Camping the Grand Circle
 

Hi everyone....still planning the trip and a question has come up - what about camping for fun and budget instead of staying in motels??

To recap we will be visiting the following places -> Monument Valley, Canyon de Chelly , Mesa Verde Ntl Park, Canyonlands Ntl Park, Arches Ntl Park, Death Valley.

We will only be setting up camp for 1 or 2 nights per place and will not be cooking at camp - just sleeping. Is this possible?? Do you think its worth the trouble to bring tents etc all the way from Toronto Canada?? We just thought it would be a cool experience to camp in a desert.

Many thanks!

MaryRay,

Camping at all these places or nearby is a GREAT way to really see the parks. We do it all the time. We've gone from sleeping in our van, to tent-trailer, to trailer and now motorhome. I love to camp in these areas! It's a great idea and so much cheaper!

The Thunderbird Hotel at Canyon de Chelly was $106 and the campground is FREE! Talk about saving money!

What time of year are you taking this trip? Summer can be HOT and winter COLD!

There are two choices at Monument Valley. The tribal park has 360 degrees of fantastic views, tables, bathrooms and showers. The Gouldings Mounument Valley Campground is a nicer campground with more ammenties but the views are not as great. It also costs more.

The Canyon de Chelly campground in the park has big cottonwood trees for shade. There are bathrooms and tables. No showers.

Mesa Verde campground has many sites with trees for shade. I really like this campground. Nearby is a store and pay showers.

Canyonlands, Island in the Sky campground is pretty desolate, tables and outhouses. Take bug repellant! If it's summer it's hot! Beautiful views but I would suggest staying at one of the private campground in Moab or at the BLM lands along the Colorado River both east and west of Moab.

Arches National Park is almost impossible to get a campsite at unless you are there at 6 or 7 A.M. There are less than 60 campsites but they are set in a beautiful location. If it's hot then I would again recommend staying at a private campground in Moab. They will have showers and a few have swimming pools. We like Slickrock Campground because it has big shade trees and a nice swimming pool.

We never camped in Death Valley but if it's not the winter then I think it would be to HOT!

Hope this helps.

Utahtea

Yes, it's worth it to camp, especially if you don't have to cook. I'm usually more comfortable in a tent than in a motel room.

Mesa Verde's Morefield Campground is never full. I hear only good things about it, but I've never stayed there. (We live 25 minutes from the entrance station.)

At Canyonlands, we like the Squaw Flat Campground in the Needles District. Actually, we like the Needles District better than Island in the Sky for several reasons - better hiking, less visited, etc. It's great for 2 days, but the campground is an hour from Moab.

I don't know about campgrounds in the other places you mentioned.

Thanks for your replies....We are going mid October (I like to plan our trips early). How cold do you think it will get to at night??

More ?????
How do I reserve the camp sites?? Also, we will be "checking in" at night (after 6 pm) will there still be campsites available? I'm sure that camping in Ontario is alot different from the southwest... what kind of critters do we need to beware of in the camps?

Thanks again

At Morefield (Mesa Verde), it will freeze. You might want to check the nps.gov website to see if Morefield is still open then.

At Canyonlands, it will probably get down into the 50s. Canyonlands probably won't fill up, especially if you go on a weekday. All but group sites at Squaw Flat were first come first serve last time I was there.

I'm knocking on wood as I write this, but the worst thing I've seen in terms of critters at any of the parks you list were ground squirrels and jays. No scorpions or tarantulas so far. At some places, you'll need to pack your smellables in your car because of bears.

In Mid-October you could be in for some cold nights, especially at Mesa Verde. Check out the average highs and lows at weather.com Here is the link for Moab, Utah in October. I would bring cold weather sleeping bags.

http://www.weather.com/outlook/trave...?climoMonth=10

You can not make reservations at any of these National Park campgrounds except Death Valley. You won't have any problem coming in late to Mesa Verde or Canyon de Chelly and get a campsite.

You won't be able to get one in Arches unless you get there FIRST thing in the morning.

Canyonlands both Squaw Flat in the Needles District and Willow Flat in the Island in the Sky District can fill up especially in the spring and fall. I would stay at a private campground in Moab if you plan on getting in that late.

Monument Valley will be iffy if you want to stay at the Monument Valley tribal park. I would suggest making reservations at Gouldings Monument Valley Campground.

http://www.gouldings.com/english/campground.htm

This late in the year you might be OK camping in Death Valley.

Utahtea

Thanks again for the help, I've pretty much used Travel talk for all my arrangements!

My husband just booked a cabin at Slick Rock Campgrounds....we're going to stay there and use it as a base for Arches and Canyonlands. However he neglected to ask how far a drive it is from the actual canyons?? Also, any recommendations on where to eat in town??

I've never stayed in the cabins at Slick Rock but they are small and cute. I know with the KOA cabins you need to bring your own sleeping bags...is that true for these cabins?

Slick Rock Campground is on the north end of Moab right next to the Colorado River. It's only about 3 or 4 miles to the entrance to Arches National Park and the drive to Canyonlands, Island in the Sky district is 32 miles and will take about 40 minutes to drive.

Utahtea

The cabins at Slickrock include all the linen and blankets. You just need to bring your own towel for the showers.

We've planned tent camping with Gouldings at Monument Valley and Morefield at Mesa Verde, so we thought a cabin and a bed might be a nice change.

Thanks so much for all the info you've provided!