Up and ready for more adventure. We decided to drive to the end or the road in the canyon instead of biking. We wanted to hike the Riverside trail to the Narrows and didn't think we would have the energy if we biked all the way there and then hiked or some other great excuse.

The drive up is so nice but of course you can see more by bike . During the high season, you have to bike or ride in one of the buses and both are enjoyable. Got to the trail and put on an extra layer of clothes because it was a little colder than we first thought.

The trail meanders along the Virgin River at times quite close and then other times there is an open expanse of meadows between you and the river. If you look closely you can see where the river has left its banks and left detritus in the trees and bushes along the way.

We stopped and talked to a few people along the trail. One guy pointed out some deer quietly browsing about 20 feet above us. They didn't seem at all bothered by us and in fact came down the hill and jumped over the fence into the meadow and continued their browsing.

There were a couple of places on the trail where water from above had caused cavatation and or water was standing on the trail making it more difficult to get down the trail but by no means impossible . We got to the end where the Narrows began.

The Narrows is exactly as it sounds, where the canyon walls close in and you are hiking along the narrow canyon sometimes in the water and other times out of the water. The literature given out by the parks says you will spend about 60% of your time in the water. At times the cliff walls are 2000 feet tall and in other places the passage narrows to 20 feet. There are springs, hanging gardens and grottos that make the hike seem beautiful but quite an expedition. The hike the entire distance is 16 miles and you need a permit if you are going to go the entire way.
You can hike up the Narrows for a few miles with no permit but you must be prepared to get your feet wet and depending on the amount of rain in recent days maybe more. According to the information the water is usually swift and cold and it being November, it was very cold to our touch. There was evidence, shoes at end of trail, that some people had decided to go for a short distance up the Narrows. We had hiked a short distance up the Narrows on a previous trip in the summer but decided it was not a great idea for this time of year. The hike was a pleasant 2.2 mile meander.

We headed back and got back to the campsite, got on our bikes and headed over to Soleil Cafe right at the edge of the park and had a nice lunch and did some more blogging and uploading of pictures and stories.