Cable Mountain Trail

Cable Mountain sits on Zion's East Rim, directly across the canyon's big oxbow bend from Angels Landing. It's named for a real piece of park history: starting in 1901, David Flanigan built and ran a 2,000-foot cable system here to lower lumber from the forested mesa down to the canyon floor. Lightning destroyed it in 1911, but it was rebuilt and stayed in use until 1926 — remnants are still visible at the overlook.

Getting there

• Via the East Entrance Trailhead and East Rim Trail, it's about 17 miles round trip with roughly 1,000 feet of gradual climbing.
• The shorter approach, via Stave Spring Trailhead, runs about 8 miles round trip with roughly 1,060 feet of elevation gain, though the access road can require high clearance and is often impassable when wet or snowy.

This is outside the shuttle zone, so you're driving to your own trailhead. Spring through fall is the reliable season.