Tammy_329

Hello....

We are going over our travel itinerary that we are planning for the end of June 2013. We need to get this figure out so we can start booking some of the hotels.We would love for any advice or info that anyone could provide for us to make this the best vacation in the time we have allotted. We have approx. 2 weeks to see everything we want to see. We know its alot of ground to cover in a short time, but we arent unable to do alot of hiking . Mostly scenic drives and auto tours through the parks with the exception of small hikes/walks on trails to viewpoints.

This is what we have so far

Day 1 - Fly into Denver - rent a car and drive to Estes Park - Stay over night @ The Stanley Hotel - Ghost tour that evening

Day 2 - Leave early -Drive through Rocky Mounaion National Park - and continue onto Glenwood Springs. -

Day 3 - Leave Glenwood Springs - Drive to Colorado National Monumnet - Continue on through Cisco and with a stop at Fisher Towers- Spend evening in Arches for Sunset..Stay in Moab (Big Horn Lodge)

Day 4 - Tour Canyonlands and Deadhorse State Park - Wondering if a drive through La Sal Mountain Loop in late afternoon is worth it? - Stay in Moab

Day 5 - Drive to Goblin Valley and Continue on to Capital Reef National Park. Stay in Torrey ( Any suggestions on a good place to stay )

Day 6 Drive to Bryce Canyon -Tour Bryce Canyon and Stay at Rubys Inn. (is the stop at Kodachrome Basin worth it?)

Day 7 -Leave Bryce Canyon early in the morning - Drive to Zion - Spend all the rest of the day at Zion National Park. Stay in Springdale

Day 8 - Drive to Grand Canyon North Rim - Relax - possible drive to one of the look outs. Stay at the Grand Canyon Lodge

Day 9 - Drive to Page- 2 of us touring Upper antelope canyon- Relax the rest of the day.stay in Page overnight

Day 10 - Drive to Monumnet Valley - Take the Valley Tour - Stay at the View Hotel.

Day 11 -Leave Monument Valley early - Drive to Four Corners Monumnet - Stop at Mesa Verde ( This we are not sure about, because you have to be able to climb the ladder and do alot of walking and that may be out for some of us in the group ) Continue on to Alamosa,Co. - Stay over night in Alamosa

Day 12- Drive to Colorado Springs - Garden of the Gods and Cog Railway for Pikes Peak - Stay over night in Colorado Springs.

Day 13 Drive back to Denver and get evening flight home.


Any Help would be greatly appriecated ...Thank You

Myer

You're doing a lot of driving and very little staying.

In fact, you didn't even mention Arches NP.

spirobulldog

she mentioned seeing a sunset in arches.

Tammy,
You are missing SO SO much here. I have been to all of the places you mentioned. I went to Arches about 6 years ago for the first time and thought 4 days there was going to be way to much. I've been back twice since that first trip and 3 more times to Utah. Spent 4 days in RMNP this past summer.

Lets start with day 2
Do you plan on doing any hiking or horseback riding int RMNP?
Trail Ridge Road and Old Fall River Road are both good drives to do there.
Some people enjoy fishing in RMNP.

Day 3
Arches National Park.
Easy stuff to see-
Double Arch
The Windows
Balanced Rock
Courthouse Towers
Turret Arch
Landscape Arch-the longest in the world
Moderate- Delicate Arch
not long just uphill(down hill coming back)

I would stay at Austin's Chuckwagon in Torrey. They have a good little store/deli too.

Day 5
At Goblin Valley also consider Little Wildhorse Canyon
I've spent several days at Capitol Reef(twice) and it's my least favorite.
Devils Garden in Escalante might be a better choice than Kodachrome,IMOP

The rest of the trip is really rushing it. The only way this trip will work is if you just want to drive and not really do anything. You will see some, but you will miss a lot.

I would stick with just Colorado or just Utah for the length of time you mention. You will enjoy yourself more, spend less, and not be cooped up in a car nearly as much.

Great Sand Dunes near Alamosa is worth a stop too.

If you do Utah, then consider going before the end of June as it is hot then. Colorado would be cooler.

Mesa Verde is a special special place. There are tours there that don't require the ladders. Although, if you can climb them at all I HIGHLY advise on doing them. It is one park that really suprised me at how much I enjoyed it. We were there for two days and should have stayed three.

In Page, you might consider taking the Rainbow Bridge tour(i haven't done this one yet).

I would consider staying in park at Bryce and Zion Lodges.

spirobulldog

The ladders don't take more than a minute to climb, btw.

spirobulldog

All of the places I mentioned in Arches are less than 1/4 mile. Landscape Arch is pretty much Wheelchair accessible, the best I remember. It is a bit less than a mile and I think I walked it in about 20 minutes.

You might want to take a Hummer tour or and airplane tour in Moab. Both very good and something you could do without walking.

Horseback riding in Rockies, Zion, Bryce and Grand Canyon are all nice.

Tammy_329

Thank You for the info. Unfortunately 2 in the group (there are 4 of us) have problems with a bad knees and problems walking alot. Thats what worries us with the ladders and alot of walking. They would rather do the driving and scenic tours. We were going to do Arches on day 3 - but only to drive through and stop at a few viewpoints at sunset. Colorado was really never meant to be part of this, it was suppose to basically be like The Grand circle tour.But everyyone has a place they wanted to go...Well... It looks like I will be going back to the drawing board and try to convince everyone to split this up.

The original plan was to Fly into St George,Utah
Day 1 & 2 Zion Park
Day 3 & 4 Bryce Canyon
Day 5 Capital Reef
Day 6 -8 Canyonlands and Arches
Day 9 Mesa Verde
Day 10 Monument VAlley
Day 11 Page,AZ
Day 12 & 13 Grand Canyon ,North RIm
Day 14 - Back to St George and fly home...

I am thinking that may be the better route to go. Does that sound more doable?

spirobulldog

That is sounding much better.
Where will you be flying in from?

You might be better off to fly into SLC or even Vegas. Most of the flights to SGU connect in SLC. We flew out of SGU about a year ago and it is a brand new airport.

How much walking can you do? Does it help if you get in shape a bit before coming?

If you've never been to Salt Lake before, a day there might be a good idea.

Day 1 Drive from St. George, Vegas, or Salt Lake
Start out with a drive to Kolob Canyon sections of Zion.
Really not any hiking to be done here. This section of the park is different.
Then continue on to Zion.
Overnight @ Zion Lodge--I would suggest a cabin
Dinner @ Zion Lodge

Day 2
You will hop on a shuttle bus this day. You can't drive your car in this park. Only to the lodge and their you park it.
See Weeping Rock
Maybe a short walk--River Walk-I don't consider this a hike
Perhaps Emerald Pools for the 2 that can trek a bit. Lower Emerald Pool is easy and short.
There are many Ranger-led things including a Ride with A Ranger, and other talks that don't require walking. Perhaps split up and do these seperately, while the other two do a short hike. Stop at Visitor Cntr.
You can drive thru the tunnel and see Checkboard Mesa.
It is really nice to sit out under the huge tree right in front of the lodge for lunch. A lot of people stop for an ice cream there as well.
I would suggest driving into Springdale and having a meal at
The Whiptail Grill--specifically their spaghitti squash enchilada. But do eat at least one meal in Zion Lodge.
In the evening, wild turkeys and deer are often seen in front of the lodge under the tree or other areas. Horse Rides are available here.

Bryce
Many viewpoints here. Bryce will be cooler than Zion.
Another option would be to see Cedar Break National Monument on the way to Bryce. Bryce has many viewpoints to stop at. I would stop at several of them. They are all nice.
Consider a horse ride(they would probably help you on and off). Navajo Loop/Queens Garden is good hiking trail, but it is slightly tough. You can sit out on the rim and watch a sunrise and sunset (certainly worth getting up for).
Bryce has a "Night Sky" program that is really good. View thru telescopes on most nights.

From Bryce to Capitol Reef, you could do a scenic drive or two. Devils Garden in Escalante is easy. You just walk around as much as you like, no really trail here. It is on a dirt road for a few miles. Maybe stop at Boulder Mountain Lodge for a meal there.

At Capitol Reef. View the orchards. You might be there at the right time for Cherries to be picked. I would stop at Gifford House and have one of their pies. The pies arrive at 8:00am and they run out usually by noon or sooner. Buy a pie or two or three and eat them right next door at the picnic ground in the orchard. You are almost guaranteed to be picnicing with deer. Austin's Chuckwagon is good place to stay in Torrey and also has a good deli.

I would for sure stop at Goblin Valley in route to Moab.
There are no trails here. There is, what I would call, a viewing platform that you can view from. But, the two of you that are capable of going down the short hill into the goblins should do so. You can spend 30 minutes there or 4 hours. No trail here, just go where you want to. Kids are a hoot to watch here. There is absolutely nothing to eat here and maybe or maybe not cold drinks here. So, come prepared!!!
They don't even have electricity here, it is operated on solar panels.

Deadhorse Point would be another good place to stop.
www.slickrockair.com is great for a small plane ride in Moab
Moab Adventure Center has hummer tours
all the trails I mentioned earlier about Arches are doable. I wouldn't attempt Delicate Arch with the two that have bad knees though. You can view it from a distance though. If the other two are in pretty decent shape they could attempt it. Probably allow 3-4 hours for the hike.

I would plan on a full day at Mesa Verde. Far View Lodge is ok to stay and the food their is really good. You might also try an Indian Fry Bread taco for lunch at the little concession area. Lots to see and do here.

Monument Valley, you will want to take a tour offered by a Navajo Guide. It's the only way to really see the park.

I haven't been to Page.

Grand Canyon-catch a sunrise and sunset here.
Try for the Rim Cabins. There are only 4 of them.
Horse rides are available here too.

You are planning ahead enough to get the lodging you want. This is not good --IT IS GREAT!!
Zion Lodge
Bryce Lodge
Far View Lodge in Mesa Verde
The View in Monument Valley
Grand Canyon Lodge

You should be able to get exactly what you want.
You might want to check about air conditioning in Zion. I can't remember if the cabins or standard rooms had a/c or not. I don't think it would be anything to worry about at the other places. I think Mesa Verde had a/c.

DebitNM will be able to really help you with Mesa Verde.

Others will fill in some gaps for Utah.

sounds much more doable now, IMOP.

Durango isn't far from Mesa Verde. You could do the train ride there.

spirobulldog

oops-- That is called Hell's Backbone Grill- it is at Boulder Mountain Lodge.

spirobulldog

I should have mentioned there are 2 or 3 scenic drives before Cap Reef and at Cap Reef that you could do.

Tomsd

Why Page. Are you doing a float trip from there?

emalloy

Your new plan sounds much better and most of the places you are going have plenty that the non hikers can do while the others hike a bit. If ladders are a problem at Mesa Verde, while the ones who can handle them take a ranger led tour of say, Cliff Palace, the non hikers could go on the rim road and look at them from the other side.

Bryce and Canyonlands have plenty of view points just steps from the parking lot.

If you have anyone who is handicapped enough to have a handicap parking tag, it would make parking close to views easier in many cases.


Do get a national park pass at your first NP.

StantonHyde

Cafe Diablo in Torrey--amazing Mexican food!!!!

Tammy_329

Thanks everybody for the input. I think this plan will work much better all the way around. We are flying in from Buffalo,NY ... I am personally able to do so hiking, but we were just worried about the others in the group. I forgot to ask... Does anyone one know about the La Sal Mountain Loop Road near Moab. I believe its a 3 hour drive??? ... is that really something we want to fit in? And Also we were thinking of going to Mesa Arch for sunrise... Does anyone know how the road is to get up there in the dark? Thanks again for the help...I'm sure I will be back several more times with questions as we put all this together.

InSandy

I wouldn't take the LaSal Mt loop on a short trip. It is somewhere nice to go on a hot summer day after you've done everything else in the area. But you'll have plenty to fill in the time you have scheduled there. I would take the hwy to Fisher Towers, it is a great road, maybe even drive into Castle Valley for a look at some of the formations there.

The road to Mesa Arch would be fine in the dark, maybe a couple tricky spots, but nothing you couldn't handle with ordinary caution. I haven't been there at sunrise, but hear it can be a busy place.

And for what it is worth I think the plan you've listed second (leaving out CO starting in ST george) is a very workable plan.

luvtravl

Book your lodging ASAP. We are going the last week in June and many places in Springdale (Desert Pearl, Cliffrose, etc.)and near Bryce are already sold out. If you can't find what you want, keep checking as cancellations do occur.