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Mystery Canyon

Wild man, Marshall Miller and his (much) better half Niki, head to Zion for some back country KAVU adventure!

By KAVU

January 9^th, 2018

where to?

With a weather forecast calling for rain and snow in the mountains, and an open weekend, what do you do?

You drive to nicer weather and go for an adventure to make memories.

The plan was to jump in the van and head South to find warmer temps and to squeeze a few more days of summer out of the changing seasons. Where to? Zion National Park of course. Zion is a playground for adventurers. With canyon systems that cross the landscape and peaks that rise 5k’ over the valley bottoms, Zion is truly a special place.

make it happen

The 4 hour drive to Zion is an awesome weekend trip. By this time of the season, the crowds have died down a bit and the weather has cooled into the mid 60s. It feels like you have the entire park to yourself and it’s quite easy to find solitude, even in the most popular spots.

The plan?.....we didn’t really have one. We wanted to check out some of the best vantage points on the East and West rims of the park, so I grabbed some gear - just in case we wanted to descend some of these canyons.

From the East rim, there are many amazing lookouts. There’s also many ways down where the natural landscape has carved massive canyons, all leading back into the main Zion canyon.

That’s it!

From the East rim, there is a really cool canyon that offers some great value to the adventurer. A 5-7 hour round trip, there are 15 or so nice rappels, two water holes, and some beautiful canyon hallways. We stopped at the back country desk, grabbed a permit, and headed to the top.

commit

Nicole was a little nervous on the fist rappel. You drop into a tight canyon hallway where you can tell that once you pull your ropes that you're committing to it.

The next few hours were full of adventure, with new perspectives around every corner.

As we made our way down the canyon, we knew last two rappels were meant to be the most exciting. One of these drops ends in a large pool and the other drops directly into the Zion Narrows.

#smilesformiles

With smiles on our faces as we walked out of the Narrows, we thought it would be a good idea to stop by the West Rim via Angels Landing Trail to check out the vantage points from the other side of the canyon. With a quick one hour walk, you can stand on top of 2000 foot vertical cliffs. I know Nicole has a deep sense of discomfort near the edge of a cliff but, I knew of a spot that was safe where we could take in the views directly to the bottom of the canyon.

I think the photo says it all.

Looking back...

...this weekend could've been like any other weekend.

I'm so happy that we said yes to adventure. I'm so happy that we now have this memory we shared for the rest of our lives. Sometimes it can feel difficult or overwhelming to step outside your comfort zone or, even to say yes to a fun adventure. If you think about it, even when you put aside obligations and responsibilities, you're always in a better place when you have memories in the bank.

Say yes to adventure, say yes to good times, say yes to making more memories.

Here’s to many more KAVU days ahead!

Marshall Miller

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Footnotes

KAVU athlete, Marshall Miller is a rare type of bird that not only says “yes” to the best adventures in life, but also continually brings a smile to our faces! Follow him world wide!!

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FootNotes

KAVU athlete, Marshall Miller is a rare type of bird that not only says “yes” to the best adventures in life, but also continually brings a smile to our faces! Follow him world wide!!

Havasupai 2025

Mystery Canyon

Wild man, Marshall Miller and his (much) better half Niki, head to Zion for some back country KAVU adventure!

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