2 week USA Road Trip
Covering almost 3,000 miles across 6 National Parks Grand Canyon, Canyonlands, The Arches, Bryce Canyon and Zion Stunning landscape in the middle of the states, if you like road trips and hiking, then this is for you
5/15/2023
2 Week USA Road Trip (May 2023)
With the amount of ground to cover in this road trip, I made sure that this was the most efficient route to see all 5 National Parks.
My roadtrip began in San Francisco, which was a 7 hour drive of pretty much nothing but desert hence why I am starting the roadtrip blog from Vegas to Williams. I was really looking forward to this 2 weeks as I am a keen hiker, love nature and had heard great things about the 2 states of Arizona and especially Utah. I was expecting quiet roads in the middle of nowhere, interesting old deserted places and above all spectacular landscape.
Las Vegas to Williams
The direct route is 220 miles, however there are multiple stops along the way to see and make it a great day trip.
Nelson
This is an old deserted coal town which began mining for gold in the 1850's, it was one of the most successful in the state mining around $10million dollars worth. It ceased production in 1940 and was abandoned until 1994 until it was restored to allow the public to view.
Hoover Dam
Construction began in 1931, and completing in 1936 for a cost of $790million in todays money. It is a spectacular sight as you walk across it, specially as you're 746feet above the bottom of the reservoir.
Route 66
You drive a small portion of the famous road, around 60 miles which is extremely quiet as everyone uses the new motorway of course. The main attraction is the Hackberry Store, until you get to Williams where they have a whole host of old stores, restaurants, bars etc.
Bearizona Wildlife Park
You remain in your car, and drive through something like you're in Jurassic Park, only you'll be seeing bears, bison, leopards, and others.
Williams is a popular town as it's the closest to Grand Canyon National Park, only a 50 minute drive away so is perfect for people doing a day hike. I stayed in the cheapest accomdation but it still did the job, William AZ Hostel.
Grand Canyon National Park
I left early, as you always should for one of the popular day hikes. It was a quick 50 minute drive from Williams, hence why it's a popular spot to stay. I arrived there at 7:30am, and I only managed to get parked in the 3rd out of 5 car parks, showing you just how early you need to get there.
I hiked the Bright Angel Trailhead which was an out and back route of 24.6km, taking around 8 hours, with 4,478 feet in elevation gain. Word of warning, the elevation gain is all at the end, as you hike down into the canyon, and then of course have to climb back out of it!
The start of the hike you have breathtaking views of the canyon, and can see the path carved into the mountain that you'll be hiking down, there are also a couple cool tunnels that you walk through.
5km into the hike is a rest station, which has a toilet and a great view, perfect place to rest and get your first piece of food onboard, whilst of course topping up with water as the heat begins to rise.
Once you hit 8km, it's finally a nice flat 5km towards the canyon, where you will get an amazing viewpoint overlooking the river (one of my selfies on the right there). Here is of course another great spot to have your lunch, and take on some more water, but as it's super exposed here with the sun you can't spend too long.
Then, you turn around to walk back, and see the daunting task ahead which is walking back up out of the canyon from where you came. As an intermediate hiker, I found this a good challenge, it took around 4 hours, with a few stops for water and food, but it also allowed you to take in the spectacular scenery and talk to some other hikers who were doing multi-day treks.
Advice: Allow yourself at least 8 hours, leave early to beat as much as the sun as possible and carry around 2l of water with you, but there is also water foundtains along the route every 5km.
Horseshoe Bend & Monument Valley
Get ready for a big driving day, the first section is a 2.5 hr drive to Horseshoe Bend covering 164 miles. Another spot that is good to get there early, as it's very popular due to the scene of course but also the accessibility as it's only a 15 minute walk off the main road car park. You get an amazing view from the viewpoint, looking over the river and can also see the odd raft floating down the river which looked absolutely epic.
I then had another 124 miles to cover, which took around 2.5 hours as I stopped a couple times along the way to take in some epic views, and driving roads. Monument Valley was one of my favourites, it's one of the most unique National Parks you can visit.
You have an easy 7km hike roundtrip to set off on foot and essentially circle one of the rock formations, which is spectacular to see up close. Even though it's a short hike, remember to bring some water as it's scorching in the open sun.
The main thing to do in Monument Valley is driving the 27km off-road trail (can see in the picture on the right). You don't necessarily need a truck or large clearance, but you definitely need 4wd as the road isn't paved and has loose gravel and inclines in some areas. The overall trip took me about 2 hours, as there is a 15mph speed limit, but there are also multiple viewpoints and places to stop your vehicle, there are even some pull offs that you could relax and eat your lunch if you had some camping chairs.
There is also some fun off roads to explore in the area, I found myself on one by accident and ended up driving through a rural town, which actually wasn't that nice of experience, as lets just say I looked very out of place, and they also made me feel very out of place.
I then had another 100 miles to cover to Moab, as there isn't really any accommodation options closer, but I also wanted to just base myself somewhere for 3 nights, instead of moving every night or so.
Moab - Arches & Canyonlands National Parks
I based myself here for 3 nights, and I could have stayed longer as it's a bustling town. A very popular base for people to stay for a prolonged period as it's essentially the gateway to a whole host of activities.
You get very used to off-road vehicles and quad bikes riding up and down the main road, as you have a whole host of off-road trails nearby
Many people go on day trips out into the spectacular scenery, or will camp overnight nearby
Some of the best rock climbing in the whole of the USA is here
Some of the best mountain biking in the country
Arches National Park with unique rock formations
Canyonlands with unbelievable landscapes and a crazy off-road trail
Many amenities to stock up on as you carry on your roadtrip
Dead Horse Point a state park with an incredible view
And as it's the biggest town around, many restaurants, bars and shops
Arches National Park
At over 73,000 acres, you can easily spend 2 full days in this park as there are around 8 different hikes you can do. The reason why it's one of the most popular national parks is because of the unique sandstone formations that have been eroded over millions of years by wind and rain. It's so popular now that you have to buy a timed entry ticket, to avoid large queues and a mass of people at once, typically in the morning so I'd advise getting your ticket a few days in advance.
Devils Garden Trail which was one of the most fun hikes I've ever done, you essentially were walking and climbing over massive boulders and in canyons throughout the 12km. I did it counterclockwise, which allowed for the majority of the Arches to be left at the end which I believe was the best way to do it. This is the longest hikes you can do but it's worth it as you see 7 well-known Arches, in particular the Double O Arch.
Delicate Arch Trail which is a 5km out and back to the most famous Arch. It's a very unique little hike, as a large portion of it isn't a trail but walking up a massive boulder like mountain. At the top you're greeted to a spectacular site of the Arch standing all by itself, on the side of a cliff.
Canyonlands National Park
Shafer Road is a 45 mile trip, that will take you around 3 hours, and it's one of the best roads I've ever driven. You definitely need a 4WD, and I would go as far as saying a truck because you need some high clearance at points. The first 20 miles are off-road, and it starts off at the sketchiest point right at the top of the canyon with around a 400 foot drop off. This gets the heart pumping that's for sure. Then you have the switchbacks down the mountain, to the canyon floor which is a lot more mellow but very fun to drive and with spectacular scenery.
Once you have cleared the off road section, it's a beautiful 25 mile stretch alongside the river, where you'll see some kayaks and rock climbers all along the left hand side, before ending up back in town.
Dead Horse Point State Park is one of the most spectacular views you're ever likely to see due to how high up you are and the magnitude of the canyons you can see. Do the short 3km walk on the left hand side bringing you to an area where you can sit, relax and take in the scene.
Bryce Canyon National Park
From Moab it was a good 4 hour drive across 240 miles, so I did this early in the morning, meaning I had a nice hike in the afternoon to stretch the legs. I also didn't want to dedicate a whole day here as the best hike wasn't long enough.
The landscape was very unique, different to all the other national parks I had visited, with the Hoodoos which are intricately carved rock spires formed from erosion of rain and wind. The colour is also very unique, it was red/pink across the whole of the national park.
Peekaboo Loop is a 9km trail that has 1,560 feet of elevation gain, this is one of the more popular due to the amazing scenery you get, specially the switchbacks down into the canyon and the length isn't too demanding but still a good hike.
During the summer months you will encounter horse/mules on this trail, for only 4km of it but just to make you aware. It's actually quite cool watching the groups slowly walk past you, and it's crazy to see how they navigate the steep switchbacks, not sure how comfortable I'll be on one of them.
I wouldn't probably come out of my way to get to this National Park but it was between Moab and Zion for me so worked out perfectly!
Zion National Park
Saving the best till last, Zion National Park! The scale of this place is hard to comprehend until you go there.
Shuttle service showing you just how big the place is, but also how popular it is and that they needed to reduce the amount of cars in the park. It's super easy to use, you simply park at the entrance, if you're early enough or down the main street if it's full. The shuttle bus has 7 stops, and you choose which one you want to get off at depending on what hike you wanted to do.
My first full day, I started with a hike you can take from the entrance without having to take the shuttle. The Watchman Trail which is 5.1km and an elevation gain of 368 feet took around 1.5 hours, and it was a nice easy one to get the legs moving for the day, with a great view at the top.
I then took the shuttle up to stop number 4 and hiked the sandbeach trail which is a super mellow flat hike. I did half of it, because I joined onto the Upper Emerald Pool hike to check out a couple waterfalls and a higher viewpoint as it went up alongside the mountain. I then got back on the shuttle at stop 6, all the way down to the entrance.
My second full day, I didn't get a pass for Angels Landing, which to be honest I was fine with the queues were mental. So I carried on hiking the West Rim Trail, where the first 3km is also where Angel Landing hikers are, and it's a lot of elevation gain up some switchback paths too, around 1000 feet. Once I carried on it was super quiet, as everyone wants to do the landing, so it was honestly one of the best hikes I've ever done. It was another 8km out and back, with a further 500 feet of elevation gain with the most spectacular scenery, and peace and quiet! In total it took me around 5 hours, with a stop for lunch at the top of the mountain. To get to the top was a little bit sketchy for 10 minutes, as it was a path that was super exposed, but also quite easy for something who isn't scared of heights.
The town itself is probably as big as Moab, so there are lots of accommodation options (not cheap), I decided to stay in a town that was a 30 minute drive away as the costs halved. But there are a bunch of restaurants, bars and grocery stores to top up your supplies.
Lastly, you can drive some of the road inside the park which is definitely worth doing, and you can stop and do The Canyon Overlook Trail.
