My friends and I chose one of the hottest and driest possible months to visit Zion National Park- July, but despite the hot air and weather, we had a wonderful time. Our goal was to have a reunion to celebrate us studying in Cambridge, England over a decade ago. It was the first time all of us would be together in one setting since 2011. Oh how time flies! We left southern CA around 7pm Thursday and trailed on the I-15N and UT-9E until we arrived to Utah around 4am on Friday morning. It was a fun road trip over, laughs, stories, games, and a pit stop in Las Vegas around 1am for some tacos and burritos.

We had finalized all plans a few weeks before our trip. We stood in Hurricane, Utah, about 24 miles away from Zion National Park. We planned to embark on two hikes, the Watchman Trail on Friday afternoon, and The Narrows on Saturday. Sunday we planned to head back to California around 7am. We were all pretty beat from the drive so started our day at 11 am on Friday but left for the park around 1pm. Entering the park and finding a parking spot was easy. It wasn’t packed and we practically had all of Watchman Trail to ourselves. It was a hot day, in the high 90s with some clouds.

The hike was beautiful. It was almost everyone’s first time at Zion. The hot air did give a few of us a hard time. I struggled breathing and it took some time for my body to adjust to the climate. I was raised in a city that reaches 110 during the summer and I’ve lived in humid climates, but the air isn’t stagnant and warm, this was a shock to my system. With time we all made it to the peak, it’s a relatively easy hike. Most people visit Zion for The Narrows, Angel’s Landing, and the other popular hikes but this was a great way to set the tone for the group. We were all excited to be together in a group venturing out somewhere new.

We ended the trail around 6pm. There was a mini wind storm that occurred right at the end and sprinkles fell from the sky. We were warned that it was monsoon season so we were prepared for a thunderstorm should one occur. As we drove into Zion we realized that there’s a whole community right at the entrance of the park which has hotels, restaurants, stores, markets, pubs, etc. We knew immediately where we would head after our hike to cool down, the Zion Canyon Brew Pub. It was the perfect environment to be in towards the evening. Great outdoor patio, a nice selection of craft beer, some yummy appetizers, can’t go wrong. I ordered the pub pretzel sticks and a fruit sour ale. The pretzels were warm and fluffy, they paired it with the most delicious spicy brown mustard sauce.

We stood long enough to catch the beginning of the sunset. The sky was pink and the drive home was a vibe. Our playlist was going, the windows were down, and the beautiful red sandstone cliffs followed us back to the Airbnb. We brought back with us some groceries to make a savory dinner. We enjoyed all the amenities of the home and ended our night on the rooftop by the jacuzzi stargazing. We went to bed at a decent hour, so we can begin the following day energized.

The Narrows is all we had planned for Saturday. We chose the top-down path, which is a 16 mile hike roundtrip. Although we didn’t do the whole 16 miles, we did a total of about 6 hours roundtrip. It was a cloudy day and the rangers cautioned all visitors to be mindful of the thunderstorms and possible rising tides.

Upon entering the park we were met with a parking lot full of visitors. We ended up parking outside the lot along the road. Walking, it would have taken us an hour to head to the visitors center, so we decided to catch shuttle 4, which was an hour walk towards The Narrows instead of back tracking.

The hike before the hike was a warm-up. We were sweating, body got excellent cardio going uphill, and we tried not to look back towards the clouds behind us.

We stayed positive and wanted to reach The Narrows no matter what. The shuttles run often every 10 or so minutes. We all had the impression that it was a very organized running park. The shuttle to the beginning of The Narrows took close to 20 minutes. It was relaxing and beautiful to look at the canyon through the windows as we headed uphill towards the last shuttle stop.

We weren’t prepared for the beauty we were about to witness. Originally home to the Anasazi people that roamed the area over 8,000 years ago. Later inhabited by the Paiute Indians, they were the people that guided a Mormon pioneer to The Narrows. From there, as history sadly shows, the Indigenous Peoples were forced out and colonizers overtook the area and renamed the park. To think, how marvelous it must have been to live off the land. Over time pueblos were built, and crops cultivated from the earth. Basketmaking and other unique skills added to the communities as they grew into larger settlements.

Now to continue onto our adventure, it started off quite crowded. I was certain that our hike would be filled with tons of people, but a few hours in, there were moments where it was just our group walking over the river bottom. It was a very grounding experience. As we hiked through the narrowest park of Zion Canyon, you have to focus the entire time on keeping your balance. It’s a relatively easy hike upstream, but the uneven river bottom and current can catch you off guard.

We were at the mercy of the weather. Late July is monsoon season, and at any given moment, a flash flood could have occurred, but thankfully, it didn’t. I was secretly scouting out places to take shelter, just in case, since we were closed in by walls that were 1,000 feet tall.

The water level varied in the Virgin River, at times coming up to my chest. I had bought poles for the trip but ended up using this sturdy wooden stick that I found on a hike we went on the day before. It came in clutch and saved me from a few falls.

I felt so small but grateful to have experienced such a majestic place within the canyon. This was the highlight of my trip. I will go back to hike the whole 16 miles. It’s worth the visit and I do hope everyone can enjoy it. So many people from across the world were there. I heard tons of different languages and people of all ages were enjoying.

We ended our day back at the Zion Canyon Brew Pub. This time we all ordered a meal and were left satisfied. Everything was tasty and seasoned to perfection. We made one small trip to the gift shop to purchased some memorabilia and then made our way back to the Airbnb. It was a short night since we had to wake up early the following morning. But we spent it under the stars and then went to bed. It was a wonderful weekend trip.

A special one in my 30s with a group of special people. National Parks are part of what makes our country beautiful in this polarized climate. The natural beauty has to be taken care of and preserved. We owe it to mother nature and our future.