West Rim Overnight Gear Checklist
The West Rim Trail runs from Lava Point down to the Grotto, and the camps sit on a high, windy plateau with unreliable springs. People pack for water first, then for wind and cold, then for waste, because the sites have no toilets. The hikers we read carried extra bladders, a filter, wind layers and trekking poles, and the ones who regret something left a tent or a full water load at home.
What shapes your gear on West Rim Trail
- The route
- The trail starts near Lava Point on Kolob Terrace Road and ends at the Grotto. It crosses high alpine ground for the first 6.5 miles, then drops 2,500 feet over 4.7 miles from Cabin Spring to the Grotto. Camping is allowed only in designated sites with a permit.
- What the park says about water
- Cabin Spring usually has a small flow all year. Potato Hollow Spring is usually dry by mid to late summer, and Sawmill Springs by early to mid summer. The park suggests one gallon per person per day, says wilderness water is not safe untreated, and says to filter at a spring's source, not from in-stream water.
From Zion National Park (NPS): West Rim Trail and Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
- What hikers found at the springs
- A May hiker found Potato Hollow and Sawmill both completely dry. A group writing in October 2024 found Sawmill dry but Potato Hollow flowing like a small creek, with the next water at Cabin Springs, several miles past their reserved site. A 2012 group filled bladders at Potato Hollow and said the water running into Imlay Canyon nearby was better than what people pump at the hollow.
From Bearfoot Theory, Road Trip Addict and Backcountry Post
- Cold and wind on the plateau
- The Lava Point road can stay snowed in as late as May. A May hiker met snow flurries near 40 degrees at the start and 80 degrees on the descent the next day. The same 2024 group had gusts on the last stretch toward the mesa camps that nearly knocked them off their feet.
From Bearfoot Theory and Road Trip Addict
- Choosing a campsite for water
- A forum regular who has camped here likes site 8, tucked behind Potato Hollow Spring, because you carry little water to camp. Sites 3 to 6 on the mesa have the big views, and site 6 has the shortest walk back to the spring.
- No toilets
- A hiker writing about the Zion traverse says there are no toilets at the West Rim camps and that you carry your own waste bags.
From Road Trip Addict
What the agency requires on West Rim Trail
A waste disposal bag for every person
Each wilderness permit group must carry at least one human waste disposal bag per person and carry solid human waste out. All trash leaves with you, including food wrappers, fruit peels and toilet paper.
From Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
A stove, not a fire
No fires of any kind in the Zion Wilderness. A fuel stove is fine when you light it on bare ground, well away from plants.
From Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
A hard-sided food container or a mesh bag to hang
Store food and trash in a sturdy hard-sided container, or in an interlocking wire mesh bag that hangs from a tree where animals cannot reach it. The park notes that bears and mountain lions have been seen here.
From Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
A way to treat water
Water from the wilderness is not safe untreated. Boiling for 3 minutes is the surest method at most elevations, and filtration plus chemical disinfection is advised when boiling is not possible. Filter straight from a spring's source.
From Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
Your permit, on you
Carry the permit and show it on request. It covers only the sites and nights printed on it.
From Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
What hikers carry on West Rim Trail
Spare water bladders for the dry camp
One backpacker carries either two empty 2-liter bladders or one 4-liter, so the group brings an extra 4 liters to camp on top of 1 liter per person for hiking. Another says to start with enough water to reach Cabin Spring if your camp is not beside a flowing one.
From Road Trip Addict and Bearfoot Theory
A water filter
One guide says the water is murky and unsafe without filtering. The 2012 group pumped water at Potato Hollow, and the park says to filter at the spring's source.
From Bearfoot Theory, Backcountry Post and Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
A windproof shell and a warm midlayer
The ridge gets chilly at the lookouts when the wind picks up near sunset. One hiker pairs a fleece with a light nylon windbreaker, and another recommends plenty of layers because the rim camps get colder than expected.
From Road Trip Addict and Bearfoot Theory
A shelter that holds in storm wind
A 2012 group reached the mesa camps just ahead of a thunderstorm and then had strong winds after dark. Hikers without tents rigged a tarp lean-to.
From Backcountry Post and Road Trip Addict
Trekking poles
Most of the trail goes downhill, and one guide recommends poles to protect knees and steady you on loose ground.
From Bearfoot Theory
A waste kit with a bag you can seal
The park requires a bag per person. One hiker prefers enzyme waste bags that can go in the trash cans at the trailhead and likes them better than the blue-bag method for odor and sanitation.
From Road Trip Addict and Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
12 people can go on one permit. Split this list between them so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on West Rim Trail
Leaving the tent or the rain fly at home
In 2012 a few hikers had no tent and a few had no rain fly. Strong winds hit after sunset, and the writer who slept on a tarp said he would have liked a tent that night.
From Backcountry Post
Counting on Potato Hollow for water in spring
One hiker stopped at the hollow in May hoping to refill and found the spring dry. The next reliable water was Cabin Spring near campsite 2.
From Bearfoot Theory and Zion National Park (NPS): West Rim Trail
Skipping the fill at a spring you pass
One author says to fill at the springs on the way rather than hike back to them from camp, because most sites sit well away from water.
From Road Trip Addict
Gear questions for West Rim Trail
Is there water on the West Rim Trail?
Some, but not dependably. The park says Cabin Spring usually flows all year, Potato Hollow Spring usually dries by mid to late summer and Sawmill Springs by early to mid summer. Hikers found both of those dry in May. Carry extra capacity and filter at the source.
From Zion National Park (NPS): West Rim Trail, Bearfoot Theory and Road Trip Addict
Do you need a bear canister on the West Rim Trail?
The park does not name a canister. It asks for food and trash in a sturdy hard-sided container or a hung wire mesh bag, and notes that bears and mountain lions have been seen in the park.
From Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
Can you have a campfire on the West Rim Trail?
No. Fires are banned in the Zion Wilderness. A fuel stove is allowed if you light it on bare ground away from plants.
From Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations
Do you need to carry out human waste on the West Rim Trail?
Yes. The park requires every permit group to carry at least one waste disposal bag per person and to carry solid human waste out. The camps have no toilets.
From Zion National Park (NPS): Backpacking Safety and Regulations and Road Trip Addict
Should you bring trekking poles on the West Rim Trail?
One guide recommends them because most of the route drops downhill and the trail is loose in places. The 2,500-foot descent from Cabin Spring ends at the Grotto.
From Bearfoot Theory and Zion National Park (NPS): West Rim Trail
Sources
- West Rim Trail · Zion National Park (NPS) · Agency
- Backpacking Safety and Regulations · Zion National Park (NPS) · Agency
- The West Rim of Zion National Park · Backcountry Post, Nick · Trip report
- Zion-West Rim Campsite · Backcountry Post forum · Forum thread
- West Rim Trail Backpacking Guide in Zion National Park · Bearfoot Theory, Kristen · Blog
- Backpacking the West Rim Trail in Zion National Park · Road Trip Addict, Stephanie Jolly · Blog