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SPRINGDALE, Washington County — One of Zion National Park's oldest trails is getting a makeover.
Work is already underway to improve old components of the trail while also improving the trailhead at the Canyon Overlook Trail, park officials said Friday.
The project is expected to create temporary closures from time to time, as crews work Monday through Thursday every week until it's completed, which is currently scheduled for early June. It will remain open to park visitors on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
The Canyon Overlook Trail, which is only about a mile in length with a slight elevation gain of 187 feet, is a popular route for visitors because of its relative ease and a gorgeous view of Zion Canyon.
It's also one of the park's older trails. After Zion was established as a national park in 1919, work began on Angels Landing, Riverside Walk, Emerald Pools, Observation Point and West Rim trails in the mid-1920s, according to a history compiled by Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort.
Then, in 1932, work began on the Canyon Overlook Trail, as the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel propelled early visitation to the park. The trail begins outside of the east end of the tunnel.
The then-newly formed Civilian Conservation Corps completed the trail in 1933. It and the Watchman Trail are the only two trails in Zion National Park constructed by the corps, according to the National Park Service.
Now about 90 years old, the project now underway aims to rehabilitate masonry, post new or rehabilitate handrails and improve its trailhead. In addition to periodic weekday trail closures over the next several weeks, park officials add there might be some closures to the Pine Creek canyoneering route and lower Pine Creek Drainage areas below the Canyon Overlook Trail, as a safety precaution.
Zion National Park received a record 5 million visitors in 2021, making it the second most-visited national park in the country. Its surge in popularity also resulted in a new permit process for Angels Landing that began earlier this month.
