The answers to some of your questions depend on when your trip is.

1. Right now, SR-178 is the best choice when approaching <a href = "http://www.nps.gov/deva/">Death Valley<a/>. SR-190 is closed between Death Valley Junction and Furnace Creek (in other words, across the eastern end of the Park). It will not reopen for several months yet (expected to reopen in March or April). SR-190 is open from Furnace Creek westward to Emigrant Pass and still serves as the gateway to US-395 and the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada mountains.

2. Yes, SR-9 is the only way into Zion except for those who walk.

3. <a href = "http://www.nps.gov/pisp/">Pipe Spring<a/> is worth a look, but if you must choose between Zion or Pipe Spring, it would be Zion for me. Pipe Spring is a smaller affair, although very interesting if you are a person who likes western history or the history of the Mormon community in Utah and Arizona. <a href = "http://www.meganedwards.com/Vegasland/Zion-National-Park.htm">Zion is simply magnificent<a/> and not to be missed. There is nothing to fear in Colorado City. Folks there do not trust outsiders and you will likely not be received with much warmth (in my experience). But neither will you be mistreated.

4. Is the <a href = "http://www.roadtripamerica.com/drives/Grand-Canyon-Bryce-Canyon-Cedar-Breaks.htm">North Rim<a/> worth the detour? Are you joking? The views are different; it is higher by about 1000 feet, and even more isolated than the South Rim. Compared to the numbers of those who visit the South Rim, relatively few see the North side. The drive down SR-67 alone is worth the trip; it is one of the most beautiful settings in Arizona, virtually alpine in nature. That said, it is closed until sometime in May -- it will be snowbound until then (south of Jacob Lake).

If you REALLY want to see something special, as you drive toward Lee's Ferry and Marble Canyon from Jacob Lake, the Vermillion Cliffs will rise to your left. There is a road (graded) that runs toward the Cliffs on the southwest end -- it is about 10-15 miles east of Jacob Lake and is numbered FR-1065. Drive down that road past the west end of the cliffs and find yourself a place to search the skies overhead. Take binoculars. The Peregine Fund, along with several other partners, is reintroducing the California Condor to the skies above the Cliffs and the Grand Canyon.

Twenty years ago, there were only a handful left anywhere. These were taken into protective custody, bred in captivity, and they are slowly being released to their traditional ranges, in places where it is thought they can be successful. Up close and personal, these birds are no beauties -- but in flight, well, they are magnificent. They are among the largest land birds in the world, with an almost ten foot wingspan. You can recognize them from below because they have white feathers on the leading edges of their wings (where the other common buzzard-type bird (the Turkey Vulture) has white on the BACK of its wings, black in the front. Other than the white blaze on their wings, they are mostly all black otherwise, except the top of the mature bird's head is red. If you are lucky enough to spot one, you'll be one of very few! There are somewhere between 30 and 50 of these birds flying in Arizona today.