Boys will be Boys: South West Road Trip Planning and I need some help please. :)

[xxBLIZZxx]

Hi everyone.
I just found your site today and I think this place is fantastic. I need some help. My best friend and I are celebrating our 30th birthdays this year and thought that a road trip would be a perfect way to do it. We are outdoor kind of guys, love to hike, bike, whatever. So we are flying out to Vegas and starting a road trip from there. Our basic itinerary is as follows:

Arrive in Vegas on Aug 31st stay in town till Saturday Sept 2nd.......

Heading to.........TO BE DECIDED

We will be arriving back in Vegas the evening of Sept the 9th....


My hope is you folks could help me decide on a route.... I'm hoping some have been out there and can make suggestions on MUST SEE locations... We have a general route of heading for the Grand Canyon on Saturday the 2nd and through the four corners into Colorado and then looping back through Southern Utah to see some of the great parks like Canyon Lands, Bryce and Zion.... my hope here is to find some great tips, I am by no means commited to that route, for example if New Mexico has some great places to see we could skip Colorado all together...

Looking forward to some input... Hope to hear back from you guys, and thank you for your time.

Todd

[Midwest Michael]

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

I think you've already got a real good outline. I would probably go to the Canyon, then head to the 4 corners area via Monument Valley. Check out Mesa Verde, Durango, and the Million Dollar Highway, before heading North towards Moab/Arches NP. Then Loop back towards Vegas through the other Utah parks you mentioned.

I think that would be an awesome trip that would more than keep you occupied for the length of your vacation.

[xxBLIZZxx]

LOL technically this is a summer trip, especially since it will mostly be in the desert, I dont get why this would be considered a fall trip :P

Anyway thank you for the input Michael, its appreciated!

[Mark Sedenquist]

LOL technically this is a summer trip, especially since it will mostly be in the desert,

Well, that is a first for me -- a geograhic location as the definition for the terminus of a season. On our calendars, Labor Day, which is September 4th this year, is the traditional end of summer. Fall is our favorite time of the year to roadtrip. We are raring to go.

And so, since your trip extends into the Fall season, I moved it here. I can guarantee you that Las Vegans consider September to be Fall, days and nights will be in the cooling trend.

Your (possible) specified route is being discussed at some length in this thread. Or at least parts of it. I would suggest reading the whole thread for some ideas.

Mark

[xxBLIZZxx]

No arguement to be started, we up here in the North East use the autumnal equinox, which is around or about Sept 22nd. Im gonna read up thanks for the link. Being in Buffalo, generally we don't look at temperatures in the 60s as cool, we call anything above 40 between Sept and Nov an "Indian Summer" :D

[Mark Sedenquist]

Being in Buffalo, generally we don't look at temperatures in the 60s as cool

For me, when the temperatures drop to less than 70 -- that is cool. I like it best between 85 and 105!

Mark

[Midwest Michael]

You really don't consider it fall until the "official" end to summer? I'd have to be in agreement with Mark that most people I've ever met - including those from the NE - would consider the start of the month of the equinox/solstice the general point that a season changes.

I'd have a hard time finding people who think June 15th still feels like spring, and an even harder time convincing people trudging through the snow to do their last minute Christmas shopping on December 19th that it is not actually winter.

[wacko2]

I like it best between 85 and 105!

How do you stand the heat?? I went hiking in Phoenix when it was 85 out and that was quite warm enough for me, thank you.

Fall starts after Labour Day, if only because that's when everyone goes back to work/school. But it can be a very nice time of the year for a roadtrip, especially if you're touring the Southwest.

[Mass Tim]

If you live in the Northeast - it's enough just trying to convince people that it's not going to snow the first week of September! The plow hookups should start showing up on pickups any day now...

I prefer to hang on to Summer as long as possible, which can be hard to do in New England!

[W. Larrison]

Hmm.. you guys considered stopping in Moab? This is sort of the mountain biking capital of the world.... For a couple of 20 year old guys looking for a Utah experience, it ought to be fun....

My suggestion would be to hit up Monument Valley (there's a campground right at the edge of the Valley, with some incredible morning views I understand), and then the Moki Dugway (just to say.. "and then Dude this road went right down the side of the mountain...") and Muley Point and Valley of the Gods.

Then up through Moab and Arches and Canyonlands and south via Bryce and Zion to Vegas. It'll be pretty much a full week, particularly if you get out of the campgrounds and off the roads to do a bit of hiking and exploring..