lkemerson

We leave September 2nd for 10 days!

We have our itinerary set. I even have a travel booklet made up of our reservations, confirmation numbers etc.

We will be doing some light day hiking [5 miles will be our limit due to plantar fasciitis], we will be doing the ATV trip near Zion, the 4 hour horse trip in Bryce and a 5 hour float trip in Paige.

September clothing looks to be anything from shorts to fleece...so layering is absolutely necessary.

We have gotten new trail shoes.

We are thinking about some trail poles [correct term??? is this something we should truly think about?]

Water bottles, sun screen, hat, sunglasses. Collapsible cooler, cameras, film.

If any of you have suggestions on what NOT TO FORGET, please send out a list.

We will be staying in hotels and lodges while on this trip, no camping 'stuff' necessary.

Thanx!

Karen

OH one more thing. Car rental in Vegas. Who gives the best prices? Car or SUV?

DVCChris

Karen,

My wife and I recently returned from a 2 week trip similar to yours. You WILL need a variety of clothes and layering is the best way to go. Since we went in early June, we did not bring 'lots' of warmer clothes and my wife wound up buying an extra sweatshirt. I 'guess' the weather in sept may be similar to June and you might get by with shorts during the day, but need jeans/sweatshirt/fleece, etc for the evenings and colder days.

Of course, break in your trail shoes before going. We did not have or felt we would need trail poles. Most of the main hikes in each of the parks are either paved, or wide dirt paths. If you like the security of a pole, then you might want one, but IMO they're probably not needed for the length of hikes you will be doing. My wife has knee problems and we kept our hikes to less than 5 miles also.

You'll need water bottles, sunscreen, wide-brimmed hat and of course, cameras, and film.

We purchased a foam cooler, water and supplies in Wal-Mart on our first day. We also bought some cereal and other breakfast goods and had breakfast in our rooms most days. We bought milk in each park from the camp store and found this to be a great money saver. If you're flying into Vegas and heading towards Zion, there is a Wal-Mart in St. George (see the Wal-Mart web site) as well as one in Page.

We rented an SUV from Dollar in Vegas and found them to be the cheapest. Actually, the rates went down before we left and I was able to modify the reservation to the lower rate. We paid around $400 (all taxes incl.) for two weeks. I would highly reccommend Dollar.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. We did a similar trip to the one you're doing, except we did not do Page or ATV.

Have a GREAT Time!!!

lkemerson

DVCChris,

Wow, thanks for the quick reply.

We are getting real close to 30 days out. I am a HUGE planner and overthinker, so imagine as this trip gets closer...my mind goes into overdrive [or is that hyperdrive???!!!] Poor hubby! :c)

Because of my poor feet [I'm the one with the feet problems] we felt it best we go to a specialty store and get fitted for shoes with proper support. That is something that I need to really take some time with. The reason I am wondering about the poles are also because of my feet as well. If I can keep some strain off of them with the poles, they may be a wise investment.

Thank you for the tip on the Walmart. I had read we should stop, but had not seen where they were located.

Any good restaurants, or ones you found passable would also be appreciated!

This is our first trip west [shame on us], we have always traveled out of the country or south and east. Hubby is a big Western literature nut, so this is a dream trip for him.

Thanks again for taking time for me.

Karen

wall67

Karen,

If you've hiked with poles before, take them along. Both my husband and I thought they helped make the hikes that much easier on the knees. Especially if you plan on doing any canyon hiking. I too have plantar faciitis and have had an ankle fracture, so taking care while still hiking is a must for me.
You sound like me when I plan a trip. Itinerary, travel book, etc. Enjoy your trip it's a terrific part of the country.
Kathy

iamq

lkemerson,
What does your itinerary look like?
Thanks
-Bill

lkemerson

Fly into Vegas 9:30 their time.

Spend the day there, staying at Treasure Island where we will see Mystere.

Day two and three - we will be in Zion. We will do the ATV trip one of the days there...other times just hiking and enjoying the scenery.

Day four and five - Bryce where we will do the 1/2 day horse back trip...then also trail hike a bit and enjoy the scenery

Day six - Grand Canyon North Rim

Day seven - River float trip in Page and then head to South Rim, Grand Canyon

Day 8 and 9 - Free as birds. See the canyon and head toward Vegas

Day 10 and 11 - Vegas. Meeting friends there. Never been, so should be interesting!!! Staying at Excalibur and seeing "O".

Day 12 home.

We will also be stopping at the antelope slots and a couple other places if we can fit them in. We are hyper, high intensity type folks so the more we do...the happier we are.

Kathy, thank you for the thought on the poles. As a fellow 'sufferer' I appreciate the info. I think I'll look into it. We've not had them before, but anything we can do to make it easier, and make me enjoy the trip...I'm all for [I have had 4 ankle fractures. Wonder if that is an indicator for future problems for Plantar Fasciitis??????]

Thank you all...keep those suggestions coming, I am getting a novella of a travel book!!! :c)

etpiv

Hiking poles really help if you are on rocky terrain or going down hill. They are supposed to take (and I'll get the numbers wrong but you'll get the idea) 2000 pounds of pressure off your knees over a one hour hike by redistributing the weight to your arms. However, you will find your upper arms will be sore after you use them (see above for why.) I'm not so sure they'd help plantar fasciitis over flat, gentle trails. You may want to save your $75 and take yoga classes instead, which REALLY HELPED my plantar faciitis when I had it for over 6 months!

lkemerson

Thank you for the advice on poles. Doing the yoga and pilates thing [3 times a week] right now and still have horrible problems with one foot. Proper foot support has helped more than anything, even physical therapy! Putting off surgery, it has been a year and a half!

I may get a set anyway and have them for just in case I start to have foot issues, it may give enough relief where I can still do what I want to do, when I want to do it.

Appreciate the comments and thoughts though!

40 days!!!

mzambo

Karen,

Wow did that time fly, can't believe your trip is almost here. Don't forget to e-mail me when you get back....I want to hear your trip report..... I'm glad you added that day at the South Rim.....

You remimd me so much of me..... I'm working on next years trip to Jamaica.....found a wonderful place and an awesome Message Board.

Don't forget me when you get back....

Have a great time... I know you will!!!

iamq

Thanks for posting your itinerary. It helps to know how other people are doing this trip as we are going to shoot for doing this in 2007. Thanks.

-Bill

DVCChris

Karen,

Since we stayed in the lodges in each park, we ate most meals in the lodges. In Springdale, we had Dinner at The Spotted Dog and a Lunch at Oscars. Both meals were great and I highly reccommend each place. Springdale seems to have a bunch of great places to eat. There was not much outside of Bryce and there is nothing 'outside' of North Rim. At the South Rim, we had Dinners at the Arizona Room, El Tovar Dining Room and Bright Angel Cafe. El Tovar was decent, Arizona Room was OK and Bright Angel was OK, I guess. Not bad food, but nothing to write home about. On average all the food in the the lodges in each of the parks are OK, nothing overly amazing, but nothing too bad either, in my opinion.

Your trip itinerary is similar to ours. I found that this 'route' works well.

We also saw Mystere and thought it was great. We've seen La Nouba before so knew what to expect. If we had more time, we would have went to "O"..

utahtea

I also have plantar fasciitis. We purchased light weight hiking poles this year and love them. We got them for stability. I can't say that they helped with the feet.

Is your itinerary set in stone? If not, I'd drop the N. Rim and instead spend an extra night in Bryce and travel Hwy 12 to Boulder, Utah. Drive the paved part of the Burr trail and then on the way back stop at Calf Creek Falls and Kodachrome Basin State Park. This will be a very scenic trip since you are already going to the S. Rim.

Utahtea

Dayle

Hiking tip: Take twice as much water as you think you need. If you are not using a Camelback ( which helps insulate your water to stay cool), try to freeze at least one of your water bottles the night before. Take one bottle ready to drink and the frozen bottle will keep you cool on the way. When it melts and is ready to drink - viola - nice, cold water!

Jill2

Ditto on the water. Before our trip to Utah earlier this summer, I bought four of the 3 liter hydration backpacks and it was the best thing we took. My teenage boys were worried about looking "nerdy" but they relaxed when they noticed that almost EVERYONE had a hydration backpack. Our 2 Camelbacks did good, our Jansport one did good, but another brand (purchased at a Wal-Mart) leaked and was very annoying (not to mention 1/2 empty). By the way, I found good deals on the hydration backpacks on Ebay.

I had plantar-fasciitis for a year - what a pain! I'm sorry you have to go through that. I did stretches, wore dorky sneakers all day and added those gel heel supports and it FINALLY eased up just a couple months before our trip.

I've also got arthritis in feet and hips and fibromyalgia, but the hot,dry west was like a miracle drug and all but eliminated those problems! (We're definitely moving west at retirement)

Have a fantastic time!!!

travlsolo2

What's the better option -- dinner at El Tovar during sunset, or planning to be out at one of the rim overlook points for the sunset?

amzgdds

i would definately go to the sunset outside..with a view like that, the dinnner can wait. we ate early , that way we didnt have to wait in those long lines at the resturants and still got to see the sunset. I would definately get hiking shoes and poles-they definately help...make sure to take nuts and fruits on your hikes too-anything salty is good for water retention (which in that heat you'll need) good luck and have a great time!

travlsolo2

Looks like sunset is at 6:38PM on Sept 14, when we'll be there. Maybe we'll skip dinner at El Tovar and eat early somewhere casual. Any suggestions?
Hiking poles can be helpful -- even if you use just one, as we do.

Diz01

Think about some rubber sandals - good for stream wading and hiking the narrows in Zion.

I bought poles 3 years ago and now swear by them. They weigh next to nothing and really help at times out on the trail.

Diz01

Connie

Take Utahtea's suggestions seriously. She knows what she's talking about.

Camelbacs are great!

Would someone please explain your symptoms of plantar fasciitis? My husband is having serious foot problems that the doctors can't seem to diagnose. Thanks!

Connie

For those experienced canyon hikers, what type/brand of shoes do you suggest? We are doing Bright Angel (all the way to the bottom) in March.

Thanks