One of Zion National Park’s most popular trails is open again after a large tree fell, shrouding the canyon below in dust and injuring a hiker.
The tree fell from a lofty height into the canyon on the Zion Narrows Trail at about 1:45 p.m. on Friday and broke into pieces, resulting in a hiker having to be treated for minor injuries, park officials said Monday.
The trail, which is abutted on both sides from towering 1,000-foot cliffs and is accessed via the Riverside Walk in Zion’s main canyon, was closed until 5:50 that afternoon. Park Rangers investigating the fall determined the cause to be an “act of nature,” according to park officials.
Still, the noise and ensuing dust from the fall rattled and confused some hikers in the Narrows.
“It was initially reported by the public as a rockfall with many people buried in the debris,” Zion National Park spokesperson Amanda Rowland said.
There was no mention of the fall on the park’s website, but several hikers who posted on social media recalled hearing what sounded like an explosion, followed by a choking cloud of dust that made it hard for them to see or breathe.
Others making their way up the Narrows that day reported on social media that they saw a handful of hikers who were at the area where the fall took place — some of them with gashes — headed down the canyon.
This tree fall on the Narrows falls far short, in size and scope, of the dangerous rockfall that occurred Nov. 14 above Zion’s Weeping Rock Trail, which deposited torrents of dust and debris on the main road, temporarily interrupted the park’s shuttle service and closed the area to hikers. Fortunately, no one was injured in the slide.
Rockfalls from Zion’s canyon walls are fairly common, largely due to runoff from rain and snow that can cause erosion. In a process called “frost-wedging” or “freeze-thawing,” water often fills cracks or crevices in the rock, then freezes and further expands the cracks that can lead to rockfalls. Temperature fluctuations and gravity also play a role, according to park officials.
