A landslide has closed eastern access to Zion National Park via the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway/NPS

An unusually wet winter is causing havoc in Zion National Park, where a landslide has forced closure of the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway, the park's only entrance from the east.

The evening slide on March 2 took out a retaining wall and undercut roughly eight feet of roadway east of the first switchback on the serpentine road that climbs up out of Zion Canyon and leads to U.S. 89 near the hamlet of Mount Carmel. There was no immediate word on how quickly the road could be repaired.

"Due to this storm, access to Canyon Overlook Trail, near the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel, is closed," a park release said. "Several canyoneering routes have also been closed because they are normally accessed from the closed road. These include Keyhole, Canyon Overlook, Pine Creek, Spry, Clear Creek, Fat Man’s Misery, and Lodge canyons. The East Rim Trail head is accessible from Zion’s East Entrance."

Alternate east and west driving routes were available via Highway 59 from Hurricane, Utah, to Fredonia, Arizona, and Highway 14 from Cedar City, Utah, to Long Valley Junction and Highway 89, the release said. "People coming from Interstate 15 to the park may access the park as usual by traveling east on State Route 9 through Springdale," it added.

NPS photo

All park facilities, including the visitor center, museum, campgrounds, and shuttle buses, were open Sunday and operating as normal in Zion Canyon. The Kolob Canyons facilities and Kolob Terrace were open as usual as well.

The park staff said visitors should expect trail closures. The Kayenta Trail and Upper Emerald Pools Trail remain closed due to a landslide that has continued to settle since July 2018. The East Rim Trail, as well as total access to Hidden Canyon and access from the main canyon to Observation Point, remain closed due to a landslide and an unstable overhanging boulder since January.

During the current water year, which opened October 1, Zion Canyon has received more than 10 inches of precipitation. During the same period a year ago, just short of 3 inches of precipitation fell on the canyon, according to park records.

NPS photo