The Subway
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| | Difficulty:3B III (v3a2 III) Raps:4, max ↨30ft
Red Tape:Permit required Shuttle:Required 20 min Vehicle:Passenger Rock type:Sandstone | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Condition Reports: | 23 Oct 2024
"That was a canyon, I guess? We intended to combine with Das Boot but got a late start due having a harder time than expected hitching to the top. |
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| Best season: | Spring; Summer; Fall
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37.3177, -113.0406
37.3399, -113.0758
37.2847, -113.0959
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Introduction
The Subway is an extremely popular hike through the left fork of North Creek. The Subway proper--the curved, tunnel-like section of the that gives the subway its name--is a relatively short section. This section is preceded by a long approach down and over slickrock. The exit consists of a lot of boulder hopping through the watercourse, a trail the crosses the river a few times, and a steep hike out of the canyon to the plateau. There is also a bottom-up version which is simply a non-technical hike comprised of the exit only. The bottom-up route is not described on this here but can be found at: https://ropewiki.com/The_Subway_(Bottom_Up)
Although this route is a very easy canyoneering trip, it is long and does require rappelling and canyoneering techniques. A number of teams not fully prepared for these challenges have required rescue, and there have been multiple deaths (via falling and while on rappel)
Getting There
The Subway Top-Down can be done either with a car shuttle or by hitchhiking. For both options drive north on the Kolob Terrace road to the Left Fork Trailhead. This is the exit trailhead where you will leave a vehicle. From here either hitchhike, or drive a second vehicle up the KTR to the Wildcat Canyon Trailhead--which is where you will either leave a vehicle to recover later or simply get dropped off and begin hiking the approach.
NOTE: If hitchhiking it is advised to do so in the morning because
- You will be clean and dry and therefore people will be more likely to give you a ride
- There is little if any traffic on the Kolob Terrace Road later in the day or at night
Approach
From the trailhead follow the Wildcat Canyon Trail out of the parking lot to the east until you encounter the Connector Trail junction. From here continue east until you very shortly reach the junction with the Northgate Peaks trail on the right (south). The Northgate Peaks trail heads due south and you will follow it briefly--for about 400 feet--until encountering a clear social trail on the left that spurs southeast down the slope and away from the plateau. This social trail is the Left Fork (Subway) Approach route. There may, or may not be signs for some or all of these turns and junctions so be vigilant as many groups have missed these turns in the past.
As you begin the approach trail down the slickrock gully, follow the cairns to an overlook. The area has seen a lot of use/abuse so there my be several paths. Try to stay on the main trail or in dry washes as this helps reduce impact. The GPX track on this page will be your best route option. Find a trail down from the overlook on its southeast side and continue past Russell Gulch and slightly uphill over the slickrock. Continue past the slickrock saddle and follow the cairns down the slickrock and through the brush to another overlook. Descend from this point to the confluence of Russell Gulch and Das Boot which forms the beginning of the technical route.
Descent
After completing the approach hike you will find yourself in the bottom of the canyon and in the watercourse of the Left Fork of North Creek. Follow the river down stream. From here there won't be any trails as you are now in the technical portion of the route. 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.
Rappels
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.
R1: 25’ from bolts on downstream face of large, flat rock center canyon.
R2: 10’ from rock pinch into a constriction with a smooth, nearly-spherical boulder at its base; a likely down-climb for skilled teams.
R3: 15’ from bolts RDC. This is the likely site of one death when the rappeler was inverted under the water flow and was unable to free himself.
R4: 20’ from bolts above a pothole RDC.
Personal Technical Gear
For the technical section each member of your group will need the following personal gear:
- Harness
- Helmet
- Descender (an ATC will for for this route)
- 1-2 locking carabiners
- gloves
- good shoes (sandals, flip fops, Chacos, etc. not advised)
Group Technical Gear / Skills
- 60 foot rope (this will allow for a double-strand rappel of the longest drop)
- Webbing for replacing anchors or handlines
- The ability to rescue a person stuck or inverted when rappelling and in the watercourse
- All the other general equipment and skills for hiking that a group should possess
Wetsuit / Drysuit
The Subway is frequently traveled by novices and large groups. The park lets in up to 80 people per day and it typically is full with everyone in canyon about the same time. As a result, there are frequent bottlenecks, traffic jams, and extended wait times at each rappel, down climb, or obstacle. While it is possible to descend the Subway without a wetsuit or drysuit, if you have to wait for an extended period of time at one of these bottlenecks in the water, shade, and/or with an updraft blowing through the canyon you can become very cold, very fast. For this reason it is advisable to wear a wetwuit or drysuit even in the middle of summer. You may think you don't need a one, but if you get stuck waiting for any reason you will quickly change your tune.
While a drysuit can be used in the summer a wetsuit of 3-4mm is usually sufficient. If doing the Subway in cooler, winter, or runoff conditions a drysuit plus a high degree of skill and experience are required as those are not novice or beginner conditions.
Exit
Following the end of the technical section there are 2.2 miles of strenuous boulder-hopping and river crossing to the the point where you leave the watercourse and hike up a steep rocky switchback trail to the plateau. There is a sign (unless it gets washed out by floods) but this sign can be easily missed--especially if hiking in the dark. Have headlamps with you, a good GPS/mapping system, and the tracks downloaded. Many groups have missed this turn both in the dark and in the daylight.
After following the trail up the steep cliff the plateau, continue on the most prominent trail back to the Left Fork Trailhead parking lot and your exit vehicle.
Red Tape
A permit is required for this route. Permits can be very difficult to obtain. The park allocates up to 80 spots per day for the Subway (This is combined for both the top-down and bottom-up routes as they don't differentiate when it comes to permit allocation.) 60 of these spots are allocated via an advanced lottery, with any unallocated spots becoming available via the first-come, first-served reservation calendar. Because of the popularity of the Subway all but one or two of these 60 spots gets allocated during the lottery. The remaining 20 spots are allocated are awarded via a Last-Minute Lottery the week-off a trip date.
When applying for permits on the park's website the permit is listed as "Left Fork North Creek (SUBWAY)" and will give you the option to choose the your route/itinerary as either the top-down technical route or bottom-up non-technical route. The itinerary you want for the top-down route is "Left Fork (Subway) Wildcat Trailhead to Left Fork Trailhead".
Variations
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 permits may be obtained at the Zion Backcountry desk.
Beta sites
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BluuGnome.com : The Subway - Chris Brennen's Adventure Hikes (Southwest) : The Subway
- RoadTripRyan.com : The Subway (From the Top)
- CanyoneeringUSA.com : Subway (From the Top)
- HikeArizona.com : Zion Subway Top to Bottom
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Zion Canyoneering Book by Tom Jones : Subway from the Top - ToddsHikingGuide.com : The Subway
- CanyonCollective.com : The Subway
- Super Amazing Map : The Subway
- ZionCanyoneering.com : The Subway from the Top
- SummitPost.org : The Subway
- Climb-Utah.com : Subway - Left Fork of North Creek
Trip reports and media
- https://www.stavislost.com/hikes/trail/south-guardian-angel-and-the-subway
- Chasing Adventure : May 27th, 2017
- Climb Utah Subway Canyon Video
- https://www.facebook.com/pat.winstanley.7/media_set?set=a.733327280059305.1073741925.100001461198708&type=3
- Candition.com : The Subway: Left Fork North Creek
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Wikiloc.com : Subway Canyon - Zion National Park* - Das Boot and The Subway, Bob Allan, 2016
- [1] : Bogley Trip report Russell Gulch/Subway
