Angels Landing

Knife-edge sandstone fin reached by chain-assisted scramble — one of the great hikes in the US

Angels Landing is the famous one. The five-mile round-trip starts on the canyon floor at the Grotto shuttle stop, climbs in switchbacks (Walter's Wiggles, twenty-one of them) to a saddle called Scout Lookout, and then follows a narrow ridge of bare sandstone for half a mile, sometimes only a few feet wide, with cliffs falling four hundred metres on either side. A chain bolted into the rock provides the only assistance.

The summit views are extraordinary — the full sweep of Zion Canyon, the river below like a green thread, the Great White Throne directly opposite. The hike requires a permit obtained by lottery in advance. Allow four to six hours, do not attempt in wet or icy conditions, and seriously reconsider if you are afraid of heights.

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A story
The early Mormon settlers were said to have looked at the great fin and decided that only angels could land there. A trail was eventually blasted up the southern face by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1926. The chains were added later, after several climbers were killed by exposure and high winds; the route is still rated dangerous, and a permit lottery now restricts daily numbers.

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