Zion National Park is located in the Southwestern United States

Southwestern United States

The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...

, near Springdale, Utah

Springdale, Utah

Springdale is a town in Washington County, Utah, United States. The population was 457 at the 2000 census. It is located immediately outside the boundaries of Zion National Park, and is oriented around the resulting tourist industry. It was originally settled as a Mormon farming community in 1862...

. A prominent feature of the 229 square miles (593.1 km²) park is Zion Canyon, which is 15 miles (24 km) long and up to half a mile (800 m) deep, cut through the reddish and tan-colored Navajo Sandstone

Navajo Sandstone

Navajo Sandstone is a geologic formation in the Glen Canyon Group that is spread across the U.S. states of northern Arizona, northwest Colorado, and Utah; as part of the Colorado Plateau province of the United States...

 by the North Fork of the Virgin River

Virgin River

The Virgin River is a tributary of the Colorado River in the U.S. states of Utah, Nevada, and Arizona. The river is about long. It was designated Utah's first wild and scenic river in 2009, during the centennial celebration of Zion National Park.-Course:...

. The lowest elevation is 3666 ft (1,117.4 m) at Coalpits Wash and the highest elevation is 8726 ft (2,659.7 m) at Horse Ranch Mountain.