Indy to Grand Canyon, Bryce and Zion National Parks May27th to June6th

[pbravard]

Leaving after work (of course) on May 27th driving to ??? and then on to Bryce and Zion. After Memorial Day we will start at the North Rim and end up at the resort on the South
Rim for a soft bed and warm shower... We are planning for two nights primitive camping along the main trail. Should keep us with in water sources.

Thoughts on Bryce, Zion, GC and where stop stop for site seeing on the way there?

[Southwest Dave]

Hello and welcome to the RTA forums !

You could get a few hours of driving after work if you don't finish too late, but you might be better off getting an early night and starting off early next morning. If you push to far on Mon eve when your body is unwinding and usually resting, it could leave you weary next day and make the rest of the trip to Bryce miserable. You will need more than one overnight stop whatever, it is a 3 day journey and even if you did get a good start Mon evening, there would be absolutely no way of making it there safely the next day.

[pbravard]

Okay - two nights. Then a nice long 10 mile hike in Bryce... My wife is that ate up.

[Southwest Dave]

Leaving Mon night you would do well to make St Louis. If you could get East of the City you would be able to make the Colby KS area for night 2 and the Green river UT with a 4.5 hour run in to Bryce, leaving you time for 10 mile jog !! ;-).

Leave on Tues Morn and your stops would be around Topeka KS and East of Denver, that's of course if you are traveling I70 and not 80.

[pbravard]

Night one - Colby KS: http://www.cityofcolby.com/
Night two - Green River, Utah: http://www.greenriverutah.com/

Great ideas! I70 seems to be that most efficient route... 80??? Never been on it. Maybe that should change.

[Southwest Dave]

Doesn't appear to be much in it time wise, 80 could make a change of scenery on the way home.

From Green river you could get off I 70 onto UT 24 through Hanksville to Torrey [passing Capitol reef on the way] and then take the spectacular 'UT scenic Byway 12' to Bryce canyon, It will take longer and you might have to halve the 10 mile hike though ! The nearest lodging to Bryce canyon is 'Ruby's Inn' which has lodging, shopping and a Campground.
[There is a NP campground as well] On route to Zion you might want to take time for a short stop at Red rock canyon on the edge of the Dixie forest, there is a pull out just after you drive through the natural rock arch on the highway. As you drive along Mt Carmel highway there is the 'Canyon overlook Trail' just before you enter the tunnel, but there are a lot of great walks in Zion so check out the nps site, you might enjoy hiking the 'Narrows' !
Springdale is the nearest lodging, but if you are camping use the 'Watchmen campground', I would recommend booking to be sure you get a spot in both places.

[glc]

From Indy, I don't see any point in going north to I-80 to get to Bryce Canyon. Take I-70 and either take UT-24/UT-12 as indicated (HIGHLY recommended if you have the time) or US-89. Mileage wise the scenic route is about the same, but it will probably take you 2 hours more.

Just so you can plan properly, Green River is your last lodging chance until you get to Salina or Torrey.

To get home from the GC south rim, I-40/I-44/I-70 is fastest, but if you still have some sightseeing time you could go through Monument Valley and up through Colorado to eventually get to I-70.

[Southwest Dave]

Are you planning on hiking from the North rim to South rim ? That's what I presumed with how I read your post, If so, I guess you are you hiking back as well ?

[Midwest Michael]

I'm pretty sure there is a bus that will shuttle you between the rims, if you are hiking from Rim to Rim.

You have gotten your backcountry permits for this hike already, right? There are a limited number of permits available to spend the night in the canyon, and I'd expect there's a high likelihood that those would no longer be available.

[donaldsc]

If you do the designated trails, I do not believe that you can do primitive camping in the Canyon. I believe that you have to stay in designated campsites which require reservations far in advance. There are 3 designated sites in the Canyon - 1 halfway down from the North Rim, one at the bottom, and one halfway up to the South Rim.

Check on the Grand Canyon WEB site before you set out.