Information for those wanting to
vacation in the Grand Circle Region of Utah and Arizona
National Parks:
The links used in this section are all official links and are repeated in the Links section which also includes unofficial links for these Parks. By 1999 shuttles will be used to view the Grand Canyon, Bryce and Zion NP's rather than by private car.
Grand Canyon: (4,102k people/year) Elevation S Rim 7,000 ft, N Rim 8,000 ft. Fees $20. Can't miss it out from the tour, it deserves its title of Grand Canyon. South rim is best but crowded, avoid in high season. Take a helicopter or plane ride from Grand Canyon airport. From Flagstaff take 180 to South rim, go back to Flagstaff via 64 (painted desert) and 89. Note the drive from the S Rim to the N Rim is 200 miles. The S Rim is open all year and the N Rim closed in winter (late Oct to mid May) due to snow. Some people describe it as a large hole in the ground, it is ten miles wide and one mile deep and many miles long. The colours and detail are staggering as well as the shear size. The colours change during the day.
Zion (2,451k people/year) Elevation 3,666 ft to 8,726 ft. Fees $10. Huge Coloured Rocks 1,000's ft. high, 1 mile tunnel, many exquisite views. Scenic drive includes some interesting views. The visitors centre has some good views. Once again the colours, detail, trees and shear size are all part of the experience.
Bryce: (883k people/year) Elevation 8,000 ft to 9,000 ft. Fees $10. Delicate structures, breathtaking. Surrounded by woods with frequent view points giving spectacular views. Bryce is totally different to Zion, the rocks have more delicate and complicated colourful structures formed by erosion. I prefer Bryce to Zion, it has to be seen.
Arches: (755k people/year). Elevation 4,500-5,200 ft. Fees $10. Open expanses, Huge Rocks and (2000) Arches. Park is very beautiful with open spaces spotted with clumps of huge rocks many of which have arches. To make the best of this park you must trek to the arches, therefore allow a day for this, if only driving then 4 hours. You must hike 1.1 miles to get a close view of Delicate Arch.
Petrified Forest: (573k people/year). Fees $10. Worth seeing only if you have plenty of time. Involves a long drive. If short of time start at South tip to see petrified forest, Painted Desert is at North. The petrified logs are multicoloured and look like logs, an experience that takes you back in time.
Capitol Reef (529k people/year) Fees $5 for scenic drive. Massive rocks, with a scenic drive. Best as part of drive from Torrey to Blanding along Bicentennial hwy. Not so well known as other NP's but is more peaceful.
Canyonlands: (378k people/year). Elevation 6,000 ft. Fees $10. The Island in the Sky (N entrance) is under-rated. Huge Canyons similar to Grand Canyon in size, but not in beauty, must take detour to go to Dead Horse Point view (a State park and costs $7, Eagle is pass not valid. About 4hrs driving is necessary to see all of Island in the Sky, there are two main overlooks Grand View Point overlook and Green River Overlook. There are two entrances one in the North (Island in the Sky) the other in the South (Needles). The North entrance is recommended if you have limited time, the South entrance has a nice scenic drive but the views from the NP are poor. There is also a boat trip along the Colorado.
National Monuments:
Canyon De Chelly: Free entrance. Is boring to get to, not worth the detour unless you are keen on Indian dwellings.
Natural Bridges: (98k people/year) Elevation 6,500 ft. Fees $6. Not worth a detour, but OK. Need to hike to get close to the three bridges.
Note: Bridges are made by water, Arches are made by ice and wind etc.
State Parks
Dead Horse Point 174k visitors Elevation 5,900 ft. Fees $7. A 10 minute detour off the north entrance to Canyonlands, definately a MUST SEE, although you have to pay to get in. Dead Horse Point is perhaps Utah's most spectacular state park. Towering 2,000 feet directly above the Colorado River, Dead Horse Point provides a breathtaking panorama of Canyonlands' sculptured pinnacles and buttes. Dead Horse Point is on State Route 313, 18 miles off Highway 191 near Moab. The visitor center, interpretive museum, modern rest rooms, 21-unit campground, sewage disposal station, group camping area, pavilion and large overlook shelter make Dead Horse Point comfortable and informative as well as spectacular. Water is limited. Visitors should fill their recreation vehicle water tanks before coming to the park.
Goosenecks State Park Four miles off Utah Highway 261 near Mexican Hat, you can look into a 1,000-foot-deep chasm carved through the Pennsylvanian Hermosa Formation by the silt-laden San Juan River. The river meanders back and forth, flowing for more than five miles while progressing only one linear mile toward the Colorado River and Lake Powell. The access road is paved. Facilities include primitive camping and vault rest rooms.
Kodachrome Basin State Park Day pass $4. Kodachrome is nine miles south of State Route 12 near Cannonville. Kodachrome Basin is a spectacle of massive sandstone chimneys, ever-changing from gray and white to shades of red with the day's mood. Numerous rocks and coves offer solitude, quiet and unique desert beauty. Nearby attractions include Bryce Canyon National Park, Grosvenor Arch, Paria Canyon, movie sets and ghost town remains. Opportunities include hiking, biking, photography and nearby off-highway vehicle riding areas.
Escalante State Park Day pass $4. The park is located 1.5 miles from the quiet western town of Escalante off State Route 12. Facilities include a visitor center, 22-unit campground, modern rest rooms with showers, sanitary disposal station and interpretive trail. Escalante State Park features colorful deposits of mineralized wood and dinosaur bones. The 130-acre Wide Hollow Reservoir on the park's boundary adds water recreation and fishing. OHV riding areas are closeby.
Anasazi State Park Day pass $5. This ancient Indian village in the heart of Utah's canyon country was one of the largest Anasazi communities west of the Colorado River. The site is believed to have been occupied from A.D. 1050 to 1200. The village remains largely unexcavated, but many artifacts have been uncovered and are on display in the newly remodeled museum. Anasazi State Park is in the picturesque town of Boulder on State Route 12. Group and individual picnic areas are available. There is no camping.
Slide Rock State Park On the 89a between Flagstaff and Sedona, worth a visit if you have kids and like swimming or sunbathing, a stream flows over some smooth rocks, great fun for the kids.
Independent:
Meteor Crater (300,000 visitors/year) 35 miles East of Flagstaff on I40, worth seeing if you have time, it is 4,000 ft diameter. Cost $8 to get in (per person). The gift store is very good (rocks, fossils). You could combine the day the day with a visit to Petrified forest.
Scenic drives:
Virtually all of the recognised roads are scenic and good quality.
Torrey to Hanksville (Hwy 24) to Blanding (Hwy 95) is outstanding (Bicentennial Hwy), especially Lake Powell and Glen Canyon.
Hwy 163 through Monument Valley is also recommended.
Hwy 12 from Bryce to Torrey is definitely worth while. Parts of it are very good.
Not for the faint hearted is Hwy 261 from Natural Bridges to Mexican Hat via Moki Dugout, try it and see. Stop at the top of Moki Dugout and see the view of Valley of the Gods and Monument Valley in the distance. Goosenecks is also nearby.
Comment: Moki Dugway is unpaved, it is OK for hire cars (in summer) driving at 5 mph, but not recommended for RV's although you can have a go.
Kanab to Bryce (Hwy 89 and Hwy 12) is worth doing. Entrance to Bryce from West via.Hwy 89 is excellent.
The drive from Flagstaff through Sedona (89a) down to Prescott is also quite nice and could be used to fill up a last day when driving down from Flagstaff to Phoenix. Try stopping at Slide Rock State Park for a swim great for kids.
The drive from the S Rim of the Grand Canyon to the N Rim via Alt 89 (Vermilion Cliffs) is a favorite of mine, there is a sense of peace and tranquility (unfortunately in 1997 broken by logging trucks racing by).
The South entrance to Canyonlands is scenic and isolated (35miles). If you only have time for one, choose the North entrance and visit Dead Horse Point state park.