gidget

All -

Thanks much for the info and recommendations. Given the advice I received (on this board for this trip – and the other advice I’ve gotten for a pending trip – details inside this long trip report) I’m feeling very compelled to tell everyone about my trip to SW Utah – so that you can hopefully benefit from my experience. It is the whole – pay it forward concept.

Our trip was from Fri, June 16 - Sunday, June 25.

Regarding the weather during the trip - it was extremely hot -
everywhere. In Bryce it did certainly cool off in the early am and
later in the evening - do take your sweatshirt and pants (zip off pants
are a godsend in those conditions) but otherwise middle of the day in June in SW utah is hot hot hot! Note they talk about the ‘dry’ heat – and this is true – but when it is 100 degrees, well, it’s HOT. At the end of our trip we ended up in vegas and at 10pm it was still 110 degrees and let me tell you – that is HOT.

Arrived Las Vegas 6/16 in the late morning. Picked up a 4 wheel drive
truck (just in case) and drove to the local grocery on Flamingo Ave.
(researched grocery stores via mapquest before hand.) Bought a cheap
cooler, bread, lunch meat, chips, beer, wine, zip loc bags etc. for the remainder of
the trip. I think our bill was appx $200 but well worth it considering
the number of lunches, cocktails and the convenience of not having to
look for a place to get picnic lunches for all of our hikes.

The drive from Vegas to Zion was uneventful. We were full of excitement for the trip. It was good that we stopped at the grocery beforehand. We had water and munchies while we drove. Arrived Zion around 2pm. We checked into the red rock B&B in Springdale. Please see reviews in tripadvisor -- highly highly recommend staying there - very private, a good value, clean, excellent breakfasts and convenient to Zion shuttle transportation and restaurants. I just can’t say enough good things about the Red Rock B&B. It was an excellent choice and a wonderful value.

After checking in we went for a drive through the park to east side and did the quick canyon overlook hike. The drive up was nice, the tunnel was neat, and the hike was pretty easy. I'd recommend doing this hike earlier in the day – the light was wrong (in the evening) to appreciate the beauty of the canyon and the pictures at that time of day didn't do it justice. So – if doing canyon overlook I expect it would be most beautiful in the morning/early afternoon. This was about a 2 hour adventure – we lollygagged once up the very short hike and stopped several times on the drive to take in the scenery and take pictures.

Saturday -- up relatively early - 8am breakfast - out the door and hiking by 10/11 am. By the time we got to the Angel's Landing hike it was darn near the hottest part of the day. Shade wasn't easy to find. Did I mention how HOT it was? Take plenty of water. Several Litres per person. We (2 of us) had 3 litres between us and it wasn't enough. We got dehydrated and could have easily consumed 6 litres total. Consider getting a CamelBak - I did and wished I had it days earlier!

Anyway... about Angel's landing. The material you will read says it isn't for the faint of heart nor those afraid of heights. Well... I'm not afraid of heights but let me just say -- nobody mentions the part about the end of the hike and how you actually hike up a razor back mountain and at times is less than 3 feet across, not level and if you slip you will die as one side is down 1200 feet and the other side is down some 800+ feet. They loose hikers every year, so I hear. Yeah, well, not surprising.... They have since installed chains for folks to hold onto. Let me just say, those chains contain no rust – they are all very very smooth from all of the hands desperately grasping onto them! Go figure! So at this point you think I didn't make it up there -- but I did. The pictures were amazing. They valley was a sight from up there. It is one of those things you look back and say, why did I do that? My bf continues to talk and rave about that hike. Don’t let me scare you – there were hikers of all types (young / old / muscular / chubby etc.) on the trail. If you have a mind to do it – you can and will.

On the way up the hike, the bf mumbles something about how he wonders if it will be romantic at the top. Romantic? You have got to be kidding me. I’m afraid for my life and he wants to smooch at the top? (little did I know… keep reading)

The hike was some 2 -3 hours up. Very strenuous – do not kid yourself. Insure you have sevaral litres of water, lunch and plenty of confidence. I would not recommend a late morning departure as we did. I’d go earlier in the morning – you would have more shade on the way up – which, of course, is the most strenuous part. If you do go round 11 am (ie hiking at high noon as its is a couple of hours up) know what you are in for…. (I didn’t say I was the sharpest tack in the box….) We ate lunch on the top of the peak. It took an aweful lot of prayers to get me down. In the event you don't want to risk your life or don't have the stomach for the full hike -- there is a nice stopping point before the chaos begins. You'll know it when you get there... It is just above Walter's Wiggles.

On the way down there was much more shade. As we lollygagged (technical term) on the way up and while having lunch -- it probably took a good 6 hours in total round trip. It was also shady on the way down – which was a bonus given our time spent on the trip.

Stopped in Zion Adventure Co -- right at the shuttle stop by the pizza place and the bank -- near the Red Rock B&B on the way home. Learned more about the narrows and rented gear for the next day's hike -- the narrows.

Speaking of the shuttle – the shuttle system in Zion is perfect. The shuttles are frequent and convenient. Once you arrive in Springdale you won’t need your car too much. The shuttle system has two parts. The first part goes around Springdale and picks up the folks from the various hotels / predefined shuttle stops in Springdale and then drops you off just outside the park. You then walk across a parking lot / bridge and you get on the second shuttle. The second shuttle is the one that takes you through the park and to the hikes. You can also use the Sprindale shuttle system to take you to and from dinner just as easily.

The spotted dog was the location for dinner that first night. They had pretty good food -- but the waitstaff was incredibly rude and that over rode my experience. Prior to seating I TWICE asked a random waitress if she could assist -- as there wasn't anymore TP in the ladies room and two older ladies and I were wanting to use the facilities. Her complete lack of interest and inability to help didn't exactly set the tone. As things go, she ended up being our waitress... Guess what happened to her tip?!

General info on Dinning in Springdale : The good news was that Springdale seems very layed back -- could go pretty much anywhere in your hiking clothes and get food. (or at least we did...)

Sunday -- up early and on the shuttle and onto the Narrows hike by 10am. Let me just say do not attempt the narrows without the appropriate gear. For us the water was cold (62 degrees) and according to the Adventure co – the water speed wasn't to swift -- but I'd hate to see it swift, given how it was when we were there. Either get water shoes (solomon techamphibian is what we had) or rent the shoes from the adv. Co. Absolutely rent or buy the stick -- the third leg was mandatory for us. I know this sounds like a lot of trouble / gear but the hike is well worth it.

Realize you will be wet and walking up the river - which ranges from above the belly button on me (5'4'') at its deepest part (during this time of year) to ankle depth darn near the whole time. I'd say the average depth was above the calf. Insure you have waterproof bags (you can rent those too) for your camera / food. If you go to zion and don't do this hike -- you are completely missing the boat.

We hiked upstream (slowly) for about 3 hours. We went well into the section they call wall street and this is the location where you recognize it as all of the pictures around town are taken in this area. This location is several miles up stream -- plus the 1 mile walking path to the entrance of the river. Returning downstream is much quicker -- probably only took us 2 hours to get out. Needless to say, once done - nothing is more appealing than a hot shower....

Let me reiterate: if you go to zion and don’t do the narrows – up through wall street you are missing the point of the trip. Simply amazing. Take your camera and enjoy the day. You will be wet, but you will be happy you did it. Truly a life list type of experience.

Dinner that night was mexican place - Bit and Spur. What can I say about it – except it was extremely sub-par. My bf ordered the steak fajita’s and there was about 2 oz. of meat on his plate. I ordered a special stuffed pepper and it was gross. After our hike – we were hungry and this placed truly missed the mark. Maybe if we’d had the tacos or burritos it would have been better, but jeez – how hard it is to make fajita’s? After dinner, when the waitress asked if she could get us anything else we said we’d like to just sit and drink if that would be ok? She said sure, then promptly brought our bill. Humph? Poor food and apparently a waitress that doesn’t speak/understand english very well. After a bit of wrangling – we got a few more cocktails, finished our evening and walked back to the B&B. Not sure why people recommend the Bit and Spur. Maybe we were there on an “off” night, but seriously – I wouldn’t waste your time nor money there….

Monday we decided that we’d go down to Page AZ and check out the slot canyons. I really wanted to see them and despite the long drive – the legs were kinda wobbly from all of the hiking and a day in the air-conditioned car suddenly sounded good. The drive down and back was seriously boring. The scenery was beautiful for a while but after an hour or so – it all begins to look the same… We got to Antelope slot canyon and paid our $30 (for 2) to go into the upper canyon. We loved it. The ‘tour’ was about 90 minutes – we were taken by jeep across the desert (did I mention the heat?) but it was much cooler in the slot canyon. The ‘guide’ if you can call him that was simply one of the navajo ‘boys’ who worked at the canyon. They tried to be informative and helpful, but they seemed bored out of their minds. Others were with ‘tours’ that I imagine you organize near lake powell. Those guides seemed to be very well versed on the canyon. It may be worth your while to get onto one of those other tours – if you want more info / ideas for photos etc. The upper canyon was quite busy with lots of people – kind of hard to get great photos. However, if you take your time and your patience -- you will get AMAZING photos. I know I said it was hot – and there were tons of people – but the photos I took were well worth the drive, the heat and the waiting around.

We then crossed to the lower canyon and paid another $12 or so to get into that canyon. (once you pay the navajo fee – you then only need to pay the entrance fee – ie you get a break if you visit them both.) Again, another Navajo “boy” took us through – but did leave us alone to wander and shoot hundreds (no joke) of photos. Timing is important for the photos. 11am / noon is a good time – as the day wore on the photos got to be less amazing. The light from the sun has to come through the cracks of the slot at the right angle to produce the good shots. I’m no expert photographer – so if this is your thing – do some research on the timing to be there.

We LOVED this side trip to the Antelope Slot Canyons. If you are into photography and have seen any of these photos – this place is a must do on your SW utah tour.

BF wanted to stop at the dam on the way back to Zion. We did. Unfortunately the tour that began in 15 minutes was full and we’d have to wait 45 minutes for the next tour – which was 45 minutes long. Neither of us wanted to devote so much time to the dam so we left. If this interests you – perhaps you should stop there first and register for a particular tour at a particular time. Not sure if you can do this – but something to think about if it sounds interesting.

We drove by lake powell, but didn’t really want to get out and hike / walk around – it was very very hot down there and we wanted to save our legs for zion / bryce – so I’ve got no info on Lake Powell.

Dinner that night – we went to Majestic View Restaurant & Saloon Zion. Dinner there was very nice. We enjoyed ourselves very much. It was a bit expensive, but worth it. Our waitress understood us when we asked for more cocktails – rather than dessert. That pleased us! Note we took the shuttle down and back for dinner.

Little did I know that Tuesday, June 20th would forever go down as one of the most significant days of my life. The day began with a yummy breakfast – as all of the prior days began. (See above – recommendation for the Red Rock B&B – and Trip Advisor). We filled our camelbacks with gatorade, packed our lunches and set off to get the shuttle for another day of hiking into the beautiful Zion canyon. The hike for the day was Observation Point. Another hike not well suited for the casual hiker. This hike took us about 3 hours up. Lots and lots of steep climbing. The views were amazing. We really liked the ‘back side’ of the hike where you were looking (east?) opposite the view of the zion canyon. There also seemed to be a side slot canyon that you could hike back there if you had the time / inclination. So up we went. Got to the top – the last mile or so is flat. Which is very refreshing. There were times when I thought I wasn’t going up any more – just too steep and tiring. A couple of nice hikers were coming down and told us the last mile or so is rather flat. What a godsend! We got to the top – chose a tree to sit under and had our lunch. (see above – hot hot hot). Then my bf – takes a random picture off the side of the mountain – and I ask – what was that picture of? He says, “that’s the view we had when I asked you to marry me!”. He then proceeded to get on one knee and propose! OH MY GOSH! YEAH! How exciting is that?

(he had wanted to do it on angels landing but I was too much of a basket case worried about getting down!)

So we basked in our glow for a while – then I realized if I got off that mountain I’d be more inclined to get cell phone service and could call my mom. Wasn’t that just the quickest trip down a mountain I ever made? Total round trip was about 6 hours. We did hang out up there a while – during lunch – after he asked me….. lollygagging as we call it.

That night we had dinner at Switchback. This place was very nice. Not a place you want to go in your hiking clothes. It was a bit pricey – but very fun.

Wed morning we had to pack up – our time at Zion was over and we were off to Bryce. The drive to Bryce was fine – going through Red Rock (just before Bryce) was very neat. We didn’t get out and hike – but read there are many trails back there. We went directly to our B&B in Tropic. We stayed at the Bryce Trails Bed and Breakfast – with Shawna and Frank. Let me just say they are the nicest people you ever want to meet. I also would say that I’ve NEVER seen a cleaner hotel / B&B / resort ever in my life - and I traveled full time for 2 ½ years for work. The place was meticulously clean and the beds were extremely comfortable. Highly recommend this place if you are visiting Bryce.

We went into the park after unpacking. We drove through (something you can and should do when in Bryce.) As opposed to Zion -- we heard that the shuttles are less regular and less reliable. Given the length of Bryce (some 27 miles?) I’d highly recommend driving to the end – then stopping at each of the overlooks on your way back out. This took the better part of the remaining afternoon. What we learned by doing this – is that all of the hikes in Bryce are – roughly the same. The “amphitheater” of Bryce Canyon is all on the E side of the road. You hike into hoodoos and you hike out. I know this isn’t going to be a popular opinion – but we got very bored at Bryce. We had allocated 4 whole days to the area and that was about 2.5 too many. I’d very seriously encourage people doing a loop around SW utah to devote 1 maybe 2 days MAX to bryce. It was neat – the pictures are good / interesting – but compared to Zion – we would have much rather stayed extra days at Zion. The geology, the variety of hikes, the restaurants etc. are all better in Zion.

Dinner that evening was in Tropic. Let me just say we each had hamburgers and a cocktail / beer for about $25. It was the kind of place where you didn’t expect much – and you weren’t disappointed. Tropic is a teeny tiny little town in SW Utah. If you blink while driving through, you’d miss it. We were happy just to have food in our bellies.

Thursday morning we got up at the God-Aweful crack of dawn to be up at sunrise point for sunrise. It was surprisingly cold. Wear pants and take a sweatshirt. It was the first time I was cold on the whole trip. Sunrise / Sunset points in Bryce are neat. However, if you are planning a trip to SW utah and can’t make both fit due to timing – you won’t be missing much. We did meet another nice couple at Bryce who thought it was just amazing and were spending their entire trip camping at Bryce with a side trip (1 day) to Zion. They liked Bryce much better than Zion. (??? -- just to be fair I’m telling you this….) The hikes into Bryce were neat – but we got to the point where you’ve seen 1,000 hoodoos, you’ve seen them at sunset, you’ve seen them at sunrise, you’ve seen them at 3pm etc etc….. you’ve SEEN them. (get my point?) There are tons of hikes – queens garden, rim trail, fairy land trail etc. They can be long and strenuous or short and sweet – your choice.

The balance of the day was spent driving around bryce – red rock etc. We didn’t hike into red rock. – we did stop and do the obligatory pictures though. It was pretty neat. That day we also did the mossy cave hike. Kind of a joke, we thought. The hike was short and easy (.5 mile?) – and the cave, well, was a small mossy cave. Not sure what I was expecting but my fiancee and I (!) were starting to wonder if we’d somehow gotten into the twilight zone as we just didn’t “get it”.

I had looked into biking – biking through Red Rock seemed to be an interesting idea – but I was never clear on how you rented the bikes at Ruby’s and then drove the bikes (how?) to red rock. Portions of the bike trail (which appears to be new) are along side the road. Needless to say, we didn’t do this. We aren’t horse people either – so we didn’t do the horse / mule ride into the canyon. Others raved about it – so maybe that would be a good way to spend ½ day in Bryce?

Dinner that night at Ruby’s. It was good. I had the buffet and fiancee had a steak (prime rib?). The steak was amazing. They “take care” of the beef themselves – so it was very fresh and quite good.

Friday we spent the day driving around UT – went to Kodachrome state park. Please please please do not waste your $6. We drove around and looked at the “monuments” that looked like giant stone phallus’s. I’m trying to be kind – but even when we show the pictures people burst out laughing. It was hot and it was boring. Kodak should be shot for putting their name on such a place. Noteably there were people who were camping there too. I guess it takes all kinds. I personally would shoot my travel coordinator if that were a “destination” on my trip. This side adventure took about 1 hour….

We then spent the balance of the day driving up and back route 12. Through Escalante and such. Now, I read that this drive was one of the top 10 scenic drives in the country and again (don’t shoot me) we just didn’t “get it”. It was pretty in some spots and you could see for miles – but it simply wasn’t for us. We actually commented on what else was on the top 10 driving list – wondering if we’d like any of the others any better. I know Hwy 1 in CA is on there – and that is beautiful so…. I guess beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder – and we simply didn’t appreciate it. I would certainly recommend this drive as a means to get from Bryce to Moab – but really not worth the time (in my opinion) if you’re not going through it anyway…. There are lots of turn offs and side drives you can take – we met other folks who thought it was amazing….

It was on Friday that we realized we had to get “outta here”. Seriously – we got a friend on the phone and had her book us a night in vegas – in ANY hotel – via Hotwire so that we could spend our last day in a location more to our liking. We ended up at the Westin – off the strip for a great price - $150 I think.

We left Bryce on Saturday morning – said a heartfelt good bye to Frank and Shawna at Bryce B&B (just lovely people) and were on our way to Vegas! When we checked in we told the girl at reception we were newly engaged and she upgraded us and sent up a bottle of champagne and chocolate covered strawberries. It was so lovely! How nice was that?!

We hung out at the casino / toured the Bellagio / had dinner at the famous Bellagio buffet. Seafood, more seafood and …you get the idea.

We got on our plane on Sunday and came home to reality.

Now I’m planning our wedding in Grand Cayman and have been once again benefiting from all of the wisdom of fellow travelers. I sure hope this long trip report helps out other people going to SW utah. If you asked me my top tips they would be :
 Get a cooler and food to save you money and for the convenience.
 Stay at a B&B – so much nicer than a regular hotel room!
 Spend a LOT of time in Zion and get good hiking shoes and a 3 litre camelback – esp if you go during the summer
 Take lots and lots of digital media for your camera (and don’t miss antelope if you are a shutterbug).

Bridget
Chicago

bookhall

Great report, Bridget! Particularly liked your views on the hoodoos (or yoohoos, as my wife calls them,) and I gotta agree. After you've seen the first 50 or so....

caniac

Hi Bridget!

Great report! I agree w/ Zion being amazing and 1-1.5 days max in Bryce being adequate. I disagree about you comments on Hwy 12, however. It could be that you did not drive Hwy 12 far enough. We drove Hwy 12 all the way to Capital Reef Nat'l Park and my recollection is that Hwy 12 got more amazing the closer we got to Capital Reef.

Thanks for your report!

MikeBuckley

Congatulations, Bridget, on your betrothal! What a great idea your fiance had: "that's a picture of the place where I asked you to marry me." And that's coming from me, a guy who never asked his wife of 23 fabulous years to marry him. Instead, we both discussed it and made the decision. Not romantic, but it worked for us, and the rest of the relationship is romance that still flourishes 23 years later.

By the way, thanks for the tips about Bryce and Zion. We've been to both twice but both were in the days before we became hikers. I've always wondered what the "chains" mentioned in trip reports about Angel's Landing are all about. Thanks to you, now I know.

I'm off to tell my wife about your trip report, everything except your fiance asking the important question, of course.

dcd

Bridget, great report. Thanks for taking the time to post the details along with your opinions. This area of Utah is on our "list" so I've bookmarked your report for future reference. Congrats to you both on the engagement.

seniormsuedu

What a great report, gidget. I hope you and your new fiancee will be like the couple I visited with at the great outdoor supplies store in downtown Flagstaff.

Their old hiking boots were worn out so they were trying on new ones.

They were both almost 90.

karens

Hi gidget - congrats! One of my favorite all time hikes is the Narrows. And I agree with you re: Kodachrome. We spent very little time here. OK, this is it - moved on.

carolv

Thanks for your trip report and congratulations on your engagement.
I will refer to the report on my trip to Zion and Bryce next summer.

RESORT2ME

Congrats!
Most of your report was on views while hiking. Does that mean we won't see the good stuff by not hiking?
In otherwords, not much point in doing these NPs if we don't hike?

What was impressive about Lake Powell?
I'm sure it would be great to have a houseboat and sail around, but I wonder what is so great about the lake other than beauty of lakes in general?

Canyon country is slated for 1st week of October. Hope it's not too cold!

When's the wedding?

bookhall

The parks of the southwest are well-worth a visit whether you're a hiker or not. Believe me: Been there, done that.

Lake Powell was formed by flooding Glen Canyon. One site that discusses the lake is at http://www.americansouthwest.net/uta...ke_powell.html . The canyon was a beauty, but little known. One of the few benefits of the drought, and water draw-down in that area, is that more of the Glen Canyon-of-old is emerging.

peterboy

The trip you took looks a bit different that the one you were planning back in March. I guess you decided to skip Moab?

Glad to hear you made it up Angel's Landing...I didn't.

I'm sure, if you'd asked, you would have been waved away from spending more than 2 nights at Bryce. A sunset/sunrise and a hike into the canyon are all that's needed. 4 days in Tropic...no thanks.


I'm sorry that you didn't split your Bryce time in half and spend the next 2 nights at the Boulder Mountain Lodge instead. The drive from Escalante to Boulder is the best stretch of Rt. 12. Also you'd then have bben able to have dinner at the Hell's Backbone Gril (at BML)...some of the best food in Utah IMHO.

You also fell just short of Calf Creek and the wonderful hike into the falls. That would have cooled you off. So close you came.

Your trip report reminds me that Utah isn't for everyone. I could look at and photograph hoodoos, arches and that desolate landscape forever but, as a co worker said as he looked at my vacation pictures, "You sure took a lot of pictures of rocks!"

Now you have me wondering if I did a good thing talking my SIL into going there for 12 days...I hope they like it.

gidget

Resort 2 Me -- please please do not skip the parks if you are not an all day hiker type. There are lots of other, shorter hikes and plenty of beauty to absorb from in the valley. While the all day hikes (or half day hikes for the extremely in-shape) facilitate top of the world views I expect only half of all visitors do all of the long hikes... If you are not the all day hiker type - you will miss the narrows. I don't know how else you could get there besides on foot - through the river. I did see a helicopter while in Zion -- that may be a quicker albeit a more expensive way to get some of the views from the top! (just a thought.)

Peterboy -- good catch! Yes, my bf (fiancee) talked me out of Moab in the Hot Hot June. Kinda glad he did as Moab was to be hotter than zion! Based on that decision - we then skipped the loop through monument valley etc.

Why oh why didn't I think to reconfirm the 4 days in Bryce with you all before going I just don't know. I guess I thought I may have already asked too much? Next time, you can bet I will reconfirm!

The wedding is in Cayman - Feb 12 and as we are divers, I don't really think we'll get bored there! Besides - we'll be lucky enough to have family with us.

Re: we didn't drive far enough. We drove PAST - Hell's Backbone Grill as we tried to have lunch there but were too early as they only opened for dinner that day.

Also - fiancee had a huge belly laugh when I told him some folks thought we didn't drive far enough to see the beauty..... Pretty sure we drove darn near to Torrey.... Yes, SW Utah isn't for everyone -- but for sure holds lots of beauty for all.

I guess the moral of the story is to try your best to figure out which type you are before planning an extended trip -- and even with all of that attempted, I still had 4 days in Bryce / Tropic!

I guess that is why they say that with age comes wisdom?

Bridget

PS - Thank you all for your good wishes.

ccrosner

What a fantastic trip report, Gidget! And the icing on the cake was your proposal! Congratulations and may you continue to have great adventures throughout your married life.

We did a similar trip (plus GC) two years ago with our kids and your report brought back good memories (and some not so good like the food at Bit N Spur and the service at Spotted Dog!). My husband greatly regrets that he didn't do Angel's Landing; however, your report convinces me that it was not for 8 and 10 year old kids let alone me! We did go canyoneering/rappelling for 11 hours (with the terrific Zion Adventure Company) so we had our white knuckle moments too.

All the best with your wedding planning and honeymoon. Sounds terrific.

closer53

Gidget,

Congratulaltions and all the best!!!

I am going to Bryce, Zion & Moab in October and your report was so informative. I'm definitely going to take your idea about picking up food for the trip to Bryce. We're going there first from Vegas.

I had heard that Angels Landing was not for the light hearted but wasn't really sure. I guess now I am.

As I was planning my trip to Bryce, the only place I found to stay that had a decent rating, besides The Bryce Lodge, was Rubys. I'm not too happy about staying there. You sound like you really enjoyed Bryce Trails B&B. Would you recommend I stay there instead?

bayridge

I stayed at that bed and breakfast last year and found it to be very nice. Large room, clean, small bathroom, good and abundant food, congenial hosts. Good location, two minutes to a small town with places to eat dinner and only a 10-15 minute trip to the Park.

Dohlice

Congratulations! I was reading your post thinking “ok, when did he propose?” ! People definitely like different things. I’d recommend the exact opposite with Bryce and Zion. I’ve seen a lot of place similar to Zion, but nothing like Bryce.

Glad you had a wonderful trip.

KarenD

Gidget,
Agree with your assesment of Zion and Bryce. Husband and I went with our 2 pre-teen kids in June and we visited Zion last. Loved it. I would have cut a day off Bryce and tacked it onto Zion had I known. The hoodoos at Bryce are absolutely beautiful but after gazing at them at sunset and then hiking among them during the daytime (HOT!)the kids had had their share of how pretty they were.
We also hiked the Narrows at Zion and the kids could have spent allllll day doing that. We finally turned back when it started to get late and started to sprinkle. We rented waterproof (or water-friendly....they don't keep out the water) hiking boots from Zion Adventure Co and were soooo happy that we had. Those rocks are slippery. We also took the complimentary walking sticks from them and felt like total idiots getting on the bus with them since we saw nobody else carrying around such big sticks. And then on the way up the trail to the start of the narrows, everybody coming back had bare feet and no walking sticks. We thought, "what a bunch of goofy tourists we are!" but when we started up the river, we were 50-times-over glad we had the shoes and sticks. The kids would not have made it far without them.

lyntom

Congratulations and best wishes, Bridget!

I loved your trip report. We are trying to decide between Alaska and Utah for next summer. My husband really wants to go to Utah, but I just don't know if I can stand the heat.

Thanks for your excellent review of the parks.