Zion Subway

How to Get There

From Springdale (22 mi): Drive west on UT-9 to the town of Virgin, turn right onto Kolob Terrace Road, and continue north to the Left Fork Trailhead parking area.

Access

While short in length, long approach and exit hikes are necessary to access The Subway. Canyoneering groups acknowledge two popular routes for visiting The Subway. The through route, for advanced hikers, involves a one-way hike downstream from the Wildcat Canyon Trailhead. The easier route accesses the lower section of the Subway from downstream, beginning at the Left Fork Trailhead. Both trailheads are located just off Kolob Terrace Road (also known as the Kolob Reservoir Road), a road which runs north from Utah State Route 9 in Virgin through the national park and eventually, after passing by the Kolob Reservoir, connects with other roads that run farther north to Cedar City and Utah State Route 14.

A Back Country Permit is required to visit The Subway. Permits may be obtained at the Zion Canyon Visitor Center, but may be difficult to obtain during peak visitation months.

Left Fork (Subway) Bottom-Up Route

This is a very strenuous 9-mile round-trip hike through the Left Fork of North Creek that requires route finding, creek crossing, and scrambling over boulders. This hike begins and ends at the Left Fork Trailhead on the Kolob Terrace Road.

Left Fork (Subway) Top-Down Canyoneering Route

This is a very strenuous 9.5-mile through-hike that requires rappelling skills, 60 feet of rope, and extensive route finding experience. The route also requires swimming through several deep pools of very cold debris-filled water. The trail begins at the Wildcat Canyon Trailhead and ends at the Left Fork Trailhead. Both trailheads are located on the Kolob Terrace Road.

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "The Subway (Zion National Park)", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0

This article uses material from nps.gov "Zion National Park"