Imagine a 2.5-mile-long lake in Zion Canyon, one nearly 400 feet deep that shimmered in the canyon for roughly 700 years. It's hard to grasp, but even harder to envision is a mountainside peeling off the face of what is known today as the Sentinel in Zion National Park and filling the valley floor in seconds with 286 million cubic meters of rock and dirt.

Repairs to retaining walls will necessitate that the Hidden Canyon Trail in Zion National Park in Utah be closed this summer.

Six years after National Park Service officials set aspirational goals to reduce plastic waste across the park system by installing water-filling stations for the public, the agency has fallen far short of its hopes.

Zion National Park's natural resources are being strained by development of inholdings and properties surrounding the park, its air quality is impaired by pollutants, and overcrowding is impacting the visitor experience, according to a "State of the Park" report issued this week.