We are very excited about getting to go on an adventure of a lifetime in less than 2 months! We are going to be road tripping across the southwest from June 22nd through July 4th. We rarely treat ourselves like this, but it is definitely time with me graduating from graduate school and our four year anniversary falling within the trip. I am sharing what we have planned in our itinerary below! (We are not planning some things, such as where to eat and sometimes where to stay.)
Day 1
- Leave home and head to Estes Park near Rocky Mountain National Park
- Spend the night at Estes Park Campground at Mary’s Lake
Day 2
- Hike the Loch via Glacier Gorge Trail (5.4 miles) at Rocky Mountain National Park
- Drive Trail Ridge Road at Rocky Mountain National Park
- Spend the night at Estes Park Campground at Mary’s Lake
Day 3
- Hike Emerald Lake Trail (3.2 miles) at Rocky Mountain National Park
- See the sunrise at Dream Lake on the Emerald Lake Trail
- Leave by noon and drive 2.5 hrs to Garden of the Gods
- Spend a couple hours until they close at 5
- Spend night at Lone Duck Campground
Dream Lake at Rocky Mountain National Park
Day 4
- Pike’s Peak (3 hr long cog train)
- Drive 1 hr 20 min to Royal Gorge in Canon City
- Zipline and/or skycoaster
- Stay the night near Royal Gorge
Day 5
- Drive 3 hr 40 min to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
- Drive South Rim Rd/Black Canyon Scenic Drive and stop at overlooks
- Hike Warner Point Nature Trail (1.5 - 2 miles) at the back of South Rim Rd if time
- See the sunset at Sunset View Overlook from Sunset View Trail at Black Canyon of the Gunnison
- Spend the night near Black Canyon of the Gunnison
The Painted Wall at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Day 6
- See the sunrise at Cedar Point (⅔ mile trip) with the Painted Wall at Black Canyon of the Gunnison if possible
- Drive 1.5 hours to Telluride
- Ride the Telluride Gondola
- Drive two hours to Mesa Verde
- At Mesa Verde National Park:
- Spruce Tree House Overlook
- Hike the Soda Canyon Overlook Trail (1.2 miles, has views of Balcony House) or Petroglyph Point Trail (2.4 miles, has views of canyons and petroglyphs)
- Drive the Cliff Palace/Balcony House Loop Drive (if road work is finished and it is open again)
- Drive 40 minutes to Durango and stay the night
Day 7
- Float the Animas River at Durango
- Maybe: Horseback ride
- Stay the night in Durango
Day 8
- Start driving west (7 hrs) to Bryce Canyon
- Stop at Four Corners Monument between CO, UT, AZ, and NM
- Have breakfast/lunch at The View Restaurant of Monument Valley
- Try to get 2 shuttle tickets to go into Zion National Park the next day
- Hike at Bryce Canyon - Hike the Navajo Loop Trail that starts at Inspiration Point (takes 1-2 hrs)
- If time, can connect that trail to the Navajo Loop Trail and Queens Garden Trail for a longer trip (2.9 mi roundtrip)
- See sunset at Inspiration Point or Sunset Point at Bryce Canyon
- Spend the night near Zion or Bryce
Inspiration Point at Bryce Canyon National Park
Day 9
- Spend the day at Bryce Canyon and/or Zion
- If we were able to get shuttle tickets, do Angel’s Landing at Zion
- If we were not able to get shuttle tickets, hike at Bryce Canyon and/or head to Zion to explore and hike
- Hike Canyon Overlook Trail at Zion – 1 mile roundtrip; need to drive there on Hwy 9
- Try to get 2 shuttle tickets to go into Zion National Park the next day
- Spend night at Zion Canyon Campground
Canyon Overlook Trail at Zion National Park
Day 10
- If we do get shuttle tickets and have not done it already, do Angel’s Landing at Zion
- Other hiking options if we get shuttle tickets:
- Riverside Walk (2 mi roundtrip) & the Narrows - Start from the Temple of Sinawava via the Riverside Walk, walk upstream, turn around and hike back to the Temple of Sinawava (2-2.5 hrs)
- Emerald Pools Trail - round trip distances are 1.2 miles to lower, 2 miles to middle and 3 miles to upper
- Hidden Canyon trail - likely to be closed due to rockfall; 2.2 miles roundtrip but steep and strenuous (requires chains in places)
- If we don’t get shuttle tickets, hike West Rim trail to Scout lookout and beyond at Zion or do Canyon Overlook Trail if not done previously
- Spend night at Zion Canyon Campground
Angel's Landing at Zion National Park
Day 11
- Drive from Zion to Grand Canyon National Park (about 5 hrs)
- Ride the Kaibab Rim Route shuttle (orange) - See Mather Point, Yavapai Point, Yaki Point, and Ooh Ahh Point
- Ride the Hermit Road shuttle (red) - See Hopi Point, Powell Point, Mohave Point, and Pima Point
- Stop to walk the Trail of Time (1.7 flat miles, takes about an hr)
- See sunset at Grand Canyon at Hopi Point (or Yaki, Pima, or Yavapai Pts)
- Maybe: Go to the Grand Canyon National Geographic Visitor Center to see the 34 minute IMAX Grand Canyon film around 9pm
- Spend the night at Mather Campground
Day 12
- See the sunrise at Mather Point at the Grand Canyon
- Hike
- Bright Angel Trail - goes into the canyon, hike just part of it OR
- South Kaibab Trail - is farther back and goes into the canyon; hike 0.8 miles to Ooh Aah Point (1.5-2 hrs round trip) or walk farther: 1.5 miles to Cedar Ridge (takes 2.5+ hrs round trip)
- If wanting souvenirs: visit the Hopi House near the Verkamps Visitor Center
- Drive Desert View Road and see Shoshone Point (short hike), Grand View Point, Moran Point, and watchtower at Desert View Point
- Drive through the night to Albuquerque or Santa Fe, stop to rest
Desert View Watchtower at the Grand Canyon
Day 13
- After resting at Albuquerque or Santa Fe, continue the drive home
- Optional: Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument in Jemez Springs, NM or Bandelier National Monument in Los Alamos, NM
And that completes our adventure plan! Stay tuned to see how our road trip goes in a couple months!
