Court of the Patriarchs - Three Stone Fathers

A stop on Zion Canyon, a free self-guided tour.

Climb the short, steep path to the viewpoint and look west at three tall sandstone peaks standing side by side. In 1916 Frederick Vining Fisher, a Methodist minister exploring the canyon with two local boys, named them for the biblical patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Fisher handed out other biblical names in the canyon, too, and they stuck.

The three peaks are Navajo Sandstone, white at the top where minerals have washed out and red lower down, colored by iron.

The flat canyon floor around you has its own story. Several thousand years ago a huge landslide from the Sentinel, the mountain to the south, dammed the Virgin River and formed a lake. Sediment settled in that lake and created the level ground that the road and lodge now sit on. In 1995 the river cut into the old slide and washed out the road, briefly stranding visitors up canyon.

Stay on the path; the slopes here are loose.

Getting here: Ride the shuttle up canyon to the Court of the Patriarchs stop and climb the short path to the viewpoint.

Did you know?: The man who named the Court of the Patriarchs is also credited with naming Angels Landing and the Great White Throne.

Photo op: From the viewpoint, frame all three peaks in a row; morning light falls full on their faces.

Nearby: No restrooms or water here; the nearest are at Zion Lodge, the next shuttle stop.

More on Wikipedia: Court of the Patriarchs · Navajo Sandstone

Court of the Patriarchs - Three Stone Fathers

Stops on this tour