What Is Scouting?

Recently, I spent a weekend at Zion National Park alone, taking notes and exploring. This is what I call scouting: the trip I take before I invite you to come with me.

Every retreat or trip I offer starts like this: me going on excursions, hiking the trails, figuring out the logistics, talking to locals, and learning all the things you can’t Google. I wanted to give you a behind-the-scenes peek on the type of work I did while scouting my Zion National Park Road Trip Adventure.

Figuring Out Logistics So the Days Run Smoothly

Zion is popular… like, Disneyland popular. I wanted to understand what that looked like in real time, because logistics that are annoying for a solo traveler are amplified when I’m hosting a group.

On my first visit, I rented e-bikes and camped inside the park, which meant an easy parking solution and no waiting for shuttles. But for my Zion Road Trip Adventure, we’ll be staying off-site and using the public shuttle like everyone else. I needed to know: what time does the lot fill? What’s the shuttle actually like? What’s Plan B?

What I found: the visitor center lot was full by just after 8am and the lines into the park were long. I’ll plan to get to the park by 7:30am. If there’s a parking spot, we’ll all go in together. If not, I’ll drop everyone at the visitor center (gift shop, exhibits, AC!) and go park in the town of Springdale (1 mile away just outside the park) while they explore. By the time I ride the shuttle back to the visitor center, no one has stood around waiting and everyone’s ready to depart together.

I also want to eat dinner out together every night, so I scoped out restaurants in each area that have vegan and vegetarian options, as well as seating that will work for our group.

Why I Hike Every Trail First

I don’t trust trail apps. Easy, moderate, and hard are some of the most subjective words in the English language when it comes to the experience of hiking. I’ve been on enough trails described as “mostly flat and accessible” that had me doing class 2 scrambling on the edge of a cliff that I don’t trust labels.

So I gotta hike everything myself first. I walk every trail I’m considering for a group so I can answer honestly when someone asks me “can I do this one?”

I design the pace of activities for the person who needs the most support. That could be someone using a mobility device, someone who isn’t used to walking so much in their day-to-day life, or someone managing a health condition.

I want every single person to be able to complete the same experience even if we each do it a little differently. We don’t split up and nobody gets left behind.

My Impressions About the Trails I Investigated

I was impressed with the Emerald Pools Trail hike, particularly the lower pool. The trail was paved and easy, and arriving at the lower pool is quite a moment (picture walking under a waterfall and rainbows while mountain water mists your face). However, the middle and upper pools required a ton of stairs plus hiking uphill in sand, and the views were similar or less impressive, so we’ll just do the lower pool hike as a group.

I wandered a little bit and found a little riverside trail beneath a spot called the Eyes of Zion that went on the itinerary immediately. It’s directly beneath two rock arches that look like a pair of eyes peering down at you and the effect shifts as the shadows move. This trail isn’t on the maps but will be a lovely place to walk next to the Virgin river and take some photos.

The Weeping Rock Trail is super short and steep. It leads to a large bowl-shaped alcove where the lower layer of sandstone has eroded away, so water that has been slowly descending within the sandstone formations reaches an impermeable layer of rock and is forced out the side, causing the “weeping.” There are some beautiful hanging gardens here that are constantly watered by the rock.

One thing I love about this trail: you can literally see the destination from the shuttle stop. I’ll point to the rock face and say ‘that’s where we’re going.’ Then everyone gets to make their own informed, self-aware choice about their energy, since this will be one of our last hikes of the day. They can stay in the shade and wait for us, or come up the trail with the group.

One practical note: because of the water, it can be slippery, and there are metal railings alongside the trail. But they get hot in the sun and sometimes wet. So I’m adding a pair of grippy gardening gloves to our packing list. I used them when I hiked Angels Landing for the chains portion, and I was so glad I was gripping the metal with the gloves instead of my sweaty palms!

Zion Canyon Hot Springs (Yes Please!)

The website for this place had a certain corporate wellness energy that made me want to see it in person before I took my group there. I wanted to suss out the vibes.

Long story short, I’m really glad I went!

I was impressed. Clean locker rooms, spacious changing areas, a wristband system for the lockers, multiple pools at different temperatures, cold plunges, a family area, a 21+ area, snack bar, and surroundings that make you feel like you’re soaking in the actual landscape.

Some pools are natural hot springs that feed up from the ground, others are designed around the mineral content and temperatures of famous baths from around the world. After a long day of hiking, this was the literal perfect way to end the day.

They rent out robes, so of course I asked if they had robes in bigger sizes. They don’t (sadly, most spas don’t). But here’s my observation: you might not even need a robe. Once you’re on the pool deck, it’s completely normal to just be in your swimsuit. The robes seem to exist for cold-weather visits, when you’re moving between pools and it’s cold outside.

I’ll recommend that people bring their own robe or cover-up to the springs, so they can save $10 and make sure they are comfortable wearing an appropriate size. 

This type of stuff is the whole point of scouting!

I Loved This Campground

While I was scouting, I stayed at Camp Land Beyond Zion and it was one of the best campgrounds I’ve ever been in. Women-owned, immaculately clean, and lit at night in a way that’s clearly been considered (you can still see the stars, but the paths are completely clear).

There was a hot tub, a community kitchen, and the kind of easy chit chat that happens naturally when women end up in the same space and no one has anywhere to be.

One of the camp hosts took me on a locals-only petroglyphs hike that isn’t on the trail maps. She even asked me to put my phone on airplane mode before taking photos to keep the trail location a secret and preserve the petroglyphs. She taught me a little about the meaning of these symbols too. I am really grateful I got to have this experience!

They also taught me a locals-only shortcut to Zion that shaved about 20 minutes off my trip and was also a totally stunning scenic drive. I found a ton of free dispersed camping along that road, too. So I might try camping in one of those spots next time I’m in the area!

Join me at Zion!

I’m only selling 6 spots for this epic road trip adventure, March 15-19, 2027. I hope one of those spots is yours!