Easy & Family-Friendly Trails: Lower/Upper Emerald Pools, Kayenta Trail & the Pa'rus Path

You do not have to wade through cold river rapids or hold onto cliff chains to experience the magic of Zion Canyon. Four of the most scenic trails on the canyon floor require no permits, no special gear, and under 1 to 2 hours of walking.

1. The Emerald Pools & Kayenta Trail Loop (Stop #6 'The Grotto' or Stop #5 'Zion Lodge')

Tucked into a shaded, spring-fed side canyon opposite Zion Lodge sit three tiered desert oases: Lower, Middle and Upper Emerald Pools:

• Lower Emerald Pool (1.9 km Round-Trip, Paved, 20m Gain, 45 Mins): cross the bridge at Stop #5 (or start at Stop #6 The Grotto via the Kayenta Trail if the Stop #5 bridge is closed) and follow a shaded path underneath and behind a curving sandstone alcove where two ribbon waterfalls curtain into a mossy pool in spring and after rains.
• Middle & Upper Emerald Pools via the 'Kayenta Trail' (3.2 to 4.8 km Round-Trip, 100m Gain, 1.5 to 2 Hours): climb the steps above the Lower Pool alcove to the sandstone shelf of the Middle Pools, then continue 800 metres up a boulder path into the shadowy cliff basin of Upper Emerald Pool. Descend via the panoramic Kayenta Trail to Shuttle Stop #6 (The Grotto) for elevated views of the Virgin River.

2. The 'Pa'rus Trail' (Stop #1 Visitor Center to Stop #3 Canyon Junction: 5.6 km Round-Trip)

Starting behind the South Campground beside the Visitor Center, the flat, paved Pa'rus Trail meanders across the open floor of lower Zion Canyon, crossing the Virgin River on five steel-and-wood bridges. It is the only trail in Zion Canyon open to bicycles, e-bikes and leashed pets, and walking or cycling it in the hour before sunset as the Watchman turns crimson is memorable.

3. The 'Riverside Walk' (Stop #9 Temple of Sinawava, 3.5 km Round-Trip)

Even if you are not wading into The Narrows, ride the shuttle to Stop #9 and walk the flat, wheelchair-accessible Riverside Walk past weeping hanging gardens of maidenhair ferns to the slot canyon gateway.