Zion for Kids

[asdf]

For this weekend we booked a campsite for a few days in Watchman CG and I need to know all the best shady, cool, and wet hikes for my family (kids 3 and 6). I have no desire to deal with permits and am more than happy to hike outside the park. I am down with everything from short and sweet to all day hikes.

Thanks in advance.

[Iceaxe]

A few things kids like that are not on the typical tourist route.....

From the first switchback you can hike up the bottom of Pine Creek a couple hundred yards to a great kiddie pool and waterfall. It's a perfect swimming hole of young kids.

Petrogylph Canyon has fun Rock Art.

And you can walk over to the South Gate Petroglyphs from the campground. The panel contains about a dozen images with a spiral and a Zoomorph being most prominent. From the South Gate Entrance Station drive east on Highway 9 for 250-yards. The rock art panel is located 50-yards north of Highway 9 on the south face of a large rock that resembles an arrowhead stuck point first into the ground. This Large rock is known as "Sacrifice Rock". There is a small National Park Service sign next to the panel reminding you to behave yourself. Among the jumble of contemporary etchings is what some speculate is an ancient summer solstice marker. Once a year, on June 21, a jagged rock casts a shadow resembling the open jaw of a coyote onto the face of Sacrifice Rock. As the sun rises higher, the shadow "swallows" a petroglyph in the shape of a spiral.

[Jaxx]

The hike up to the bottom of pine creek is awesome. Once you get to the falls it is a nice little oasis with a pool for the kids to play in. We always do emerald pools but there are alot of people on that trail.

If you go to weeping rock there is a cool sandy beach you can get to by starting at the bus stop for weeping rock (the one that goes down canyon). If weeping rock is east the trail goes west. There is an obvious trail that leads towards the river. It's only a couple hundred feet to the river. When there are hundreds on the weeping rock trail there is mabey one other couple on the "beach"

[Scott P]

Not far away is Quail Creek/Water Canyon, but I'm not sure if the creek flows year round(?). Assuming it is flowing, it is an awesome place for kids.

See the below TR:

http://www.summitpost.org/trip-repor...2-16-2010.html

[MojaveGeek]

Many Pools (see Bo and Tanya's site) would be good, with the recent rain probably a good number of pools with frogs to catch, but they tend to be deep and steep so not the best for wading. Nice alcove for shade once you get up a bit.

[asdf]

Chillin on watchman right now. Lamest cg ever.
Due to the road construction there was no where to park for lower pine creek and the beach jaxx recommended was a mud bog after this last flood.

[tanya]

Check out these pages:

http://www.zionnational-park.com/zkids.htm

http://www.zionnational-park.com/zion-park.htm

http://www.eastziontourismcouncil.org/zkids.htm