Angels Landing in is often classified as one of the most dangerous and scariest hikes in the world. We can confirm, if you are even somewhat afraid of hikes, that it is scary. And even if you aren’t, it is still dangerous. We hiked it on somewhat of a whim, and it was an awesome way to celebrate 11 years of togetherness!
For our 11 year anniversary, we were staying in Page, hoping to snag an elusive permit for The Wave hike via the walk-up lottery. What we didn’t realize, however, was that between mid-November and Mid-March, the lottery is only run on weekdays. It was Saturday. In February. Oops… So we had to change our plans and eventually decided to spend the day in Zion National Park, about a 2 hour drive away.
We stopped at the Visitor Center to check out trail conditions, and when the ranger confirmed there was no ice at the top of Angels Landing, we half nervously, half excitedly decided to do it! YOLO, right?! Do you people still stay that?
We caught the shuttle to the Grotto Trailhead stop and set off…
The first part of the trail ascends some steep switchbacks up the valley wall. We were there at the end winter, and even then the sun felt warm as huffed and puffed upwards, so this shade-less portion of the trail probably wouldn’t be the most fun during the summer. Thankfully there is a reprieve from the sun once you enter shady Refrigerator Canyon. The break from switchbacks is much shorter, however, as at the end of the canyon are Walter’s Wiggles, 21 steep switchbacks leading up to Scout’s Lookout.
Scout’s Lookout is a great stopping point for those who don’t want to continue to the top of Angels Landing. There are restrooms located here and some awesome views of the valley.
Of course we couldn’t stop here…
The remainder of the hike is the most exposed trail we have ever been on. Some sections of the trail are barely three feet wide. We tried not to look down and held on tight to the chains.
It’s actually amazing how many people do this hike considering how steep and exposed the final section is. In some ways, hiking with others who are just as wary but encouraging is great, but in others, the only person you really trust is yourself. Nevertheless, the Angels Landing hike is worthy of anyone’s bucket list and we’re psyched to have conquered it together!
