Best way from Zion NP to Yosemite NP ?

Hi !
Me and my girlfriend (from Brussels, Europe) are planning a trip!

Next year, around may/june, we're going to America for the first time.
I would spend a few days in Vegas first to kick my jetlag...
Than the following days would happen:

1 : Las Vegas - Kingman 105 miles
2 : Kingman - Grand Canyon South Rim Entrance 172 miles
3 : Grand Canyon - Kayenta via Tuba City 154 miles
4 : Kayenta - Route 163 Monument Valley (navajo region) 64 miles
5 : Kayenta - Lake Powell 101 miles
6 : Lake Powell - Bryce Canyon 154 miles
7 : Bryce Canyon - Zion National Park 85 miles
8 9 10 : Zion NP (stay there to relax and enjoy the nature)

> right here i'm stuck...

12 : June Lake
13 14 15 : Yosemite National Park
16 : Yosemite NP - San Francisco
17 : San Francisco
18 : San Francisco - Brussels


With number 11 I'm a little stuck, to pass from Zion to June Lake (near Yosemite).
I read somewhere that it's possible to go through Great Basin in 1 day. But I couldn't find the right roads. The roads I found were too long, or too much small roads, no highways... unless the Extraterrestral Highway nearby (is that a good one to visit?).

The routemap www.us.map24.com leads me back to Las Vegas to go around Death Valley... but it also takes + 15 hours...

Or via Cedar City >>> Pioche (Panaca) >>> Tonopah >>> June Lake ... but it takes a few days too probably.
And how to find a hostel in the desert, there?
Of is it best with a camper?

How would you guys do that in a minimum time scheme ?

Welcome to the RTA forum!

Since you are planning to spend the night enroute, you really shouldn't have any problems here. The entire distance could be done in a long day if you really needed to, so two days will give you lots of options.

I'd say your best two would be to either go through Great Basin (good roads/directions are listed on the park's website) or through Death Valley. Both could very easily be done in two days. If you take the Great Basin option, you could find a motel pretty easily in nearby Ely, if you go through Death Valley, you could stay right in the park.

There is one big IF to your trip, however, depending when you are traveling in May/June there is a fairly decent chance that Tioga Pass will still be closed for the season. If that is the case, then June Lake would end up being a very long way from the Yosemite Valley, and you'll want to make the trip either via Bakersfield to the south or Lake Tahoe to the north.

Thanks!
Or we can ride from Cedar City to June Lake... with a stop in Old Mill Road (little a'le'inn) near Area 51, through extraterrestrial highway...

But it's 2 days with 6 hours on the road... too long for my girlfriend (she wants to ride max 4 hours a day)

See the map:
http://www.bulevardi.be/pics/road.JPG

That route is also an option, although I lodging will be a little problematic. I think you'd have to go to Tonopah to find a room.

4 hours really isn't that much time in a car for a day, and when you are talking about distances the size of the west, its a limit that can really put some serious limits on where you can travel. I really don't think one day where you'd cover 6-8 hours on the road would be unbearable.

And again, I will remind you that there is a pretty fair chance that you won't be able to access Yosemite via June Lake at this time of year, which will add several hours of travel to your current plans.

The shortest route I can find is from Cedar City to Tonopah, and then up over Tioga Pass into Yosemite, taking 319, 93, and 375 through Nevada. But with *best possible* times (no stops) its like 4 1/2 hours to Tonopah, and then another about 4 hours to Yosemite.

That's definitely the back roads through Nevada though, and through some pretty deserted places to get to Tonopah. Tonopah is the biggest city on this route (hah! thought I'd never be saying that....) and best place to find a place to say. Be prepared a bit -- cell phone, extra water and food, and don't do anything stupid.

But if Tioga Pass is closed due to snow, there is no direct route to Yosemite. You'll have to go around the southern end of the Sierras through the Bakersfield area to come into Yosemite from the west. That's definitely going to be longer, particularly at a max of 4 hours in the car per day.

Thanks for the road tips! I'm gonna think about it and try to find the best route for us.

Well, actually I said '4 hours maximum driving a day' as a guideline... We can drive more, a whole day if we need to. If it's just for one day it's ok.
Because we don't want to make a rushy stressy drive-holiday, but more a relax-holiday. Of course we want to see a lot in less time, but that's a contradiction ;-)

Maybe, if we go in June, it will be okay to pass the Tioga Pass...

Hmm, I checked the route you told me, from Cedar City to Tonopah.

You said I can do it in 4h30 when driving well non-stop.

http://us.map24.com gives me 8h15 for that trip...
http://maps.google.com gives me 5h07 for that trip.


Maybe I should trust google more for those timelines?
Because your 4u30 and the 8h15 is double of the time... makes a big difference !

Online map programs are always estimates, however all the numbers you have told us about from the map24 site seem very very high. I don't see any reason why that trip would take 8+ hours.

Google's estimates are often optimistic, but can certainly be hit or miss. 5 hours for this trip seems in the ballpark. As Larrison said, 4.5 hours is about the best possible time you could cover that distance, but that would assume driving at or a little above the speed limit with no stops, if you stop a time or two, I'd say 5-6 hours sounds most likely.

Hmm, yeah.

I've checked also with www.viamichelin.com maps and they say 7h37. Also very high... But you never know, with routeplanners.

Maybe I'm going to make an average time schedule in my excel-file, based on several routeplanners ;-)

Anyway, I'm going to reschedule the trip with alternative routes because the Tioga Pass could be closed indeed... Thanks for the advice about that !

Look at the mileage shown for the internet mapping engines -- it's always a good check to see what mileage they are showing, and compare that to the hours.

I was using www.maps.msn.com (everyone has a personal preference) and from Cedar City, UT to Tonopah, NV it lists as 289 miles, and estimates at 4 hours, 30 minutes. Every internet mapping engine seems to make an estimate on speed possible dependent upon the type of road you're traveling. On a superhighway you can sometimes beat the internet mapping engines times if you really push, but most of the time you'll take more -- due to those necessary stops to get gas, find a restroom, get out and walk around after being in the car for hours, or do some sightseeing.

As a rough rule of thumb, you can average somewhere around 50-57 mph, dependent upon your personal driving style. The 289 miles in 4.5 hours is an *average* of 64 mph (hence "best possible" time...). A better estimate would be somewhere around 5-6 hours to travel that distance. But I don't understand where the 7+ hours is coming from, unless they are routing you down to Las Vegas and back north to stay on the superhighways.

My personal opinion is it would be an interesting route -- take you through some really back country areas in Nevada, in a part of the state I've never had a chance to explore. But I wouldn't push it to do the highest speed you could -- enjoy the views, and be a bit safer and cautious since you'll be in pretty desolate country. I'd pack a nice picnic lunch and some snacks in a cooler since it doesn't look like there are many places to stop, and I'd plan on finding somewhere to have leisurely picnic lunch about noon.

Hmm, yeah I see.
Last year, I went to Vienna (Autria, Europe) by car, and I used this site for the timeschedule. And they were quite right on top of it when we drove the route. So maybe I'm gonna take this one as guideline.
It's given 7h20. It gives a margin for breaks and sightseeing.

I read this thing about the passes around Yosemite National Park.

Quote:

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When Tioga Pass (Hwy 120), Sonora Pass (Hwy 108), Monitor Pass (Hwy 89), and Ebbets Pass (Hwy 4) are closed, the shortest way to Yosemite Valley from Lee Vining is over Carson Pass (Hwy 88) through Minden, NV, and Jackson, CA, which is about 300 miles and at least 6 hours of driving. Normally when the pass is open it is about 80 miles and two hours of driving.

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For the rest of the route to Zion, Bryce, Monument Valley, Grand Canyon, ... are there also passes that could be closed? Or obstructions?

And what's the best part of the Grand Canyon?

The North Rim Entrance or the South Rim Entrance?
I'm not planning to do the skywalk...

Its pretty tough to say either side is best, they are just different.

The South Rim is the more popular side, getting far and away the most visitors. Its home to the views that most people think of when they think of the Grand Canyon. It is also open all year, is more easily accessable, and has far more services like hotels and restaurants available.

The North Rim is about 1000 feet higher in elevation, and the road to the park is closed and unplowed from Mid-October to Mid-May. Its a lot more quiet, and it does offer a different perspective than the south rim.

Of course the two sides are just miles apart as the crow flies, but its a solid 5 hour drive to get from one side to the other. And even though you aren't planning to go there, it is worth a reminder that the Skywalk is not part of the Grand Canyon National Park, and is located several hours away from the south rim of the park.

We're changing the plans a little bit to go there in september...

Is it still good weather to go there that time of the year?
Or should we better go in may/june ?

It is, of course, impossible to predict the conditions on the day that you visit the canyon (weather), but you can look up the averages for those times of year (climate), and what you would get is a toss-up. At both times of year the day time highs average in the mid-70s and you'll get about an inch of rain a month (not much), with there being a slightly greater chance of rain in the spring - but not enough so that you should choose just on that basis.

AZBuck

Both of those options would be on the shoulders of the biggest tourist times, so they really would be similar in a lot of ways. I will say that the later into June you get, the more crowded places will be as the travel season starts to heat up.

Accessability would probably be the biggest difference. Traveling in May/June may limit your options when it comes to mountain passes that will not yet have opened for the year. You wouldn't have that issue in September.

hi,were from the u.k., we done a very similar trip to your one in a 30ft r.v. this october just gone and would have thought september would be fine for you.the later you leave it the less crowds there will be and at least you can be sure of getting over the tioga pass into yosemite[reason enough to go later in my opinion,it's glorious].
in our r.v. it took us about 71/2 hours travelling between tonopah and zion, but this was at a steady pace and included a few stops for photo oppurtunitys and aprox 1 hour at little allien inn and close to an hour at warm springs which is well worth exploring.there is a hot spring that comes from the mountain and has been routed into a pool down the bottom,although fenced there is a gap in which you can dip your toes.it is a deserted place with a few empty buildings and car wrecks,i enjoyed it!
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j2...a/DSCF0442.jpg
so basically without to longer stops it is doable in 5-6hours and there is very little traffic.
there did'nt appear to be much at tonopah but unless you really pushed on to lee vining/mono lake[we witnessed a great sunset hear and the food at "woah nellies deli" is fantastic!] there is'nt much choice.
one last thing,a good choice giving yourself the time out at zion and yosemite they are great places to explore,my 2 favorites!!!!

have a great trip!!!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gommy

...there did'nt appear to be much at Tonopah

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If you enjoy western history -- Tonopah is a gem. It has what is probably the finest mining museum in the west and historic old hotels downtown. Goldfield (up the road) was home to the Virgil & Wyatt Earp and there are still some wild folks who live back in the hills

Plus Howard Hughes was married at small motel in town -- there is still much to see and do in Tonopah.

Mark

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Editor

If you enjoy western history -- Tonopah is a gem. It has what is probably the finest mining museum in the west and historic old hotels downtown. Goldfield (up the road) was home to the Virgil & Wyatt Earp and there are still some wild folks who live back in the hills

Plus Howard Hughes was married at small motel in town -- there is still much to see and do in Tonopah.

Mark

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wow! looks like we missed out there. we actually stopped overnight at "millers rest" just outside tonopah then drove through as we had a few miles ahead of us to get to zion.
i'm glad i said "there did'nt appear to be much there", lol!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by AZBuck

- but not enough so that you should choose just on that basis.

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Well, my co-traveller has a lot of projects to do at work in may/june ... and she said it's probably not possible to get holiday at work, in that period. For her, it's more possible in september to arrange everything.
And now with the good advice here, I see that september is probably much better than may.

Quote:

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in our r.v. it took us about 71/2 hours travelling between tonopah and zion, but this was at a steady pace and included a few stops for photo oppurtunitys and aprox 1 hour at little allien inn and close to an hour at warm springs which is well worth exploring. so basically without to longer stops it is doable in 5-6hours and there is very little traffic.

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@gommy: thanks for this one! it gives us a more better view in the route planners ;-)

no problem,when i planned our trip i found http://maps.live.com/ to be a very usefull tool.

Hi,

As I am planning my roadtrip, I saw a few cool names of roads... :

- Extraterrestrial Highway
- A Journey Through Time Highway
- Bicentennial Highway

(the last one, is that a recommended one?)

Are there more highways to check like these in that region?

Maybe I'll combine all cool roads in my trip ;-)

Thanks in advance!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bulevardi

As I am planning my roadtrip, I saw a few cool names of roads... :

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Humans like to name things -- it turns out that every highway in America has a name. I can't think of a single route in any state that doesn't have a "cool" sounding name. I have personally driven several hundred of these "named" highways over the years. I think it would be more challenging to find roads that weren't named thusly -- but I can't deny that the appeal of these imaginary names can be very powerful.

Just a couple we have written about would include:

Going-to-the-Sun Highway in Montana
The Extraterrestrial Highway in Nevada
The Coronado Trail in Arizona
The Ridge Route in California

And a few more "named" road article are listed here.

Mark

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bulevardi

Than the following days would happen:
1 : Las Vegas - Kingman 105 miles
2 : Kingman - Grand Canyon South Rim Entrance 172 miles
3 : Grand Canyon - Kayenta via Tuba City 154 miles
4 : Kayenta - Route 163 Monument Valley (navajo region) 64 miles
5 : Kayenta - Lake Powell 101 miles
6 : Lake Powell - Bryce Canyon 154 miles
7 : Bryce Canyon - Zion National Park 85 miles
8 9 10 : Zion NP (stay there to relax and enjoy the nature)
> right here i'm stuck...
12 : June Lake
13 14 15 : Yosemite National Park
16 : Yosemite NP - San Francisco
17 : San Francisco
18 : San Francisco - Brussels

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Okay, our planning is done already a few months ago.
We booked our plane, car-hiring, ....

In a few months we're off !

The planning will be the following:
(I just wanted you guys to let you know, for your interest)

1) Denderleeuw > San Francisco
2) San Francisco
3) San Francisco
4) San Francisco > Yosemite NP
5) Yosemite NP
6) Yosemite NP
7) Yosemite NP > June Lake
8) June Lake
9) Tonopah, NV > Cedar City, UT (extraterrestrial highway)
10) Cedar City, UT Zion National Park
11) Zion NP
12) Zion NP
13) Zion NP > Bryce Canyon
14) Bryce Canyon > Lake Powell
15) Lake Powell > Kayenta
16) Kayenta > Monument Valley
17) Kayenta > Grand Canyon South Rim Entrance
18) Grand Canyon
19) extra time margin
20) Grand Canyon > Las Vegas
21) Las Vegas
22) Las Vegas > Denderleeuw

Some places we'll stay a bit longer to take breath, rest and goof around.
Maybe a little too much time at Kayenta... probably we'll be around there in a half day.

Anyone tips to do other stuff, things to see in the neighbourhood? Good experiences?
Thanks a lot.

You are allowing plenty of time to travel from place-to-place and to explore the areas you're visiting. Great job!

Is there anything else we can help you with before you fly off on your adventure? If not, happy trails! And please return here after you get home to give us a roadtrip report. We love those!

that looks a great itenerary with so many spectacular places en route.
warm springs on the junction of the e.t. highway is worth a half hour stop for a quick look around this modern ghost town.
just one thought on day 17 from kayenta to the grand canyon: have you considered using the east entrance [desert view drive] as you get some splendid views of the canyon along this drive,including the old watchtower. it is also the most direct access from kayenta. it will take you to the grand canyon village and out by the south entrance. if you want to see this part it would save you almost doubling back on yourselves from the south entrance and it covers a large part of the "south rim experience"
have a great trip!!

I didn't notice that and I agree with you. You will want to drive Desert View Drive anyway, Bulevardi, so you might as well save yourself some miles and enter the park that way.

Thanks!

Well, this is the description I found with Map24.com:
http://www.us.map24.com/search?s=Kay...m+Entrance&m=2

I don't know if it goes by Desert View Drive... I couldn't find it on the map.
Maybe it's one of these roads:

Description
You start at US-163 and head towards US-160 for 1.26 mi.
Leave US-163 and turn right onto US-160. Continue for 81.99 mi. 02:23 h
83.24 mi
Leave US-160 and turn left onto Navajo Trl (US-89). Continue for 15.58 mi. 02:49 h
98.82 mi
Leave Navajo Trl (US-89) and turn right onto Navahopi Rd (AZ-64). Continue for 52.85 mi. 04:20 h
151.67 mi
Leave Navahopi Rd (AZ-64) and head straight onto S Entrance Rd (AZ-64 SOUTH , US-180 SOUTH). Continue for 240 yrd. 04:20 h
151.81 mi
Leave S Entrance Rd (AZ-64 SOUTH , US-180 SOUTH) and head straight onto S Entrance Rd (AZ-64 , US-180). Continue for 1.13 mi. 04:22 h
152.94 mi
Leave S Entrance Rd (AZ-64 , US-180) and head straight onto S Entrance Rd (AZ-64 SOUTH , US-180 SOUTH). Continue for 97 yrd. 04:22 h
153.00 mi
Leave S Entrance Rd (AZ-64 SOUTH , US-180 SOUTH) and turn right onto Center Rd. Continue for 317 yrd. 04:23 h
153.18 mi
Leave Center Rd and turn left onto . Continue for 244 yrd. 04:23 h
153.32 mi
Turn left onto Old South Entrance Rd. Continue for 1.26 mi. 04:27 h
154.57 mi
You have arrived at your destination Old South Entrance Rd.


As you can see here:
http://www.bulevardi.be/pics/road.JPG

Because, when I insert another waypoint for "desert view drive", the routeplanner gives me like 20 roads with this name, but none near the Grand Canyon :D

Is the Desert View Drive this one?

AZ-64 SOUTH

http://www.moon.com/planner/grand_ca...s/SouthRim.jpg

Desert View Drive is the same as 64. The road that parallels the south edge of the canyon from the eastern entrance to Grand Canyon Village. It has numerous pull-outs with small parking lots where you can stop and get a different view of the canyon. Since the canyon looks different from every single one of these, I encourage you to take the time to stop at all of them. There are also a few more major places to stop. Watchtower is, if I'm remembering right, the first one that you'll come to if you enter from the East entrance, and it has an amazing tower structure you might want to explore. Tusayen Ruins is another stop that has old ruins (Anasazi, I believe).

Sorry we weren't more clear and caused you this confusion. I guess that's a lesson that we should always remember to use the road number and not just their names.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Judy

I guess that's a lesson that we should always remember to use the road number and not just their names.

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Finally justice !

Yes, we learn something new every day here! :)

I was reviewing a new guide book and discovered a lodging option I didn't know about. It turns out there are about 80 cabins and small houses for year-rental just inside the southern boundary of the park. They are in a housing development just north of the Wawona ranger station. These cabins are full equipped with furnishings, maid service and some have hot tubs. I have never stayed here (obviously) but it is an intriguing alternative. More information here. And this same site has a great listing of local attractions, restaurants and business services.

I would love to get a field report from someone....

Mark