Zion Conditions

[Randy Redford]

I am thinking of braving the heat and heading down to Zion and vacinity on July 30th. One thing that will determine where I actually go is the water conditions. Does anyone know if there is still water running through the streams in Zion, especially the stream/river down by the visitor center? Any information about the conditions there and in Canyon de Chelly would be very helpful. Thanks much

[chris_4622]

Maybe Aggie will chime in. She lives near by and is a wonderful guide, friendly and willing to share.

[Adam Kavalunas]

It will be HOT!!! There are lots of fires going on out here right now, so the sunsets can be spectacular. The river that flows by the visitor center is the Virgin River. It flows year round, and almost never drops below 30 cfs. The narrows is a wonderful hike in mid summer, although it will be crowded. I wouldnt recommend trying to hike the subway unless you are accustomed to desert/summer hiking and have a water filter. It's a doozy in mid summer!!

Adam

[Aggie]

The monsoon season offically started today. The rain we had this afternoon put out the fires on the AZ strip. We hit a whopping 91 degrees down from 109 yesterday. The Virgin is running. It is low, but it is running just fine. In fact the La Verking Creek that also feeds into it before it hits near St. George is running just fine as well. They are both spring fed off Cedar Mountain. The internal springs would have to dry up before those rivers dry up. The weather today was great. After the storm cleared out, there were waterfalls, and wonderful clouds in the sky. It is supposed to be back up to 110 tomorrow and the rest of the week. We have forcasts for periodic rain, as the thunderheads build intot he afternoon. I just don't want to see those 115 temps back. I don't care if it is dry heat, you still burst into flames.