhole Canyon.
Andy, in Keyhole, as the slot gets narrower and deeper. ...
Andy on rappel while Mike sorts the rope.
Joel working his way over some boulders.
Andy (front), Joel (middle) and Mike (back) in Keyhole Canyon.
Mike setting up a rappel in Keyhole Caynon, while Andy...
Andy on rappel.
Mike on rappel in Keyhole Canyon. Note the Chaco sandals.
It gets kinda dark down in here.
Mike making his way through the slanted corridor. Andy...
Mike, having tossed the rope bag in front of him to make...
Muddy Utah brown water in Keyhole Canyon.
More boulder hopping and swimming in Keyhole Canyon. ...
This was the section of the canyon we referred to as the...
Aw lookie, a butterfly. Spotted near the exit of Keyhole Canyon.
Close-up of aforementioned butterfly in Keyhole Canyon.
Out into the blazing sun again (Mike pictured). Time to...
Mike at the beginning section of Pine Creek Canyon...
Andy and Joel discussing the first rappel in Pine Creek Canyon.
Andy double-checking his rope on the first rappel in Pine Creek.
Andy on the first rappel in Pine Creek. My feet in the...
Joel, in Pine Creek Canyon.
Andy disappearing around a corner on rappel in Pine Creek Canyon
Andy and Joel swimming through Pine Creek Canyon.
Andy pausing to take a photo, and Joel looking a little...
Joel setting up to rappel in Pine Creek Canyon while...
Andy on rappel while Mike looks on in Pine Creek Canyon.
Mike looking on (from dry ground), while Andy and Joel...
Here comes the rope.
Narrows in Pine Creek Canyon.
Andy leads the way with Joel right behind him through a...
Deep inside the narrows of Pine Creek Canyon.
Andy reaches daylight at the end of a dark section of...
Getting closer to the end of the narrows in Pine Creek Canyon.
a log floating in the brown water of Pine Creek Canyon.
Andy taking a picture in Pine Creek Canyon.
Andy swimming along in Pine Creek Canyon.
Yikes, I hope it doesn't fall on us. This rock was...
Andy doing the backstroke. Mike and Joel on dry ground...
Andy swimming for shore in Pine Creek Canyon while Mike...
Getting out of the water.
Navigating a wider, sunnier section of the canyon.
Mike on rappel in Pine Creek Canyon.
Mike on rappel in Pine Creek.
Andy and Mike wash the rope in Pine Creek Canyon. ...
About here is where we caught up to "Bo" and his group...
Mike, Joel, and Andy look on as the dunderheads attempt...
Getting a little restless (we had to wait for all 12...
One more shot: notice the hole cut in the cliff above. ...
Joel on the final free rappel out of Pine Creek Canyon.
Joel, still on rappel.
Mike on the final rappel out of Pine Creek Canyon.
Mike, on rappel again, on the final rappel of Pine Creek Canyon.
Joel walking out of the non-technical part of the...
A look up at the Pine Creek Cathedral. This is a...
Our hike out from Pine Creek back to the east rim road...
The greater Pine Creek Canyon as it drains into the Virgin River.
Andy, pleased with our first day's accomplishments.
A giant arch on one side of Pine Creek Canyon, and Andy.
Major bummer! Andy's truck gets a severe flat on the...
Close-up of the sidewall puncture wound.
Luckily, at least we have pleasant company.
Mr. Ed wonders if he can help us change a tire.
Joel getting the spare out from under the back of the truck.
Off to Kolob Canyon! Joel, Andy and Mike.
Joel looks for a faint trail on the way to Kolob.
Mike, after climbing like a hobbit on a trek up Mount...
Andy, rappelling into Kolob Canyon.
Mike dons his coveralls on top of his dry suit. This...
Mike puts on his coveralls. Kolob Creek is fed from...
Andy gets ready to get wet. Mike puts his backpack on. ...
Standing in the water for the first time: Andy (in...
Mike shimmies down a log to avoid a rappel and pass over...
Looking down a rappel into a cold, deep pool. It is...
A blurry shot of one of the first small rappels in Kolob Canyon.
Andy finishes of one of the first rappels in Kolob...
This rappel looks a bit longer than the last (peering...
Andy double-checks his rigging at the beginning of one...
Andy, looking down as he starts a 150 foot rappel.
Andy, almost to the bottom!
Just about there! This rappel was a little challenging...
Andy starts a short rappel while Joel and Mike wait on...
Mike stands on shore while Joel hunts for the next...
Andy takes a snack break while Mike rigs the next rappel.
Mike pulls rope through an anchor at the top of one of...
Mike rigs a locking carabiner to the anchor in a...
Off into the dark abyss. Mike prepares to rappel.
Joel takes a seat while waiting his turn to rappel.
Mike on rappel (green) while Andy watches from above.
Andy getting a shower from a waterfall. He has clipped...
More of the same: Andy and Joel rig yet another rappel....
Mike, maneuvering past some logs and debris while on one...
Joel, having found the anchor for the next rappel waits...
Andy, Joel and Mike sort the rope in a particularly...
Mike and Andy communicating with Joel as he sets up one...
Joel and Andy at the bottom of one of the big rappels,...
Mike bypasses a waterfall in Kolob Canyon.
Joel, having a good time. Joel was the only one who...
Joel and Andy crouch amid a massive log jam that served...
Joel and Andy watch Mike intently as he starts to set...
Joel (left), Mike (top) and Andy (bottom) prepare the...
Joel sets up to be the first on the rope.
Andy snaps a picture while Mike sets up to go on rappel.
Andy, standing at the top of the final rappel.
Andy does his best to keep his footing on the...
A blurry shot, but I like it all the same. Andy on rappel.
A view from the bottom of the final rappel.
Andy and Mike share a laugh after completing the main...
Snack time. On level ground again. Mike, Joel and Andy.
A nice view of the final waterfall in the background
Starting the 2-day hike out from the bottom of Kolob...
Setting sun on a beautiful cliff band in lower Kolob Creek.
The team starts to look a little tired: our dry suits...
Mike (front) and Joel (rear) boulder-hopping down Lower...
Sunshine up ahead!
Joel offers to take the rope from Mike, who is starting...
This was the surprise-delight of the trip: A 500+ foot...
Joel and Mike gaze at the falls, where we agree to take...
Andy fiddles with his camera while Joel admires the...
A view of the cliffs above us.
Another shot of the falls. Almost all of the water...
Looking straight up the falls.
Andy goes to inspect the base of the falls.
What water did reach the bottom flowed out in a pleasant...
Andy breaths a sigh of refreshment from the heat at the...
Joel takes a rest in the water as well.
I think Andy wished he could float all the way to camp like this.
Stunning scenery continued to unfold around every bend...
Andy, walking down Lower Kolob Creek.
Joel wades through a particularly beautiful section of narrows.
Joel, Andy and Mike walk ahead of me through a section...
A section of narrows in Kolob Creek.
Snow! In June! In the desert! Andy navigates around...
Joel, Mike and Andy stop for a snack at a confluence of...
We start to lose the sun as the day wears on.
Wading through some chest deep water deep in a section...
Andy, once again trying to cool down.
We finally found a place to camp, at the turnoff for the...
Using one of our ropes to make a clothesline. At this...
Camp, the next morning. Joel (inside his bivy) pictured.
After breakfast we decided to fill up on water from the...
Andy, looking a little warm. At some point shortly...
Walking down the river in the early morning.
Andy Joel and Mike negotiate around some trees and logs...
Mike downclimbs a small waterfall into a nice cold...
Feeling refreshed after a nice morning dip in the pool.
Joel slides down a moss-covered smooth rock into a...
Andy and Joel walk toward another section of shady narrows.
Joel and Andy stop for second breakfasts.
We start to get the first patches of morning sunlight...
A beautiful small lake formed by a natural rock fall...
Mike had eaten his Wheaties this morning and charged...
The direct sunlight continues to elude us.
Another section of narrows, in Lower Kolob Creek. At...
Some deciduous trees in a sunny patch of canyon.
Finally at the confluence of the Kolob and the Virgin,...
Looking upriver on the Virgin: apparently you can hike...
Lunch in the sunshine.
The view from lunch.
Self potrait / proof I was actually on this trip. :)
Andy is thrilled to get rid of his dry suit and thermal...
This looked like it would be a fun rock climb, if not...
Some small falls join the Virgin River. At this point...
Some logs in the Virgin River.
Some sunshine and an inviting rock for sitting..
Mike Joel and Andy had stopped to strip off some layers...
One of my favorite sections of our hike out.
A nice wade/swim through a section of narrows.
This section sort of reminded me of toned down version...
A gap between two boulders.
Mike, trudging through some narrows.
Andy, in his standard pose: floating downstream.
Joel, Mike and Andy climbing over a log jam.
More pretty narrows.
Mike leads the way across a dry patch of river rocks.
At this point we run into some Aussie cavers who were...
A boulder in a stream.
Mike, Andy and Joel continue through The Narrows.
Mike, Joel and Andy, and some of the first day-hikers we...
More hiking through Narrows: Mike and Andy.
The Narrows slot up dramatically.
Andy snaps a photo in another subway-esque section of...
Andy admires the rock formations.
So the aforementioned backpack: As it turns out, my...
Now we start to see day hikers in droves.
Joel, Mike and Andy, continuing to march downstream.
A woman in bikini stops to take a picture of the same...
Mystery springs! Here is the exit to one of the more...
Here are all the tourists.
Setting sun near the exit of Mystery Springs.
The group is getting a little tired (Mike, with Andy and...
After hiking back to the trailhead, we took the park...
Joel packs up his truck.
Kolob Terrace (where we had started our hike) is quite...
Andy and Meredith hike ahead through strange sedimentary...
Andy and Meredith did not seem to mind the sunshine,...
Checkerboard pattern caused by wind currents and water...
Supposedly the horizontal lines come from wind running...
Explanatory sign with pattern even more visible in the snow
Along the road into Zion NP coming from the East.
Still along the entrance road, east of the big tunnel
The color of the rocks against the deep blue of the sky...
And the cliffs seemed to come in all sorts of colors
In the Canyon now
With the gurgling Virgin River running at about 1/3 of...
Can continue up this path, along the river to the...
A view up canyon toward the Narrows
The path was very easy ... just a stroll in the woods
You can spot the Virgin river through the trees. May...
Oh no, a cloud in the sky.
Looking back down the path
One of the many waterfalls throughout the park
I believe this is Indian Paint Brush. Any other ideas?
This squirrel was attacking me! I was taking his...
I believe this is Watchman Peak at the entrance of the Canyon
Another view of Watchman
Driving out of Zion, back towards Mt Carmel to the East
These alcoves are fascinating
Closer up ... could be the beginning of a Natural...
Checkerboard on the way into Zion
My attempt at a nature photo. On the entrance to Zion,...
Also on the approach, on a shady side of the road while...
Pretty sure this is Angel's Landing. Once pointed out...
Another view of same
Just the cliffs along the trail leading to the Narrows
And some more of them. As you can see, we had fabulous weather.
Looking back toward the entrance to our walk.
Pictures can't capture what this area is like
Some of the 'seeps' in the sandstone that allow greenery...
Including a wild flower we did not recognize.
And those are yellow columbine.
A close up of the columbine.
Hope this turns vertical as it is impressive.
The Virgin River coming out of the narrows. Not much flow.
More of the surrounding cliff sides
Guess that's Paul in the red shirt, me in front of him,...
A few hearty folk venturing into the river where the...
Who are obviously just sitting around taking pictures.
Such as this guy who posed for anyone who picked up a camera
Time for my close-up
Looking back to where you enter the Canyon
And again
What a long tail ... and what a pretty coat.
Bridge leading to Sapphire Pools, across the Virgin...
A magnificent tree in front of the Lodge
A few bison, with babies, along the road