Zion National Park encompasses some of the most scenic canyon country in the United States. The park is characterized by high plateaus, a maze of narrow, deep sandstone canyons, striking rock towers, and mesas. It is one of the most beautiful spots on the planet.
The park was established to preserve and protect aesthetic and scientific values:
• Stunning scenery found nowhere else on earth.
• A geologic showpiece with sandstone cliffs among the highest in the world.
• One of the last mostly free-flowing river systems on the Colorado Plateau.
• A large, diverse plant and animal community.
• Evidence of human occupation both historic and
prehistoric, including excellent examples of Civilian Conservation Corps work.
Zion is 147,199 acres or 232 square miles. Elevations range from 3,666 ft. (1,117 m) at Coalpits Wash to 8,726 ft. (2,660 m) at Horse Ranch Mountain. Precipitation averages 15 inches a year in Zion Canyon. The Park was named by Mormon pioneers in the 1860’s. Zion, interpreted by Mormons, is a place of safety or refuge. Kolob, in Mormon theology, is a heavenly place close to God.
Sitting at the boundaries and meeting points of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, Basin and Range, and Mojave Desert physiographic zones, animal life in Zion National Park is vast and varied. Zion has the richest diversity of plants in Utah—almost 800 native species. Differences in elevation, sunlight, water, and temperature create “microenvironments” like hanging gardens, side canyons, and isolated mesas that lend to this diversity.
As for animal life, there are 78 species of mammals, 291 birds, 44 reptiles and amphibians, and 6 native fish. Commonly seen animals include mule deer, lizards, and many species of birds. Rare or endangered species include the peregrine falcon, Mexican spotted owl, California condor, desert tortoise, and the Zion snail, found nowhere else on earth.
The first automobile road was built into the park in 1917, allowing 1,000 people a year to visit Zion. Today, more than 2.5 million visitors see the park annually.
Because Zion exists in a narrow canyon, automobile traffic causes air and noise pollution as well as congestion that is detrimental to the park’s resources and visitor experience. Clean-running propane buses were designed to shuttle visitors to eight stops in Zion Canyon and six stops in the town of Springdale, Utah. Visitors are asked to leave their vehicles at parking facilities outside the park.
The shuttle system dramatically reduces automobile traffic in the park, protects vegetation, and restores tranquility to Zion Canyon. There is no charge for riding the shuttle.
On March 30, 2009, President Barack Obama signed a bill into law designating 124,406 acres of Zion National Park as wilderness. The bill also added 648 acres of Bureau of Land Management land into the park on the east edge of Springdale.
