Observation Point — Local services in Apple Valley

Likely the best view in all of Zion, but getting to the trailhead is challenging.

Getting to the trailhead:

You must leave the park and drive to the east mesa trailhead.

As of February 2025 there is no other way to get here.

The last ~5 miles is a dirt road that gets progressively worse. The last .5 miles is really bad. There are deep divits that are about 1-1.5 feet deep. Large rocks that poke up, and short but steep grades in the road. It is sort of like a roller coaster. Photo attached is the best condition part of the last .5 miles it gets worse. It's also one lane with no space to pull off.

I made it with a fwd volkwagen taos with just a bit of stress. It had not rained in about 2 weeks. Had it rained recently it would likely not have been possible to make it unless you have 4x4 unless you drove it perfectly.

If you are not used to driving offload or do not have four-wheel drive, I would not recommend it.

They were working on the dirt road while i was driving, so perhaps it would get better.

Parking:

There are 20 spots and signs everywhere that you cannot park outside of those 20 spots. Went on a Monday there was 1 car at 8 AM

Trail:

The trail is easy. 3.3miles each way, but if you go to the different overlooks along the way it's probably closer to 4 miles each way. Took about an hour 15 minutes each way Little elevation change until the end, where there is a few hundred feet of elevation gain over the first mile back. Terrain varies in different sections between sharp rocks, gravel, compacted dirt and a few inches of loose sand as you make your way through the forest.

The entire time on the trail I saw 6 people, but again this was a monday morning in February.

The view at the end is amazing very much worth the relatively easy hike and...

Getting to the trail (part of the adventure): Gravel & dirt roads the whole way with foot deep divets at the end on the last stretch. 4-wheel drive is A-MUST if you go in spring, winter, or any other time where the road might be wet & muddy. I did not have 4-wheel drive - just a car and I had to do a balancing act with the car on the way in and out to make sure my tires didn't fall in, lol, quite nerve wrecking, so definitely recommend the 4-wheel drive!

The hike: 7 miles round trip to the top & back. Parking lot has about 20 spots. I got there early 7:10am (3rd car there), but shuttles (paid for service) drop people off here also, so there were about 10 people I passed on the path. Gravel, sand, and stone paths the whole way - I jog/walked it in & out, because #1 I had time restraints this morning #2 fairly easy hike with wide paths - once you get closer to the top there are other small overlook trails I would recommend to take a moment to view on your way up (not marked, but you can see the visible trails). Since I got to the top early, I had the view to myself, which was amazing to sit, listen to the silence, and take it all in. As I was getting ready to leave, another couple came up, and we were able to take pictures for each, which was also nice. Parking lot was full when I got back around 9:30am. A car was waiting and took my spot when I left (lots of posted signs about being sure to only park in designated parking spots).

The views: Must-see with your own eyes. Pictures do not do it justice. Make sure to take in the view from all sides.

Overall a must-do hike. Views at the top are worth the long, but easy...

First off:$20 to park your car. Thankfully someone gave us their pass as they were leaving. Took a bus to observation point trail starting location which was 6th stop for us. Buses come every 10 mins or so and took 15 mins to get us there. We started the hike at 420pm which is late, I know. Took us a full 4 hours to complete. ABSOLUTELY stunning hike and location, but please bring at least 3 water bottles per person, especially on a hot day like ours, to avoid dehydration and terrible headaches later on. Definitely felt in our legs, and we're the casual, out of shape tourists. We were sore for a couple of days after. At some points you're hiking on unpaved trails along the mountain side, which is hard on your legs, but not scary. We heard mountain lions twice so that was scary. Talk loudly and move fast if you hear growls. The last 20 mins of our hike was in pitch black, so cell phone lights are a must. Also, really difficult to see the sunset up there bc the mountains block it all of, so not worth staying up there late and having to hike back down in the dark. It took us 2.5 hours to get up there, and 1.5 hours to get back down, and we were up there for about 15-20 mins taking pictures.

It's stunning and I highly recommend it. Prepare better than we did and please make sure you have water and good hiking boots. Running shoes will hurt a lot on...