Zion NP in Late Feb '11

[SocalAstro]

I just booked my reservations for Zion NP for the erd week in February :-)

I was curious as to how much snow the park has seen so far? Im guessing it has been a mild winter compared to previous ones but wanted to check with folks that have been there recently.

Thanks,
Leon

[Ed Kelsey]

You can view the Zion webcam to see current conditions

http://instacam.com/showcam.asp?id=ZPRNG&size=L

[J.B. Harlin]

Hi Leon,

We were in Zion Dec 13-27, 2010. Had flooding rains, about eight days of rain and a year's worth, somewhere around 8". There was water everywhere, the temps ran mid 40's to mid 50's. Park was closed for two days and the road to the East entrance was washed out and closed for about five days. We left for Moab before the cold weather and snow arrived, so don't have much of an idea of what happened. Here is the link to our snapshot album from this trip.

http://jbhphoto.com/jbhutah10/utah10.htm

JB

[SocalAstro]

Thanks Ed and JB. I was last there just prior to Thanksgiving '10. It was raining then as well but not bad as you describe JB. Thanks for posting the snapshots.

The webcam shows NO snow at all - hoping this changes in the next 4 weeks hopefully :-)

Cheers,
Leon

[J.B. Harlin]

Snow in the valley is iffy??? We saw a light dusting up near the East entrance while we were there. Enjoy, it is always beautiful no matter what the weather turns out to be!!!

[Drew Wiley]

In a crazy year like this one you'd want to check out the short-term forecast just ahead of your trip. The Park Visitor Center itself is pretty good about short-term flash
flood warning affecting hikes into the narrows, which would be pretty cold anyway that
time of year. With a deep canyon like Zion you can easily encounter relatively mild weather conditions on the valley floor at the same time its snowing up on the rim. So
have apparel in your daypack appropriate for a variety of conditions. Driving through
the tunnel and up to the top could also hypothetically be affected by snow, although
one would think road key repairs from Dec storms would be fixed by then. You just
never know. I always consider 4WD or chains a must at the higher elevations anytime
from Oct to March. With not much light reaching the valley floor on short days, it can
be quite cold there too. That wouldn't stop me from visiting. No crowds, and the place
is always beautiful. If you get some ice on the cliffs, that would be a photographic plus.

[SocalAstro]

In a crazy year like this one you'd want to check out the short-term forecast just ahead of your trip. The Park Visitor Center itself is pretty good about short-term flash
flood warning affecting hikes into the narrows, which would be pretty cold anyway that
time of year. With a deep canyon like Zion you can easily encounter relatively mild weather conditions on the valley floor at the same time its snowing up on the rim. So
have apparel in your daypack appropriate for a variety of conditions. Driving through
the tunnel and up to the top could also hypothetically be affected by snow, although
one would think road key repairs from Dec storms would be fixed by then. You just
never know. I always consider 4WD or chains a must at the higher elevations anytime
from Oct to March. With not much light reaching the valley floor on short days, it can
be quite cold there too. That wouldn't stop me from visiting. No crowds, and the place
is always beautiful. If you get some ice on the cliffs, that would be a photographic plus.

Thanks for the info Drew. I'm definitely taking the 4WD along with snow chains just in case :-)

-Leon