12 Photos of Zion National Park So Majestic, They Look Like AI

Zion National Park, Utah

Being in Zion is a punch to the gut. Red rock walls, impossible heights, and views that make you forget whatever problems you left at home.

They look so impossibly gorgeous, it’s hard to believe they’re actually real, especially at these 12 spots.

Angels Landing

You want adventure? Here it is, served rare. A 1,488-foot rock fin with drop-offs that’ll turn your insides to liquid.

Now you need a permit to climb it (they’ll hit you with a $5,000 fine if you try without one), but the 5,790-foot summit is worth every form you’ll fill out.

You start with “Walter’s Wiggles,” 21 switchbacks built in 1926 by the park’s first superintendent. Then the real test: a half-mile ridge with chain railings and thousand-foot drops on both sides.

From up there, the Virgin River looks like a thin squiggle 1,000 feet below.

Observation Point

Higher, harder, better views than Angels Landing.

Sitting at 6,521 feet on Mount Baldy, it’s 700 feet above the more famous spot. The 8-mile round trip is 2,300 vertical feet of reality check that weeds out the weak and rewards the worthy.

You’ll pass through Echo Canyon, a slot so tight it feels like walking through the earth’s ribcage. At the top: a 270-degree view that makes you forget the pain.

If you’re smart (or lazy), take the East Mesa Trail instead. Shorter with almost no climbing, but you need a 4WD to get there.

The reward is the same: the whole canyon laid bare beneath you.

Canyon Overlook

Easy payoff here. Just 1.5 miles round trip with 150 feet of climbing, the perfect intro to Zion if you’re short on time.

Built in the 1930s, this path takes you past ferns and through shady spots to a view that feels stolen. The Towers of the Virgin rise 3,000 feet on the horizon.

East Temple looms 2,200 feet right behind you. They called it “Great Arch Trail” until the 1940s, which is funny since you’re standing on the arch itself.

You can see the road zigzagging below and almost every famous rock in one glance.

The Watchman

The sunsets here are almost too perfect. From Canyon Junction Bridge, the Watchman turns blood-red while the river mirrors the sky.

For more, there’s also the 3-mile Watchman Trail climbs 300 feet to a lookout over the whole southern end.

It starts at the visitor center, making it easy to find. Up there, you see the Watchman, Temples, Towers, and Springdale spread out below.

Towers of the Virgin

Behind the blandly named Human History Museum sits a covered deck with actual benches.

Civilization in the wilderness. Named by a Methodist minister named Dr. Frederick Vining Fischer in 1916, these formations dominate the western skyline.

Catch them at sunrise when light hits them first, turning them gold against the blue morning sky.

Court of the Patriarchs

Our minister friend—Fischer—was at it again with this one, slapping biblical names on three massive sandstone peaks and collectively calling them the Court of the Patriarchs.

Here, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob rising 1,500 to 2,000 feet from the canyon floor.

The 0.2-mile trail to the viewpoint is short but steep enough to deter the truly lazy. In the grand hierarchy of Zion’s attractions, this one’s often overlooked.

Such a shame, because it’s magnificent in its own right.

Cable Mountain

In 1901, a local named David Flanigan built a cable system here to lower timber from the plateau to the valley where trees were scarce.

The rusty remains still cling to the edge. The view shows parts of the canyon others miss, especially the central and southern sections.

Getting here means either a tough 7.7-mile hike with nearly 2,000 feet of climbing from the canyon floor, or an easier route from Stave Spring Trailhead if you have the right vehicle.

Either way, you’re seeing Zion from a different angle than the crowds below.

Kolob Canyons

Here’s a secret: Zion’s most spectacular section might be the one nobody visits. Forty miles from the main canyon, Kolob Canyons sits higher, cooler, and gloriously emptier at 6,000 feet.

A five-mile drive leads to a viewpoint where finger canyons spread out like a hand. The short Timber Creek Overlook Trail adds even better views with minimal effort.

Emerald Pools

Three pools, three different hikes. The Lower Pool is an easy 1.2-mile walk almost anyone can handle.

The Middle trail adds another mile with 150 feet of climb. The Upper Pool sits in a natural bowl surrounded by 200-foot cliffs where water falls from above in spring.

All together, it’s 3 miles with 350 feet of climbing. Go in spring when the waterfalls rush to life

Weeping Rock

A half-mile trail climbing 100 feet brings you to a rock that “cries.” Water seeps through sandstone, hits harder rock, and comes out sideways.

The result: hanging gardens in the desert. The trail takes you behind a water curtain to a cool alcove. From there, the Great White Throne rises like some pale pyramid.

Deertrap Mountain

The path less traveled. This 9.5-mile round trip with 1,000 feet of climbing keeps the crowds away. Your reward? A 7,000-foot high view of central and southwest Zion that feels exclusive.

The climb takes you from desert scrub to pinyon-juniper forest. Eagles and falcons hunt overhead, riding heat waves rising from the canyon.

Come here when you’re tired of seeing Zion through other people’s camera phones.

The Narrows

Zion feels absolutely holy here.

The Virgin River has carved this hallway for millions of years. It begins at the end of Riverside Walk, an easy 2.2-mile round trip on a paved path.

Here, you get your first look into the Narrows, where 1,000-feet walls shoot feet, leaving just a sliver of sky visible.

You can cool your fee on multiple sandy beaches along the trail before deciding if you want to continue upstream.