Advice? Grand Canyon to Grand Junction CO

You guys are great at quick suggestions. About two weeks from now, will be visiting the GCanyon for two days , then will have three and a half days to drive to Grand Junction CO to catch a train. Have visited Moab/Arches and Mon Valley before. What would you suggest for great scenery or very short hiking spots between the two points that is not a killer driving pace?

Posts here have extolled the beauties (and cooler temps) of Bryce and Telluride or Ouray etc in Colorado, but am trying to figure out a route that works. I'll have two older teenagers. Someone here suggested rafting a day in Page AZ, but last time I checked it was 110 degrees.

Any suggestions/remarks appreciated!

Yes, it is and will be hot in the arid southwest! You don't have much chance of avoiding this, even at the higher elevations, in the summertime!

If you do not wish to repeat the drive through Monument Valley and Moab, then you really only have two other choices. The first is to head north on US89 to I-70, and go east from there. Or, you can use US160 over to Durango, and go north from there through Ouray. In this area, a shorter route (although not quite as perfect scenically as US550 from Durango) is to run north from Cortez through Dolores and the Telluride area, and on up to Grand Junction from there. All of these are beautiful routes, but keep in mind that the Moab route is worth seeing more than once, just my opinion. Bob