evans4815162342

My husband and I are currently planning our June 2018 summer vacation (looking at either the first or second week of the month). We would like to fly into Denver and do a roadtrip through CO and UT, stopping at Rocky Mountain National Park, Arches National Park, and Canyonlands National Park. We will be bringing out own tent and camping gear, and would like to do some tent/car camping (not backcountry) in/around the parks. We are in our early 20s and don't mind a fast-paced trip, but also don't want to try to fit so much in that we can't enjoy ourselves. On that note, here is a rough itinerary we came up with:

Day 1: Early morning flight into Denver (arriving around 8am); sight-see in Denver; Rockies game that evening (6:40pm).
Day 2: Drive to Rocky Mountain National Park; do a bit of hiking in eastern part of the park (short trails as time and weather permits?); camp in Glacier Basin Campground
Day 3: Hike and explore in park; camp in Aspenglen Campground.
Day 4: Drive thru western side of the park via Trail Ridge Road (if open) and then 1-70 scenic drive to Grand Junction for the night.
Day 5: Drive from Grand Junction to Arches National Park; short hike/drive thru park, stay/camp near Moab for the night.
Day 6: Arches hiking in the morning; Canyonlands in the late afternoon/evening, stay/camp near Moab for the night.
Day 7: Canyonlands in the morning, then drive to Glenwood Springs for the night.
Day 8: Drive Glenwood Springs to Denver (arrive around lunch); afternoon to rest/sight-see in Denver.
Day 9: Flight from Denver leaving mid-morning.

We'd basically only be using Grand Junction and Glenwood Springs as 'rest stops', since our main focus is on the National Parks; if there are better places to stop in between, please let us know! We would love any input on whether this is a doable itinerary and/or any suggestions to make it better! Also, if anyone has any suggestions for the best campgrounds near Moab or the best campsites in the RMNP campgrounds listed, please let us know. We'd like to do this trip right, so any advice is appreciated! Thanks!

fmpden

That looks reasonable. A couple of cautions -- There will still be a lot of snow in the mountains especially at higher elevations so some campgrounds could be muddy as are the trails. Trail Ridge road is scheduled to open on Memorial Day weekend. If arriving early in Denver, you could consider staying downtown, dropping the car, and taking the light-rail to the airport the next morning. If day 8 is a Sunday make absolutely certain that you leave G Springs early that morning. From about Georgetown the traffic returning to Denver from about noon on Sunday can be a big problem.

And you do need to prepare for a wide range of weather. Snow, especially in the mountain, is not unheard of in early June.

emalloy

You will be doing a loop and it could be done in either direction. I would suggest you do RMNP at the end of the trip. Start by heading from Denver to Moab, stop in Grand Junction if going all the way is too much, then look for a way get off 70 and drive down 128 into Moab. If you are not from a high altitude, that will give you more time to acclimate (Moab is in the 4500-5000 ft area I think Trail Ridge goes over 14000 ft) it also might make it a little warmer and less snowy.

Have a fantastic trip.

Nelson

Yes, looks reasonable to me. I like emalloy's suggestion of the trip in reverse if you have not already booked your campsites. Along with getting acclimatized to our high elevation, it also solves the problem of coming down I-70 if it happens to be a weekend. Returning to Denver from Estes is usually not as bad.

The top elevation of Trail Ridge Road is about 12,200', but you can see 14,000-foot summits, most notably nearby Longs Peak.

Since you plan to camp at Glacier Basin a short hike at Bear Lake or Glacier Gorge makes sense. You'll most likely be on snow, but normally it's stomped down and walkable by then. Both of those parking lots fill up early.
Have a great trip.

WhereAreWe

I agree with the idea to reverse the itinerary, even so far as to leave Denver on day 1 and drive all the way to Moab.Saving the highest elevation park for the end will help a bit.

I'd recommend staying 2 nights in the same campsite in RMNP. Moraine Park is sort of centrally located so that would work the best. As far as specific sites, I like to go for a walk-in site as you're a bit further from the driveways and they tend to be slightly quieter. The walk in sites at Aspenglen are pretty nice, better than any at Moraine Park but you may not have a lot of options as people tend to start booking sites early. I'd still go with Moraine Park for two nights just for the convenience of being in the middle and not having to move a campsite. You're going to want/need to get up early to hike to 1) avoid afternoon storms and 2) find a parking spot on the Bear Lake corridor. It sucks to have to rush back to the campground to tear down and then rush to the other campground to try to snag a first-come, first-served site if you didn't get an advance reservation. Far better to make a reservation in advance for 2 nights IMO. If you manage to find 2 back to back nights in reservable sites (one in Glacier and one in Aspenglen), go for it. Just take the tent down before you go hiking so you don't have to run back by 11 or 12 to vacate.

My one trip in early June, I believe the trails were decent up to about 9,000 feet and then I started running into snow. That applies to the forested areas, tundra is another story. I'd highly recommend at least a short hike on the Ute Trail or at Rock Cut to get out on the tundra and see the early (tiny) wildflowers.

StantonHyde

In Moab, there are a number of BLM campsites. I wouldn't do any of the "camp at large" areas. They are overrun with RVs and ATVs etc. Not great for tent camping. If you check out the BLM website for the Moab area, they can tell you where the sites are and what they have.

I have stayed at the KOA in Moab. If it is during the week, you will be fine--not too noisy. If you are there on the weekend, stay in a hotel!!

The other option would be to stay in Canyonlands. Not as convenient as Moab but the camping is really nice. Check out the nps.gov website for camping in Canyonlands. I wouldn't even try to camp in Arches because it is so crowded.

tomfuller

I'm thinking that Grand Junction would be a good place for you to rent your car. Denver Union Station (newly remodeled) is about a half mile from Coors Field where you will be watching your baseball game.
There is a nice hotel attached to Union Station. In the morning (8AM if on time) the California Zephyr leaves westbound. The train goes through Fraser and then SW going through the Glenwood Canyon after noon. I would take the train to Grand Junction and spend the night before renting the car to go to Moab.
See the best of eastern Utah and western Colorado including Glenwood Springs and Aspen before returning the car in Grand Junction. The eastbound train is in Grand Junction in the morning. Take the train east to Frazer/Winter Park and rent a car there for 24 hours to see what you can of Rocky Mt. NP. The view of Denver coming in on the train in the early evening is spectacular.
The light rail in Denver also comes from the airport to Union Station.
I like the views of the Glenwood Canyon a lot better from the train than from the drivers seat of a car on I-70.