Part 6: Killer Hikes To Try Before You Die

Hello steemers! It seemed I caught a lot of everyone’s attention with my Vancouver area hiking blog and I’d like to go over some other honourable mentions in some fantastic hikes I got to experience and highly recommend to anyone else. All of these were day hikes and nothing as hard the Mount Brunswick Hike in BC.

The first hike I’d like to mention is the Mist Trail in Yosemite National Park. Words can do Yosemite no justice describing its legendary scenery. Waterfalls, jaw dropping monolith cliffs and stunning panorama views provide even day trips an awesome escape! A quick tip I would give would be to try to do two, one day trips by booking an Airbnb nearby as there is just so much to do one day would be just a tease. My sister and I stayed in Oakhurst, about an hour away.

So back to the hike. The summer of 2017 will go down as one the best years to see waterfalls of Yosemite at full force. With rangers telling us the Sierra Nevada Mountains receiving over 30m of snow fall (again not a typo, the winter was blowing everyone’s mind) and it being mid July gave my sister and I the most optimal experience to see the true power of nature.

The hike to Vernal Falls is paved however quite steep the whole way up, but it doesn’t matter as anywhere you stop you’re rewarded with spectacular views. This year the roar of the river was intense and rangers were shaking their heads in disbelief at the amount of water that day. “It’s the best display of water power I’ve seen in 20 years” one told me. I’d noticed that people walking back were completely saturated head to toe. Surely everyone couldn’t have swam (honestly if you fell in the river you’d die). Once we saw the Vernal Falls I understood why.

The sheer force coming out of this waterfall was intense and it was producing so much mist from the water crashing on the rocks beneath it (hey that’s what they called it mist trail?!). With double rainbows everywhere it was a scramble to the shelter of a rock behind the falls. Running to the rock was like being in a car wash with torrents of water slamming at you! It was intense! Climb up a bit further and you’re treated with a lovely view, warm sun baked rocks to dry on and views of the intense river before it plunges over the cliff. Hike a little further up the hill and you’ll be treated to a bird’s eye view of the falls with Nevada Falls further east which you can also hike to check out. All up this hike should take you about 2-4 hours depending how you stop to take in the views which I’d recommend!

Take note of the scale, the people are like ants in comparison to the waterfall!

Nevada Falls in the background

Hailed as one of the dangerous yet rewarding hikes in the US is Angles Landing in Zion National Park, Utah. It has claimed 7 lives from people falling from the cliffs. This climb is not for anyone with a fear of heights as you are literally holding onto chains for safety with >400m plunges on either side with a 1.5 metre wide platform to walk on.

Time to climb!

Don't look down!

Combine this with people climbing up and down and people regretting they came up clutching the chain for dear life, it can get pretty hectic just waiting on the edge there with no chain to hold onto and gust wind hitting your body. After a quite a few dicey foot moves climbing up the cliff, get read to be blown away by three separate stunning views of the Zion Valley.

The hike is about 3-4 hours return and I HIGHLY recommend doing it at 6am when the crowds aren’t crazy, no one likes being stuck on a cliff waiting for people to move.
What makes this valley so special is that the rocks are layered in different colours (red, brown, pink, gold and white!) caused by varying amounts of iron oxidation in the Navajo Sandstone.

As you can see in this photo, what you’re looking at is ‘The Narrows”. Through thousands of years of water erosion, the Virgin River has calved through the sand stone and is a really popular hiking spot also (unfortunately we didn’t have time to do this one).

A quick tip if you’re looking to camp somewhere nearby and not blow the bank (it’s free) here is exactly where we went and you will not be disappointed. Drive back out of the town of Virgin until you reach Fort Zion and take the first left onto Sheep Bridge road and follow it until you hit a dirt road and an open field where you’ll see are small turnouts for cars and small RVS to enjoy the landscape. Get ready for some killer sunsets!

Speaking of colourful rocks with iron, my final hike suggestion is in Valley Fire, Nevada (about an hour north of Vegas). With so much to see here if you had time to see one thing it would be the Fire Wave hike. Amazing windswept erosion has left behind mystical waves of red and white ‘fire’ wave patterns.

The desert is a unique beauty that I’m sure many people would appreciate as it isn’t often we get to slow down and absorb this baron, arid environment. Although not a difficult hike itself the heat can get pretty intense here and its its recommend you go early in the morning as there is 0 shade.

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If you love the outdoors, these places will stay in your mind forever!