Southwest Utah: Is May a good time to visit?
 

I am planning to visit Utah next year for the purpose of hiking in Zion & Bryce Canyon. I would like to avoid the crowds and heat of the summer season and yet be warm enough to comfortably hike wearing shorts. Is late May a good time for me to visit?

I was in Bryce & Zion two years ago right at the end of May and start start of June.

Bryce was nice the first day and then snow flurries for an hour the next morning. By 10AM it had melted, the sun was out and people were hiking down.

A couple of days later I was in Zion that's 4,000 ft lower. It was pretty warm.

When we traveled all over Utah during the first two weeks of May, 2009, the weather was perfect for sightseeing.

In case you don't know, the drive between Bryce Canyon NP and Torrey, UT, on Highway 12 is one of the most beautiful and unusual in the forty-eight contiguous states.

HTTY

We were at Zion & Bryce at the end of May/early June last year. The weather was perfect, no crowds, easy parking.

This year it showered several afternoons when we were there over Memorial Day week. We just planned our days to hike in the morning and drive to our next hiking place in the afternoon. Someone said the monsoons were early, we had a great time anyway.

Davemeister,

The first two weeks in May are usually quite good, the last two weeks could be too hot. The two parks are worlds apart in altitude, so it could be cold at Bryce and hot at Zion.

Since I live here, I don't go to Zion to hike from mid-May to end of Sept. Oct is great!

Bryce is wonderful in the summer.

Recommend going first two weeks in May.