Zion National Park with young kids

Please note this trip was during Covid-19, and not sure if the same rules will apply when you visit. Please visit the National Park Service site BEFORE your visit, link here. We wore masks during our visit, unless no one was in site. We also followed all travel rules and regulations.

After 4 months of being quarantined I was trying to think of the best way and safest way to get away with my two kids so my husband could work. I decided a road trip to Zion was perfect! Stay tuned for my blog about glamping in Zion, talk about a social distancing paradise.

We decided early on that we would do the Riverside walk and then the Narrows

I decided early on that I would try and take them on the Riverside Walk and then The Narrows, or at least some of it. When going to Zion always have a backup plan! We were prepared to do any of the walks near the visitor center if we coudnt’t get shuttle tickets. Here is how the shuttle tickets worked for our trip. The National Parks website I linked above will keep you up to date. They released all the tickets for July on June 30th at 9am MT. To get shuttle tickets you must have an account on this site, make an account before you try to book tickets. There was a group of older individuals that were not happy when they found out you had to book tickets BEFORE you got there, don’t be like that. Also the day before you go they release some more tickets at 9am MT, but those will probably be even harder to obtain. We were able to get tickets for the 10am shuttle, which meant our plan to hike the last shuttle stop was looking promising. Next obstacle was parking, I had no idea what to expect so we arrived at 7:30am to park and were able to get a spot. If parking is full you can walk from Springdale or take a shuttle from there. Here is the thing, they cancelled all shuttles from Springdale when we went, so once again be sure to check websites before going. You can always walk into the park from Springdale, but that is a ton of walking for kids. They also had the scenic route shut down and only park shuttles could go up it. Like a recording, if you don’t have a shuttle ticket then you will be walking a ton if you don’t want to hike near the Visitor Center.

Now that all the details and planning and logistics are out of the way, lets get down to our time at Zion. So being that we got there at 7:30 and our shuttle was at 10, I had some time to kill with a recently turned 4 year old and a 5 year old. Fun!!! We peed and walked around the visitor center and read some the information about the park. At about 8:15 we went back to the van to grab some food, warm up (its chilly without the sun in the morning), and just relax. With the shuttle lottery in the morning you never know what time will be available, and with kids that can be a tricky morning. Doing small things to fill the time but not exhaust them. We headed to the gift shop at about 8:30 and spent about 30 minutes in the gift shop and then got our Junior Ranger books (due to covid-19 it was obviously different). We went through the book back at the van and the Ranger gave me the badges to give to after they completed 2 pages. We made one last trip to the van to drop off our treasures (we bought walking sticks and thank goodness we did), and then headed to pee and to wait for our shuttle. Phew! So if you have time to burn before your shuttle, I recommend maybe have something in the car or van to do. Since I couldn't book the shuttle till the day before, I wish I had been more prepared for that morning time. I could of had a book or something about the park that the kids could do in the van, or even animal stickers. Luckily the Ranger doing the shuttle told us we could go on early. Finally off to stop 9! Called the Temple of Siniwava

My son was not happy to be going on a long hike. Truth be told we loved it after about 10 minutes, He turned to me and said “this is actually really fun” and I could not have asked for more. They both has an amazing time

The shuttle had removed seats and did not allow standing, so hence me drilling in your head to book those tickets ahead of time. Stops 2, 3, 4 (we only stopped at 4 on the way back) were skipped, we stopped at the lodge and I think maybe 2 stops after that. Riverside is stop 9, with the reduced stops it really made our trip there much faster. I was told 45 minutes and it took us less than 30. Once we got off the shuttle there were restrooms and water fill up stations. Bring tons of water and food. I bought a camel back that held 2 liters and we finished the whole thing. I also packed tons of snacks. Cliff bars, apple sauce, raisins, oranges, goldfish. There are no trash cans on the hike so bring a baggie to put all your trash in it. The kids picked up trash along the way, a Junior Ranger task I made up or maybe it was in the book. There are squirrels that are NOT shy and my son loved them!

This whole part is very kid and stroller friendly, until you hit the waters edge.

The hike is described in the National Parks service site as:

Riverside Walk

Shuttle Stop to Start from: #9 Temple of Sinawava
Pets: No
Trailhead Location: Adjacent to restrooms and water refill station.
Distance (roundtrip): 2.2 mi / 3.5 km
Elevation Change: 57 ft / 17 m
Estimated Hiking Time: 1.5 hours
Description: Minor drop-offs. Paved trail follows the Virgin River along the bottom of a narrow canyon. Trailside exhibits. The first 0.4 miles of the trail is accessible but past that point there are several steep slopes. Deep sand may be present on pavement after heavy rain. Some wheelchair users may need assistance.This trail accesses the bottom-up Narrows route (see below). Restrooms and water filling stations are available at the Temple of Sinawava.

The Riverside Walk itself was amazing. It was more of a paved path, but had many cutouts to explore the rivers edge. Very kid friendly and stroller friendly, dogs were not allowed. After heavy rain it may be hard in some parts to get the stroller through with the mud or dirt. Just hiking the Riverside walk with young kids would probably take over an hour and a half roundtrip. We took about 3.5 hours around trip, but we did part of The Narrows and also stopped to have a snack and to ring out our socks. Take your time. Look around. Explore. Most of the hike is shaded by the cliffs, but bring plenty of sunscreen. As the day goes on the temperatures heat up significantly! Make sure to have water breaks, kids tend to say they are thirsty when its too late. Make them take a sip at every riverside stop.

Make sure you take the time to look up!

The Narrows is described on the National Parks Service site as:

The Narrows via Riverside Walk

Shuttle Stop to Start from: #9 Temple of Sinawava
Pets: No
Trailhead Location: Adjacent to shuttle stop and restrooms.
Distance (roundtrip): 9.4 mi / 15.1 km
Elevation Change: 334 ft / 102 m
Estimated Hiking Time: 8 hours
Description: This route is known as the bottom-up Narrows and does not require a permit. Upstream travel beyond Big Spring or in Orderville Canyon is prohibited. At least 60% of the hike is spent wading, walking, and sometimes swimming in the river. Travel is rough and slippery in cold, fast flowing water. High water levels can prevent access. Obtain additional information prior to starting this hike. Use appropriate equipment and clothing to help protect you. Before your hike, always check the weather and flash flood potential (links available on our website or information updated at the Visitor Center). Flash floods are deadly.

Now to my kids favorite part, the river. I warned them that they were going to get wet, and that they would have wet feet. Also, a walking stick is useless if your son carries it horizontally. I held my daughters hand most of the time. They fell a ton, got up, and we kept moving forward in the most awesome way. I was so proud of how many times they fell and got wet, and just kept getting up and going on. I left it up to them to decide when we would turn around, I feel like we got pretty far down the river for two young kids and only me. For the more advanced hiker you can spend the rest of the day finishing out The Narrows, but permits are required to go after a certain distance. Also during springtime it may not be hikable since that is when all the snow is melting and the river is very full. Just check in advance to see the conditions, it was also low flash flood chance during our hike. Be sure to look up and admire the hanging gardens and just the massiveness of the cliffs.

Once out on the river we were able to take mask breaks because spacing so much bigger.

As I mentioned before I highly recommend the 10 dollar walking stick from the visitor center, it literally saved the day a million times. It was amazing to be walking with my two kids down The Narrows and having a low crowd. I did see some kids in those hiking sandals and those would of been a great idea. We went with running shoes knowing they would get wet and just went with that. After walking we found a quite area and took our shoes and socks off and relaxed for awhile. The socks were able to get pretty dry in that short time and my kids were happy to walk back and didn't notice the wet feet. The hike back was just as enjoyable as the hike there and we even noticed new things we missed in our way in.

My son insisted on going through the deepest and hardest parts, and of course you feel and got wet from head to toe, and loved it

So for those of you with young kids, please don’t “wait till they are older”, because if this time has taught us anything its don’t wait to do something. DO IT! My kids were 4 and 5 and were able to finish the entire hike with no carrying.

Our rest stop after being in the water, for some reason she kept her socks on.

I won’t say we didn’t have a few bumps along the way (bring bandaids), we did also have the best time ever. I was shocked at how well my kids did and how proud they were of themselves at the end of the day. Hiking like that was something they have never done before, and it definitely built confidence. They couldn't wait to tell their Dad all about their adventure. Both kids fell asleep on the shuttle bus back, which meant a good tired day.

Couldn’t close out this blog without a photo of the squirrels. Warning: they come very close because they want food and their is a fine if you feed them. Besides that, my kids loved them. lol. They pretended they were chasing us, and I think some did for alittle.

So get out there safely and enjoy the outdoors.