3/20- We flew from Philadelphia to Vegas, arriving at 9pm. After some minor glitches with the rental car (they tried to “upgrade” us to an SUV when we reserved a compact; with the # of miles we were planning to drive, this would have doubled our gas costs) we got into Vegas and stayed at Bally’s. We were upgraded to a Junior Suite, which we did not argue =). The hotel was fine and Vegas was Vegas. We went to bed early so we could get an early start the next morning.

3/21- Drove from Vegas to the Grand Canyon (South Rim, the road to the North Rim is still closed), taking our time along the way. My boyfriend is a photographer so we make stops along the roadside as often as inspiration strikes. We drove through the Hoover Dam and saw that they are building a new bridge which looks very high and scary but will hopefully go a long way towards alleviating the slow flow of traffic around that area. Arrived at GC around 3pm and went directly to Mather campground. We did not have reservations but there was no problem getting a tent site at this point in the day. It didn’t look like the campground was full that night either. GC was great. We did the Hermit’s Rest Route shuttle for sunset (we thought Hopi and Mohave were the best overlooks) and then were lucky enough to watch a gorgeous full moon rising over the canyon. This being Easter weekend the park was crowded, esp on the shuttle to Hermit’s Rest and around the lodges. Went to Maswik Cafeteria to eat. Nothing special but the waits at the restaurants in the Bright Angel Lodge were 1 to 1-1/2 hours long around 8:30pm. We then went to the Yavapai Observation Station to hang out and get some pictures of the canyon in the moonlight. Much quieter here than near all the lodges on the rim. There were a few other people around but it was a beautiful, quiet place to view the canyon at night. Very peaceful and nice to get away from the throngs of tourists who sometimes act like they’re in an amusement park instead of a national park. Camped that night. We found out the next day that the temperature got down to 22! It was cold but we were fine in layers and our zero degree rated sleeping bags. Just FYI: high temp for the day was in the mid to high 50s.

3/22- Woke up early and took the shuttle along Hermit’s Rest after sunrise. Hardly anyone was around. BIG contrast to our experience the day before. On our way out of the park (through the east exit), we stopped at several overlooks and attempted to hike some of the South Kaibab Trail (note: you need to take a shuttle to the trailhead OR you can park along the main road and walk about a half mile to the trailhead). The trail was very muddy and had a lot of icy patches, especially closer to the top. Crampons would have been helpful. We saw more than one person fall from the ice. We went down maybe a half mile and then came back up. Wished we had more time and that the trail conditions were better but it was time to make the drive to Zion. Drive to Zion was interesting. Lots of stands selling Indian jewelry and crafts along the way. We stopped at the first one (not knowing there would be one every 10 miles for the next few hours!).
Got to Zion around 5:30 and we were immediately impressed. After the long tunnel, it gets even more breathtaking. We had reservations that night for Watchman Campground (the only reservation we made for the trip since we wanted to be somewhat flexible about the amount of time we could spend in each place; good thing we made a reservation b/c both campgrounds were full that night). The campgrounds are in a gorgeous setting. Right near the Springdale entrance with amazing views all around. Highly recommended. Walked around the park a bit and went for dinner in Springdale and were pleasantly surprised by the dining and lodging options here. We ate at the Spotted Dog Café- excellent food and service. A bit more than we wanted to spend on dinner (I think we spent $75 for 2 entrees, 4 beers, an appetizer, and tip) but worth it. Back to the campground for some sleep before a big hiking day. Overnight low was in the mid-30s.

3/23- We decided we loved Zion so much that we wanted to stay another day so we woke up early and went over to the South Campground (literally across the street from Watchman) to get one of the first-come first-served spots for $10 since Watchman was booked for that night. Not a problem at 8am though it was filled by the afternoon. We did three hikes this day: Emerald Pools (beautiful and make sure you do the Upper Pools), Riverside Walk (easy hike that leads into the Narrows) and Canyon Overlook (great views) for sunset. All great hikes but dress in layers at Zion b/c the light changes so quickly and a sunny spot can turn shady in a matter of minutes. We found out that you can rent waterproof “onesies” and big rubber boots to do the Narrows- the water was probably knee level and higher in spots. I think there is a place in Springdale next to the Spotted Dog Café where you can rent the equipment for about $20. It looked fun but we had other hikes we wanted to try- maybe next time! Went out to eat in Springdale again at a sports bar (forget the name but the food was decent, nothing special) and back to the campground. The night sky was clear and the stars were beautiful, so we took a stroll around to stargaze a little before heading to bed.

3/24- Woke up to a LOT of wind! Went to the Visitor Center to check on the forecast because this was our day to hike Angel’s Landing. We were nervous to be up there if the wind was going to be a problem. The ranger assured me that the wind usually dies down around 10:30/11am so we should be fine once we took the shuttle and got to the top of Angel’s Landing. The hike was great! Uphill for 2 miles to Scout’s Lookout. A lot of families did the hike to this point and it was really a nice place to stop and look out over the canyon. The remaining ½ mile to Angel’s Landing was a bit scary but worth it. There are steep dropoffs and many parts where you are literally climbing up rocks with dropoffs on either side of you. Luckily, there are chains you can hold onto to help you get up there (the brochure said “chains have been installed” and I cannot imagine doing that hike before they were installed) and the view at the top is gorgeous. 5 miles roundtrip and well worth it for the experience and the views! After this hike, we left for the drive to Bryce. Got to Bryce about 2 hours later and immediately went to the campground. It was about 5pm and there were 2 sites left (only Loop A was open though it looked like they opened the rest of the campground the next day). A lot of the sites had snow cover and the one we picked had room to pitch the tent but the fire ring and picnic table were both covered in snow. We set up and went out to Sunset Point to check out the park. We loved the hoodoos and saw a pretty nice sunset. Then off to Ruby’s Inn for dinner, pretty much the only game in town this time of year (Bryce Lodge was closed). Nothing great but we got the buffet and it was fine.

More later…

3/25- Sunrise at Bryce Point. This seemed to be the place to view it at Bryce. Beautiful morning light over the Amphitheater. Switched campsites to get one that wasn’t snowed in! Then we headed out to check out more of the park. Did the drive to Rainbow Point. We liked the Natural Bridge Overlook but the others didn’t seem worth the drive, including Rainbow Point. Bryce, Sunset and Sunrise Points are the best in the park and also the closest to the entrance. Decided to hike the much-hyped Queen’s Garden/Navajo Loop trail (3 miles). It lived up to the hype and then some. We felt like we were on another planet. It took us almost three hours to do the hike because we stopped to take so many pictures! Both of us agreed it was our favorite hike of all time. We started at the Queen’s Garden end which was good for this time of year since the part of the Navajo Loop going out of the canyon had a lot of icy spots and the people coming down as we were going up had some trouble. Much easier to go uphill in ice than downhill. Word of caution: the trail splits when you get to the Navajo Trail. You can choose between Navajo Loop- 2 Bridges and Navajo Loop- Wall Street. I’d recommend Wall Street. It’s a narrow slot canyon leading up to a series of switchbacks. Very cool. We stayed in Bryce again that night and had hot dogs by the campfire. I forgot to mention that the night skies at Bryce are outrageous! The best night sky I’ve ever seen. Luckily, both night we were there were perfectly clear and the moon rose a little later so we had beautiful dark starry skies.

J,

I'm really enjoying your report! It's always interesting to hear about first time visitor's impressions. You were brave to camp in the snow! I love to camp, but snow is where I draw the line.

Zion sounds wonderful! We'll be there in September and I'm really looking forward to it.

Enjoying your report too! We will be in Zion/Bryce end of May.

MY

Thanks for the report. Brings back memories of my trip last year.

Those who just visit the lookouts in Bryce without going down into the hoodoos are doing themselves a disservice.

I agree with you about Natural Bridge, bryce Point and sunset & Sunrise Points. The rest are basically redundent.

I've always traveled to the area in September so it is interesting to read about the different weather..brrr.

Thanks for taking the time to write a trip report...they are too few and too far between. Of course I have to ask, will there be pictures available?

I'm looking forward to the next installment..

Yes- there will be pictures. Between the two of us we took over 1600 shots so we are taking some time to sort through them. I’ll put up a link when we post them online!

3/26- Woke up early to start the drive to Arches/Moab via scenic highway 12- gorgeous drive! As usual we took our time, stopping at Capitol Reef along the way. Very pretty but small park. We did not do the scenic drive into the park though. The Chimney Rock hike looked interesting. Arrived at Arches around 4pm. The Park’s Devils Garden Campground was full. The ranger said it fills by 7:30am every day and people start lining up at 6:45 for sites. We checked out the campground later in the trip and it was really beautiful. Some sites had gorgeous views (we thought site #21 looked the best). One problem is that it is at the end of the road in the park (about as far from the entrance as you can get). Since we like to go out for dinner in “town” this wasn’t too practical for us. Instead, we stayed at the BLM campgrounds along 128 and the Colorado River. They’re pretty close to the road but the setting is beautiful and they’re cheap- $8 (one note though: the BLM campgrounds have no bathrooms, only pit toilets). We were in the second campground which was about 3 miles in from 191. The rangers will give you a map of the campgrounds in the area and we found these to be the most convenient, not to mention pretty. Checked out the park a bit. Did the short hike to Delicate Arch Overlook, vowed to do the actual Delicate Arch hike the next day for sunset and then went to dinner at Moab Brewery. Atmosphere was cool (a good mix of tourists and locals it seemed), food was decent but nothing to write home about and the beer was great. GREAT night sky again. Not as good as Bryce, but close. Warm night- low was 52 degrees! The highs for the days we were in Arches ranged from mid 60s to low 70s.

3/27- Woke up and tried to rent bikes around 9am. All the shops were completely rented out so we reserved for the next day at Poison Spider Bicycles. They recommend that you reserve as far in advance as possible and said they’ve been busier than usual lately. I believe you can reserve online. Went to Arches for the Devil’s Garden hike. Didn’t do the whole thing but got out to Double O Arch. Loved the hike, especially all the slickrock and the fun of finding the next cairn (piles of rocks that act as trail markers). Double O was fantastic and I recommend it highly. Tooled around the different overlooks to take pictures (we liked them all, maybe Salt Valley would be one to skip) and headed to Delicate Arch hike for sunset. The hike is uphill but not too difficult and very rewarding. The arch is beautiful and lots of people up there for sunset. Wished we brought a picnic or bottle of wine like some others had. Great view from up top and beautiful sunset. Headed to Eddie McStiff’s for dinner. It was 9pm and they were out of pizza! Too bad b/c that’s what I was about to order. Ordered an okay burger instead.

3/28- It was cold when we woke up around 7:30 (in the 30s) so we went to the park for a bit before picking up our bikes in Moab (who wants to ride a bike in 40 degree weather!). Picked up the bikes around 10 and headed out to the Klondike Bluffs trail which was suggested by the guy at the bike shop. The bikes we rented were the nicest bikes either of us had ever been on! I like biking but my true mountain biking experience is limited. This trail was described as intermediate level. The varied terrain was definitely fun (sand, slickrock, dirt) but be warned: it was UPHILL almost the entire way. With several breaks we made it up the 7 miles to the top. You can then park your bike and go through a fence that puts you into Arches. You hike 5 minutes up to the Bluffs overlooking the park. Very pretty. We had packed a lunch and this was a perfect spot to eat. The downhill was fun but a bit nerve-racking and getting caught in the loose sand was frustrating. I had to get off my bike and walk it through the sand at some points. Overall, it was fun but I would probably pick another trail for a first time ride in Moab. We joked that the bike shops probably suggest Klondike Bluffs to tourists so we’ll give up and not dare to try any other trails. Left Moab/Arches around 4pm via 128 (very scenic and pretty, follows the Colorado River) to head for our last stop in Glenwood Springs Colorado for a well-deserved soak in the Hot Springs Pool, which was great. It was crowded (this was Friday night) but the springs are perfect after a week of hiking and camping. We stayed at the Caravan Inn, which was a typical motel. the hotel across the street from the hot springs looked very nice from the outside but we guessed it was out of our budget. Went to the hot springs from 8-9:30, showered and ready for dinner. Went to Glenwood Springs Brewpub. Unfortunately the kitchen was just closing (it was 9:55 and kitchen closes at 10). They suggested some other places that might be open but all we could find was a Chinese restaurant. We decided to have pizza delivered to the motel. Called several local pizza places to find them all closed. Finally gave in and called Domino’s. Very frustrating that everything was closed so early on a Friday night!

3/29- Left Glenwood Springs to slowly head to Denver for our 11pm flight. It was 30 degrees and snowing as we drove on I-70 through the mountains. We took the scenic route to Boulder and checked out Boulder Falls (very pretty and right off the road- worth it if you’re nearby). Drove through campus and town and out to Red Rocks Amphitheater to take some pictures. Surprisingly lots of people hanging out playing instruments and playing with dogs. Btw, it was in the high 60s and sunny in Boulder and Denver! Met some friends for dinner in Denver and headed out to the airport for our flight home. We were very sad to leave and are still experiencing vacation withdrawal! The trip was better than we could have imagined when planning it. If you have any questions about anything, I’m happy to answer. I’ll be posting pictures very soon! Thanks for everyone who gave advice in planning our trip!

J,

Thanks for finishing! I'm so glad you did the Double O hike, it's a great one. I kind of like the campgrounds along the CO river and they are easier to get into.

Being there during Easter week, yes, everything is going to be very busy and full up!

Actually, Klondike Bluffs is one of the very easiest rides around Moab. The biking there is NOT for the inexperienced! A good friend, who is an experienced mtn biker, knocked out all her front teeth last spring....

Glad you had a good time!

Great trip report! It's so nice when people report back after starting threads on the forum. So few do.

It sounds like you had a great time.