Big Springs

Big Spring (also called Big Springs) is the spot where day hikers turn around on the bottom-up route through the Zion Narrows, about five miles upstream from the Temple of Sinawava trailhead. Water seeps and cascades out of the canyon wall here, feeding hanging gardens of maidenhair fern and columbine on the Virgin River's west bank — a green break in an otherwise narrow, water-carved corridor of Navajo sandstone.

Good to know

• There is no maintained trail — reaching Big Spring means wading and swimming sections of the Virgin River from Temple of Sinawava, roughly a 10-mile round trip
• Beyond Big Spring, travel into the upper Narrows requires a wilderness permit; day hikers without one must turn back here
• Flash flooding is a real hazard in this corridor — check the park's current flood-potential rating and any ranger advisories before entering the river
• Zion Canyon is shuttle-only for most of the year, so plan on riding the shuttle to Temple of Sinawava rather than driving in