West Rim Trailhead — Attraction in Cedar Highlands

Top Down Review: Made it to the intersection of the West Rim / Telegraph Canyon intersection, 13.2 miles, 2100' gain on the out and back. The trail is relatively easy until you start a series of down, up, down, and then up again sections before making the turn around point mentioned. The trail in these sections are steep and will put a working on the legs and butt. Total time out 7h:20m.

The first decent canyon views start about 3 miles in. I actually went about 1/2 mile beyond the turn around point I mentioned to get additional canyon photos looking south. Just beyond campsite #6 is your first opportunity to get great photos, but I then went beyond that maybe another 1/4 mile until the next views opened up. Wow!

The drive in. We were in a Honda CR-V and the road in is steep in places, narrow with poor visibility, and rutted. While you can pull this off in a 2wd that's when no one else is on the road at the same time. I'd hate to back up in some of the sections.

Bottom Up Review: Made the opener today (5/13/20) and took in 11 miles of the West Rim trail off the backside of the Angel's Landing trail which is closed for the time being.

Superb views, polite crowds (except for the two dorks who had to violate park rules and go out on Angel's Landing), despite very little of the park actually being open. This trail takes you to views not many get to see.

We're full time RVr's focused on hiking, blog link in...

Access to this trail is from the Grotto Parking Lot and once you cross the foot bridge over the Virgin River, you can either go south towards Emerald Pools using the Kayenta Trailhead or north, towards Scout Lookout and Angels Landing using the W. Rim Trailhead. The trailhead to Angels Landing is not paved at first, but after a few hundred yards, the trail is paved the rest of the way. The trail starts off relatively easy, slowly rising as you start to enter Refrigerator Canyon before steadily rising above the canyon floor. This trailhead is not for the faint of heart or those afraid of heights and takes between one to two hours to reach Scout Landing, depending on your physical condition and on how many stops you make to admire and enjoy the stunning landscape all around you. For those who are willing, this trail continues for many miles north of Scout Lookout, but our goal was Angels Landing today. There are no restrooms along the trail until you reach Scouts Lookout. The photos attached to this review cover from The Grotto to Angels...

We hiked from the bottom up starting at the Grotto and ending at Lava Point before turning around and making our way back down (about 11 miles total). It was VERY intense and strenuous but the views were worth it! We went early in the morning to beat the crowds and heat which I would definitely recommend. Coming back, we ran into many people climbing up the first part of the trail towards Scout’s Lookout and Angel’s Landing so it was a little difficult to get around groups of people on the switchbacks. All in all it is worth it, but prepare beforehand and bring lots of water, snacks, and good...