A Grand Tour - USA Part V Arches National Park (Utah)

Summer 2016 saw four of us embark on a trip of a lifetime across Nevada, California, Utah & Arizona taking in;

Las Vegas - The Grand Canyon - Death Valley - Zion NP - National Monument; Bryce Canyon NP - Arches NP - Monument Valley - Grand Canyon (again) and London Bridge (Lake Havasu). 

Arches National Park

Even the drive from Panguitch to Arches National Park offered some breathtaking views.  

Arches National Park is just north of Moab in Utah. Unlike Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks, there was no shuttle bus to ferry tourists around. Instead you drive around the various natural landforms. 

We started at the far north of the park in Devil's Garden but did not do the full hike due to time constraints. From there we headed south to see the other arches/rock formations. Awesome park and well worth a visit.

A Grand Tour - USA Part IV Bryce Canyon NP & Cedar Breaks National Monument (Utah)

Summer 2016 saw four of us embark on a trip of a lifetime across Nevada, California, Utah & Arizona taking in;

Las Vegas - The Grand Canyon - Death Valley - Zion NP - National Monument; Bryce Canyon NP - Arches NP - Monument Valley - Grand Canyon (again) and London Bridge (Lake Havasu). 


Bryce Canyon

Louise's picture

Bryce Canyon is a unique and beautiful place, containing (according to the tourist info) "the largest collection of hoodoos in the world" (https://www.nps.gov/brca/index.htm)

We travelled from Springfield to Panguitch (less than 2 hours) which was our base for Bryce Canyon. On the way we stopped off at National Monument - Cedar Breaks. 

We loved Panguitch, a very small American town. We stayed at Blue Pine Motel which was a comfortable motel in the centre of town and which had a selection of cafes and restaurants just across the road to it. 

On the day of our trip we followed the guidance (https://www.nps.gov/brca/planyourvisit/shuttle.htm) 
to park outside of the park (at Ruby's Campground) and to use the shuttle bus. 

We booked the free 'Rainbow' tour for the afternoon which takes you to the very end of the park. Make sure you have enough water and food with you - the tour is approximately 4 hours with no opportunities to buy anything on the way. 

Cedar Breaks National Monument 

On the journey between Springdale and Panguitch we took a little detour to visit Cedar Breaks National Monument, a natural amphitheatre with some hoodoos, not too dissimilar to Bryce Canyon. 

Definitely worth a trip, we enjoyed a hike along the rim of this spectacular natural wonder. 

A Grand Tour - USA Part III Zion National Park (Utah)

Summer 2016 saw four of us embark on a trip of a lifetime across Nevada, California, Utah & Arizona taking in;

Las Vegas - The Grand Canyon - Death Valley - Zion NP - National Monument; Bryce Canyon NP - Arches NP - Monument Valley - Grand Canyon (again) and London Bridge (Lake Havasu). 

Zion National Park

We headed north-east out of Vegas to Springdale in Utah which is where we had booked accommodation at www.bumbleberry.com - well recommended. The beauty of Springdale is that there is a free bus that takes tourists to the park entrance. Once in the park there is another free bus to ferry people around. 

We started early (big tip) and worked our way down the various stops. We didn't do the Angels Landing hike but understand it is spectacular. 

On our way out of the park we did the Canyon overlook trail which was spectacular. Zion is a beautiful park to visit. 

Louise's photo

The view at Canyon Overlook Trail

There was even the opportunity to go horse riding.

A Grand Tour - USA Part II (Death Valley & Goodsprings)

Summer 2016 saw four of us embark on a trip of a lifetime across Nevada, California, Utah & Arizona taking in;

Las Vegas - The Grand Canyon - Death Valley - Zion NP - National Monument; Bryce Canyon NP - Arches NP - Monument Valley - Grand Canyon (again) and London Bridge (Lake Havasu). 




Death Valley

Death Valley is just over a two hour drive from Las Vegas. Entering from State Line Road (right of map) and along the 190, we visited five sites within the park, Zabraskie Point, Furnace Creek Visitor Centre (good film shown there), Artists Pallette (along Artist's Drive), Badwater Basin (lowest point of North America) and finally Dante's View. 


It was extremely hot when we were there (see left) in August. 118℉ equates to 47.8℃. That's damn hawt. 
  

Zabraskie Point

Badlands 

Dante's View

Goodsprings (Ghost Town - kinda)

On our way back to Vegas we took a trip to Goodsprings, an old mining town just south of Vegas, an particularly to visit Pioneer Saloon for some dinner. http://www.pioneersaloon.info/

Great burgers (although crisps a disappointing substitute for fries) and very friendly patrons to boot. A great alternative to eating in Las Vegas.