The Subway

This page is for the Top-Down Canyoneering route of the Subway. If you're looking for the non-technical bottom-up hiking route, see: https://ropewiki.com/The_Subway_(Bottom_Up). Note the bottom-up route forms the exit for this top-down route. This route requires a permit with your entry point listed as "Wildcat Canyon Trailhead." The Subway is an extremely popular route through the Left Fork of North Creek. The "Subway" proper—the tunnel-like section that gives the route its name—is a relatively short portion of the canyon and can be accessed via this route or the non-technical bottom-up route. From this route, the "Subway" section is preceded by a long approach hike across slickrock that requires route finding; followed by a strenuous descent through the river gorge involving extensive boulder hopping in the watercourse, informal trails with several river crossings, and a steep climb through loose rock out of the canyon to the plateau. The Subway is often described as a relatively easy canyoneering route—but that description only holds true if you already have solid canyoneering experience. Compared to many other technical canyons, it is on the easier side. But if you're a hiker, or only have a few canyoneering trips under your belt, you should not think of it as “easy.” This is still a technical canyoneering route. It requires ropes, rappelling, the right gear, and the skills to use them. Because the rappels are bolted, the barrier to entry feels lower, and that gives many people a false sense of security. As long as nothing goes wrong, most groups make it through without issue. But when something does, the consequences are serious. There have been many rescues, accidents, and fatalities in the Subway, including falls and rappel-related incidents. So while the Subway may be “easy” compared to other canyoneering routes, it should never be underestimated. Descending Russell Gulch, Das Boot, or Upper Left Fork require a separate permit. If doing these upper routes and exiting out the Subway an additional permit for the Subway is required. Das Boot and Subway permits and availability information are available here. Russell Gulch and Upper Left Fork permits may be obtained at the Zion Backcountry desk.

The top-down approach to the Subway includes about 3.5 miles of hiking on a mix of official, maintained trails and unmaintained paths. It also involves some steep downclimbing and a significant amount of sun exposure. Portions of the route cross open slickrock, while others pass through vegetated terrain. In these areas, where you choose to walk becomes important. Stay on the most obvious, well-worn path rather than wandering across untrampled surfaces or stepping on vegetation. Not only does this help preserve the environment and reduce damage, but keeping traffic confined to a single line makes the route easier for others to follow. Much of the route naturally follows shallow drainages where water flows during storms, which helps minimize vegetation impact. On sandstone, trails do not naturally wear in, so the only reliable trail markers are small stacks of rocks called cairns. Look for these, but do not add to them or remove them. Leave existing cairns as they are, and do not build your own. Unfortunately, when people build and leave behind rock stacks as artwork in places like this, they can mislead hikers and get people lost. These markers are functional waypoints, not decorations. NOTE: To make the approach easier to follow, the description below has been subdivided into sections based on the most prominent terrain features. From the Wildcat Canyon Trailhead: After leaving the maintained trail and stepping onto the unmaintained portion of the route, you’ll hike a short distance before reaching the first distinctive landmark: a white sandstone “shelf.” This shelf is a natural flat spot that cuts across a sloping section of sandstone. While the slope itself has a moderate angle, it steepens below the shelf to the east and is too steep to descend safely and comfortably. In practice, the most intuitive and safest line of travel is to walk along the shelf, which runs southeast, roughly paralleling the drop-off. Follow the shelf a few hundred yards or so until it ends at a point where the edge becomes noticeably less steep and the rock forms an easy, well-used downclimb. The descent spot is obvious, as you will see a well-worn path through the sandy soil at the base in the drainage below where other groups have traveled. Below the shelf, the terrain opens up into sandy soil and low vegetation. This is one of the more sensitive sections of the approach and errant footsteps cause most of the visible impact here. Stay in the most well-traveled path and avoid cutting across undisturbed patches of soil or plants. Cairns appear intermittently, and following the GPX track--downloaded from on this page--can be especially helpful if the path becomes less obvious. After traveling through the more vegetated white-sand and brown-dirt section, you’ll reach a small cliff band. At this point the route drops through a gully on the east that you'll downclimb. The downclimbing is pretty easy but the entire gully is well worn from years of use, with tree roots, loose rocks, and smooth patches of polished sandstone. Sit low or butt-scoot where needed, and use rocks or small trees for handholds. The downclimbing starts immediately, with a couple of short switchbacks at the top to get past the initial lip. After these brief switchbacks, the descent continues as a single, steady slope to the south that you downclimb, or slide, in one direction. At the base of the gully, the terrain opens into a wider drainage. Here the orange, pink, and red sandstone becomes more prominent, marking the beginning of the first slickrock bowl. After navigating the cliff and gully, you’ll enter the first slickrock bowl. Here the drainage opens up fairly wide, and you’ll walk downhill on slickrock and sand and through scattered ponderosa pine trees. At the bottom of the bowl, you’ll cross a small watercourse which is the beginning of Russell Gulch. You may or may not even notice the crossing it, depending on conditions. After crossing Russell Gulch, continue uphill on the far side of the bowl. You’ll immediately see that the route climbs back up across red sandstone as you work your way toward the saddle that separates the first slickrock bowl from the second. The saddle between the first and second slickrock bowls features a pair of prominent rock domes that make natural spots for a quick rest or to regroup. These domes are colloquially known as Resting Rocks. The Subway route can be a very long day, so taking a brief break here is fine—but don’t linger too long. There’s still a demanding journey ahead, and it’s important not to burn too much time resting early in the day. From Resting Rocks, the views are very picturesque as you peer into the second sandstone bowl and beyond. This bowl is even wider and more scenic than the first. If you look south, you can see a promontory in the distance. This is generally the spot you’ll be aiming for. You will not hike directly to the top of the promontory, but you will travel to and around it before dropping into the drainage below. Taking note of this feature from Resting Rocks can help you identify your line of travel. From Resting Rocks, the route drops into the second slickrock bowl. This bowl is even more wide open and sun-exposed than the first. It isn’t steep, but over the long, low-angled walk down the slope you may begin to feel your thighs starting to burn a bit. There should be several rock cairns to follow, although the shape of the bowl naturally pushes you in the correct direction as you descend. At the bottom of the bowl, you’ll cross another small watercourse that you may or may not even notice. Beyond this point, the terrain doesn’t climb steeply uphill the way the first bowl does. Instead, it undulates gently up and down and moves through more vegetated terrain as the route continues toward the prominent point visible from Resting Rocks. The line of travel will also bend from southeast to due south as it approaches that feature. To your right (west), the Russell Gulch drainage now becomes much deeper and more obvious and prominent. Russel Gulch is the side drainage running generally parallel to you. As you get close to the promontory, the route skirts around its west side and ends at an overlook. From this vantage, you’ll be able to see into both Russell Gulch and the Left Fork of North Creek. From here, the route drops dramatically down into Russell Gulch via a steep downclimb, The downclimb is very well worn, with plenty of tree roots, loose rocks, and smoothed sandstone. It isn’t particularly exposed or difficult, but you do need to exercise some care. The biggest hazard is the potential for people to kick rocks or debris onto others below, especially if the group is bunched up. Spread out and descend carefully. The downclimb places you in the bottom of Russell Gulch (a side canyon to the Left Fork of North Creek), in an area where you’ll often encounter a pool of water whose size and depth vary by season. Sometimes it’s full enough that you’ll need to walk through water; other times it’s much shallower. From this point, it’s only a few hundred yards to the junction with the Left Fork, where you officially enter the Subway route and begin the technical portion of the canyon. Most groups pause here to regroup after the downclimb. Some use this spot for a quick snack or an extended break to change into wetsuits and gear up for the technical section; others prefer to continue farther downstream and wait until the first obstacle or deeper water before suiting up. Either approach is fine—just try to avoid doing both. If half the group gears up or takes a long break here while the other half plans to wait, you’ll end up with two extended stops: one at Russell Gulch and another a short distance down canyon when the rest of the group finally needs to suit up. This eats up far more time than people expect and can make the day significantly longer. To stay efficient—without rushing—communicate a plan at the top of the downclimb so everyone knows whether the group is gearing up here or waiting until later.

Once in the Left Fork of North Creek drainage follow the river down stream. From here there won't be any trails as you are now in the river gorge and the watercourse. This is where the technical portion of the route begins. As you make your way down canyon you will encounter some small up climbs, down climbs, and a few rappels on your way to the Subway proper. Once in sight of the Subway proper section there will be a waterfall and a final rappel off of two bolts on the RDC (Right Down Canyon) side. In the past there was a log at the top off the waterfall that could be crossed; however that log has been gone for over a decade now. While it is possible to jump the gap over the waterfall, it is not advised to do so. People jumping this gap have had close calls and landed with bad footing. If you find beta that says you do not need to rappel or that you can cross on the log then that beta is outdated and no longer applicable. The Subway Top-Down Route is a technical canyoneering route so expect there to be up to four possible rappels (depending on skill level and water level) but at least one mandatory rappel. All rappels are easy by canyoneering standards; however, by novice or beginner standards they are nothing to take lightly. Even the smallest rappel in the Subway has claimed a life. Don't underestimate the technicality of the Subway. The anchors, bolts, webbing, etc. that exist in the canyon were not installed by, nor are they maintained by, the national park service. Some beta sources falsely claim otherwise. The bolts were installed--with express authorization form the park service--by experience canyoneers long ago and it is canyoneers who maintain them. The webbing is changed out by canyoneers descending the route. Handlines, if left in place, are done so by canyoneers. There is no one who is actively managing and maintaining this infrastructure. As a canyoneer descending the route you many need to contribute to replacement and maintenance of anchors, webbing, etc.