Parking
Use the Zion Canyon Visitor Center lot, the park’s largest with more than 350 spaces; canyon parking often fills by early or mid-morning in busy periods. Zion Canyon Shuttle Stop 1 is beside the lot.
Overview
About Virgin River Nature Trail
Why go
- A very short walk gives you direct access to the river.
Heads up
- Too brief to fill a hiking slot by itself.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Zion map
Full mapElevation3,919–3,923 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
3 active Zion alerts
- CautionToxic cyanobacteria in Zion waterwaysDo not drink Zion in-stream water, submerge your head, or touch or ingest algae mats; cyanobacteria can produce harmful toxins.Official details
- ClosureWatchman Trail closed for repairsWatchman Trail is closed pending repairs; do not enter the trail and choose another hike. Check current park conditions before setting out.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Zion Tour Guide
Your drive to Virgin River Nature Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Zion National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Zion audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Zion Canyon Visitor Center0:00 / 0:32
“Zion Canyon Visitor Center is ahead, where you can get ranger advice, browse the outdoor exhibits and board the canyon shuttle.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Zion Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Watchman Campground
- Zion Nature Center
- How a Cottonwood Gets Its Start
- Zion Human History Museum
- 45 audio storiesacross Zion’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor California Condor, Bighorn Sheep, Mountain Lion, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 54 trails, 36 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Virgin River Nature Trail
A quick riverside stopVirgin River Nature Trail is an approximately 0.
Virgin River Nature Trail is an approximately 0.05-mile out-and-back from the Zion Canyon Visitor Center plaza to a river access point and back. The mapped path is about 43 metres each way. Allow around 10 minutes with a pause by the water; the walking itself takes only a few. This is a tiny riverside detour, not a substitute for a longer canyon walk.
From the plaza to the riverFollow the short, level paved path to the Virgin River, then return the way you came.
Follow the short, level paved path to the Virgin River, then return the way you came. The payoff is close-up river scenery and a natural sandstone bank. The often-cited 0.3-mile figure for the visitor-center strolls includes the separate Archeology Trail; it does not describe this riverside path alone.
Before you goStart at the Zion Canyon Visitor Center. Restrooms and outdoor water fountains are in the plaza.
Start at the Zion Canyon Visitor Center. Restrooms and outdoor water fountains are in the plaza. The visitor-center lot is Zion's largest, with more than 350 spaces, but parking in the canyon often fills by early or mid-morning during busy periods; Shuttle Stop 1 is beside the lot. Pets are not allowed on this trail; Pa'rus is the only pet-friendly trail in the park. The National Park Service does not list this path among its wheelchair-friendly trails, so check with a ranger if you need dependable mobility access.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Zion
291 sightingsCalifornia CondorMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
350 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
22 sightingsMountain LionMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,326 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
23 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
15 sightingsPeregrine FalconMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Zion. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
