Getting to Zion’s Observation Point: The Easy Way

[@DocRock71]

Not much for hiking anymore, but I did this hike in late April 2021, and it was most amazing hike and view I've ever seen with my own eyes, besides the Grand Canyon and Bryce Canyon. I was 59 at the time, with mild COPD, so no way I'd ever make the Weeping Rock trail. Found this option and went for it on a solo hike, where the trailhead to Observation Point is almost 7 and a half miles roundtrip, which was the longest nature hike I've ever done, except in my 20s in the military. I was so proud of making this hike, at 6500 feet elevation, 85 degrees, in not the best physical shape. It was a bit tough, especially some of the hike back, mostly on my lower back, but SO, SO worth it! I hope to make it again one day with some other hikers next time!

[@CityWalks]

🍎👍 Very cool. Loved looking up from the road but looking out from above is so cool. Stunning images and video. Thanks for sharing . -H

[@david.e.miller]

This hike is on my bucket list!

[@lilyianlee3404]

Best video of all the ones we watched! It answered every question I had. Very detailed, excellent directions, and great explanations throughout! Thank you for your hard work!! Beautiful pictures!

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thanks for the great complements and thanks for commenting.

[@aprilbenevento5466]

Thank you for your very iinformative & beautiful video ! I really lliked the captions of what we were seeing you point out. My brother & I are heading out next month to do this hike & enjoy Zion on our 3rd visit!

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for commenting.

[@iguillo]

I did this trail two weeks ago. It was great to be able to forego the 2000 ft elevation gain on the trail from Weeping Rock (although, like he said that trail is currently closed anyway).

[@everintransit4240]

What a tour! The graphics in this video are awesome. Thank you so much.

[@BackRoadsWest1]

You're welcome and thanks for the kudos!

[@hollyanderson8426]

Love this video! I've been wondering how that path was for years. Zion is my favorite place on earth.

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thanks for commenting. Glad you enjoyed it. It's been really nice here lately (like yesterday) as the flash floods and mud slides have scared away the tourists and left cool temps. No damage, just a great park with much smaller crowds than last year :-)

[@HangLe-ym5hf]

The most detailed video I've ever seen. Thank you very much. God bless!!!

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for commenting.

[@scarletz6720]

thanks for sharing.

[@donnaashenberg2718]

Excellent video....planning to do this hike next week and your tips and careful explanation for everything I need to know is much appreciated....

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thank you for commenting. Have fun!

[@danielkirk3187]

Beautiful! Well done... inspiring me to get off my butte and go there!

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thank you! Go for it!

[@mssixty3426]

Excellent video, scenery, detailed map, roads, trail, flora and fauna information included, along with nice music 😃

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thanks for commenting - glad you enjoyed it

[@bbsquared100]

Thank you for the reply

[@TrenTonStackZ]

Now the only way to get here due to the private owned lots outside the East Mesa entrance is via shuttle bus at Zion Ponderosa ($5 but it's only goes once a day and requires reservation)

[@nik_P1000]

Going this Fall and this video was incredibly helpful! Thank you 😊

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thanks for commenting. Glad you enjoyed it.

[@taylorbates5669]

A chipmunk stole my cookie at the amazing viewpoint lol. Great view though!

[@johnbarbuto5387]

Very well done. 😁

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thank you!

[@anneblack9073]

This was so helpful and interesting! Thank you!

[@BackRoadsWest1]

You're welcome. Thanks for commenting!

[@raymondrichter2620]

Just stunning!

[@Wanna.Wander]

that red rock is just fantastic!💜I wish I had a gimble... your vids are so smooth💜I wanna do that west rim trail and the walking river trail

[@JohnGetchel]

Really enjoy your videos! So much great information. I just did this hike a few days ago and didn't even know about the side canyon views. Oh well just another reason to go back.

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Yea, good reason to go back. I just walked past the other the end of one of the side canyons yesterday.

[@r4ym1n13]

Was the access road tough to drive on ? thanks

[@JohnGetchel]

@@r4ym1n13 Only the last 1/2 mile or so requires high ground clearance but it has snowed and rained since I was there so it may be a mud bog now. But again that's only the last bit before the trailhead.

[@r4ym1n13]

@@JohnGetchel crap ! Cause I have a small toyota corolla which makes me worried. I plan to visit this monday through wednesday. Thanks for the heads up

[@Whocares.........]

Took the walk down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon! I’m still tired. So good to rest!

[@bbsquared100]

Great video, answered a ton of questions / great pics and video. What camera are you using? Thanks for posting

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Glad you enjoyed! Used a Canon T4i and GoPro Hero 6 on a Karma gimbal.

[@rs779]

I have now seen a few of your videos in preparation for a couple of weeks in Utah. Great help and VERY well done. Wow! Super detailed and helpful. A couple of questions 1) at Zion would you do the Observation Point hike or the Scout Lookout hike, or both? 2) I see your recommendation for Gaaia - thanks, if I go that route, will use your link. Have you compared it to AllTrails? Looking at paid subscription and cost is not really the issue. Using iOS.

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thank you. Glad you're finding them useful. The Observation Point trail is now open from the bottom - it just opened 2 weeks ago. Obs Pt will probably be inaccessible for a few months because of the snow. Hopefully your trip is after April. Gaia GPS and AllTrails is owned by the same company. Remember, you get what you pay for. Gaia has 80 map layers you can't get without paying a fee. AllTrails relies on their users for data, which typically is not good quality.

[@rs779]

@@BackRoadsWest1 Gaia it is! Not sure my wife and I can manage the bottom up OP trail (70 and 65 yrs old!). Thoughts? There Apr 29-30

[@BackRoadsWest1]

@@rs779 just take it slow. I took an 80 & 81 year old up on the trail in the video, no problem. Just be aware that April might be muddy taking the driving route suggested in the video.

[@malakangel9322]

Thank you so much for sharing this information and didn't know there's another way! Can a FWD go to that dirt road in summer? Thanks

[@BackRoadsWest1]

You're welcome and thank you for commenting. When you say FWD, do you mean front wheel or 4-wheel? Regardless, in the summer, you need high-clearance, otherwise the vehicle's undercarriage will be scraped, possibly damaged.

[@cvasqueza321]

Great video this was very helpful!! One question Can a SUV like Honda CR-V, Nissan Rogue, or a Toyota RAV4(basically any mid size SUV) be able to drive through the dirt road that leads to this trail?

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thank you. We actually went there in a RAV4 once, but it was sketchy. I returned later in a 4Runner - no problem. Bottom line, you need high ground clearance. And don't even attempt it if the roads are muddy.

[@madisonhursh9593]

So informative! We're planning on going this weekend! Are there any areas to park our car before we walk to the trailhead?

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thank you! What you saw in the video is where you can park. Probably 15 spaces or so, not sure.

[@SweetsRN]

I’m going in two weeks, I’ll be hiking only during daylight but how cold is It this time of year?

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Difficult to say. We also had a significant amount of rain here, so the access road may be to muddy to drive - it's high clearance only to begin with.

[@donnacook1755]

We'll be heading here in March 2022. I heard there is a parking area about 1/2 mile from the main parking lot. Did you see that area? I don't know if we'd be able to travel on that rutted road

[@BackRoadsWest1]

At places along the dirt road, you should be able to find a pull-off spot to park. In March however, the road will probably covered in mud or snow. Not recommended. Wait until late May.

[@r4ym1n13]

Excellent info. We plan on doing this in a few days. Is that road driveable now ? Thank you

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Don't know, I haven't been there since Oct 1. What you see in the video is probably close to what it will be until a major snowfall, which can happen anytime until May 2021.

[@cassiebolz8924]

Loved this video! I am planning on doing this hike first week of May, so the same time this was filmed. What was the weather like? Did you see many others on the trail?

[@BackRoadsWest1]

You just never know. Two weekends ago it was 70. Last weekend we had 3" of snow. And we live outside of Zion where it's 3500' elevation - Obsv Pt is almost 6000'. You don't want to drive that road a few weeks after a rain or snow storm. Two years ago, we had snow on Memorial weekend. Good luck!

[@oscarmolinaoutdooradventur1648]

❤️❤️❤️👍🏼👍🏼

[@unioncityguy]

It looks like there are no one using this trail. I am planning visiting Zion in may and I am wondering if there are usually other people on the trail.

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Yes, especially now with the trail up from Zion Canyon closed. However, you can't get to this trail in the winter until maybe May.

[@anthonymulcahy1166]

Awesome. How long did this take to do? It looks well worth it, and zero foot traffic!

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Roundtrip about 4 hours - leisure walking

[@anthonymulcahy1166]

@@BackRoadsWest1 Thanks so much! Hitting there in mid may and look forward to doing it

[@davidendris3986]

How far a hike from the visitor center to the beginning of angels landing trail

[@BackRoadsWest1]

A long one! I don't recommend it as there is no safe place to walk without getting hit by a bus or bicycle. It's about 6 miles, then almost 3 miles of Angels landing. And that's one-way.

[@davidendris3986]

@@BackRoadsWest1 thank you

[@goodoldrodg9043]

Oh! Very well done. (You're going to get me killed.)

[@BackRoadsWest1]

Thank you. Just don't walk to close to the edge if you go...

[@karricompton]

Nice vid, but I wouldn’t say it’s the easy way. We won’t have a 4wd when we are there, so in order to do this hike, we would have to spend a ton of $ renting a jeep.

[@BackRoadsWest1]

You can walk the last mile. No news on when the route thru Echo Cyn will be fixed.

[@lefthandcigg4253]

So this must be "zion" from fallout nv.