Joanel

Planning a trip next fall to zion and bryce. will come in and leave thru las vegas. have idea of what to see in each park, plus rt 12.
(not going to north rim of grand canyon). looking for things to see between las vegas, st george and zion, and then between zion and bryce or/and around Kanab.

any suggestions?

bookhall

The one must-see is Nevada's Valley of Fire. It's about 55 mi NE of Las Vegas. We found it accidentally while returning to LV from Bryce, and are so glad we made the stop.... Got some pix at http://community.webshots.com/user/bookhall .

mmee

Those were great pix, Bookhall, thks for sharing. We'll be going to some of the places that you've visited. It'll be a good preview for my folks to see.

Just curious, since you're at Morro Bay, did you not go to Cambria and visit the Hearst Castle there?

mmee

Oops, I guess you did. I asked before I see these shots from "Big Sur to Monterery".

zootsi

We were in both parks last April. Although only a few hours apart, they are very different. Bryce is sort of a 'mini' Grand Canyon. You are at the top looking down. The rock formations are other worldy, espcially early in the AM, or at dusk. I would strongly suggest taking at least a short hike down into the Queens Garden, where you are right in the wierd 'hoodoo' rock formations. This is a relatively easy walk. Bryce is at a high altitude and is quite cool much of the year. At Zion you actually drive down into the canyon - the arrival from the Bryce side is quite spectacular. You drive thru a lush gren valley with massive granite cliffs on each side of the road. You will have to take the park shuttles to explore most of the park, since cars are not allowed beyond a certain point. Zion is green, tranquil and relaxing, with lots of hikes at all levels. The drive from Zion to Vegas is thru some very interesting desert country. We drove past St. George, which is surrounded by lots of new developments and strip malls. Look like a real retirement haven. You will also drive thru some pretty spectacular mountains between St. George and Vegas.

suechef

Just returned from the same trip...how many days total are you spending in zion/bryce area? Will get back with you...it was breathtaking.

Joanel

have some flexibility. will be going late sept, early oct in 2004. (planning ahead). not sure of flights in or out yet. fly in friday night, leave following sunday is probably what we will do. so 8 full days 9 nights.

what do you recommend? tell us about your trip. How was the weather?

bookhall

mmee: Glad you enjoyed the pix. Actually, we conciously skipped Hearst Castle. I had (and have) no desire to see it. We did stop and my wife saw the film--I sat in the car reading.

As you gathered, the CA Coast jaunt was a great trip. As, indeed, was the LV-Utah one a year or so later.

utahtea

Joanel,

Valley of Fire has already been mentioned. As you travel from Las Vegas to St. George you will drive thought the Virgin River Gorge.

About 20 miles north of St. George on Hwy 18 is Snow Canyon State Park which is a fun little scenic park.

On Hwy 12 before you reach Bryce you will pass thought Red Canyon.

Scenic Hwy 12 is full of fun places to visit! http://www.so-utah.com/hwy12/homepage.html

Since you have 9 days and don't want to do the N. Rim, then I would suggest driving all of Hwy 12 and going up to Torrey, Utah and visiting Capitol Reef National Park.

On the way back to Las Vegas you could stop at Cedar Breaks National Monument and the Kolob section of Zion which is off I-15 just south of Cedar City.

Utahtea

maj

We went at that time of year about 5 years ago. Wore shorts (or short sleeve shirts) most of the trip--except Bryce--cooler there. Spent 3 days at Zion (one day we did Konob part--ok, if you have time, but not the best part). Walked to the Narrows (level, along a river)--at the end you can walk through a canyon in the river for as long as you want. Walked to (I think it is called)1. Weeping Rock which is an easy hike 2. there is a hike across from the lodge to some hidden falls which was uphill, but worth it and we took the hike which is on the way out of the park on the way to Bryce right past the tunnel. Wanted to hike to Angel's Landing, but decided not to since I don't like heights.

In Bryce we did the Navajo/queens combination loop which we really liked (actually did it on our honeymoon in 1968 and it hadn't changed much). We are vacation hikers and did fine with all these trails. There is a drive through the park with lookouts.

Don't know how far you want to go, but we went to Capital Reef (actually felt like half a day was enough for us there). Have a friend who just did this trip and went to Escalante but haven't heard whether she liked it. We loved Arches National Park near Moab, if you want to go that far. Natural Bridge, Monument Valley aren't far with a loop back through Lake Powell and/or Glen Canyon Dam. Have you been to the North Rim? Everything is closed by then, but there are trails you can take there that are worth seeing and it is close to Zion.

amyx

We were in Bryce/Zion just a few weeks ago around 10/08 - 10/11. It was warm in both places. I believe the high was in the 70s in Bryce and 80s in Zion (humid). Hiking in Zion in the afternoon (1 PM to 4 PM) might feel uncomfortable due to heat. Both parks were amazing. Hoodoos were other worldly, but Zion was just so picturesque. We definitely want to go back to Zion in the future. It seems like November may be a good month for Zion, with cooler temperatures and fall foliage.