Utah National Park tour June 7-14. Need help!

Hey fellas! I'm headed down to Lake Powell for a family house-boating trip June 15-22. Since it's such a drive to get down there, I figured why not make the most of it, so I'm planning on leaving Washington on June 7 and spending the week leading up to the house-boating exploring southern Utah.

Are there any tips/tricks/must-see/must-do activities that anyone recommends?
Planning on doing several day-hikes in the various parks to get a good feel for what they have to offer. Not looking to cram my days super full of activities, but definitely interested in the "highlights".

Also, this trip is rather short notice, but from my research, it sounds like there are a fair amount of first-come, first-served campgrounds in the areas I'll be, so should I anticipate any problems finding a spot to camp?

Here's my tentative schedule:
June 7 - Leave WA, camp near Craters of the Moon, Idaho
June 8 - Drive to Arches NP
June 9 - Explore Arches
June 10 - Explore Canyonlands NP, drive to Capitol Reef NP
June 11 - Explore Capitol Reef NP
June 12 - Drive to Bryce Canyon (short exploration), continue on to Zion NP
June 13-14 - Explore Zion
June 15 - Drive to Lake Powell
June 15-22 - House-boat trip
June 23-24 - Drive to WA

Thoughts? Comments? Warnings? Fire away!

 

Sounds like badass trip man.

 

you could hit the hole in the rock trail its by lake powell.

 

That looks pretty cool! It'll just be me and my buddy on this trip (no second vehicle). Would you recommend doing Hole in the Rock with just one vehicle?

 

you have winch you are good to go .

 

Haha, 10-4!

 

i recommend doing it with at least one other person everyone says its really easy to loose the trail, and its always good to have at least one other person when wheeling just in case

 

Bump! Anyone have any thoughts or tips on first come first serve campgrounds in the area where I'm likely to get a spot?

 

i just did Hole in the Rock a couple days ago. It's a long trail with lots to see along the way, slot canyons, historical stuff, cows. The first 40 miles is decently quick, just gravel washboard. The last 20 miles is bumpy as shit. You won't really need 4x4 or extra ground clearance, mostly just a strong neck and plenty of time. Took us about 2 1/2 hours each way but you'll want to plan for plenty of extra time to do the slot canyon hikes and stuff. So that trail and the town of Escalante kind of need a whole day. My girlfriend and I drove through Capitol Reef Park which was awesome but I didn't feel like I needed a day to explore it. The drive alone is amazing. I think for you Escalante would be a good overnight spot so you could get to Bryce early the next day.

If you do want to stay in Escalante, we stayed at a pretty cool "RV Resort." They have spots for tent camping, rv camping, or even sweet airstreams you can rent for about 130 per night. They also have a drive in theater and if it's not crowded (we were the only ones there) the owners will probably let you pick out whatever movie you want to watch. So the place was super cool, definitely a good spot to bring the lady friend but still might be fun with just your buddy. not implying anything...

http://www.shootingstar-rvresort.com/airstream-park/rv-park.php

Have a great trip whatever you decide to do, it's amazing land out there and you'll never be bored

EDIT: the hole in the rock trail is relatively straight forward, at least this time of year. We had no problems at all keeping track of the trail. Just pick up a map that shows you where all the sights and branching roads are. The hike we did to the slot canyons was definitely more of a challenge in terms of staying on the trail, maybe that's what others are referring to. But if you keep your sense of direction it's super fun to make your own way through the canyons and stuff

 

Cool, thanks for info! I'll definitely check out Escalante as well! Good note about Capitol Reef...

There's a ton of info to sort through so I appreciate any and all insight!

 

Did go on hole in the rock road or trail? There is a huge difference and you totally need a least 4x4 for hole in the rock trail. Road is just what you described trail is a 4x4 trail similar to the ones in moab, I'd say at least 33s, sliders and lockers wouldn't be a bad idea.

Pretty gnarly trail.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gocBLWzsptc

 

you sir are correct! did not know about the actual trail, we were just on the road. Up to you OP!

 

bump for additional eyes on this thread! good help so far!

i am slightly nervous about having no reservations anywhere for this trip. i'm used to camping in washington where you can pretty much pull off any forest service road and camp for free. not a big deal. how is utah in this respect? sounds a bit more stringent from what i've been reading (i.e. camping only in designated areas)

 

Get a national park pass.

A lot of the really good trails in Arches and Zion require a bit of a walk. Leaving just a day to explore doesn't give you enough time except to drive around and check out the roadside stuff. In Bryce, you'll want to hike down into the canyon-phenomenal views from below.

Same is true for Zion-the Narrows is something you could easily spend a chunk of the day hiking. Or to Angels Landing. Zion may also be running the shuttles forcing you to park and take that where ever you wanted to go. Arches has a few things to see that are short hikes-Delicate Arch is about 3 miles round trip. Mesa Arch in Canyonlands is maybe 3/4 of a mile round trip-sunrise is a spectacular time to see it.

Tons of stuff to see. If you wanted to do that trip, make a list of stuff to see in each place (to minimize the time deciding when you get there) and be aware of all the cool stuff in each place.

 

Thanks Ian! I have an America the Beautiful interagency pass which should get me into all the national park areas. I'm planning on spending 2-3 full days at Zion and Angels Rest and The Narrows are definitely on the list there. My schedule for Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef and Bryce are very fluid -- I'm open to staying a little longer if some place catches my eye. The only "hard" date is June 15 I have to be at Lake Powell for leaving on the house-boat, but other than that... totally up to the winds!

 

It'll be warm and you'll likely run into summer vacay crowd but it'll be a lot of fun.

BTW, you can drive off of 70 and go to the Temple of the Sun in Capitol Reef. That place is crazy beautiful at night with all the stars out.

 

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to do this trip due to a chief's interview that was scheduled smack dab in the middle of my vacation. So I had to pull the plug on it. Was still able to go on the house-boating portion of it though, and I got the job!

Fast-forward 8 months and now it's back on the table. I'm leaving Feb 15 and returning Feb 24. Gonna be a hell of a trip. My cousin's coming with me now and we're going to do a few Mtb trails in Moab and Zion along the way. Will report back with photos when I'm home! So pumped for this trip, plus the crowds will be much less in February than in June.

 

sounds cool man, keep us posted.

 

Any ideas on where to camp near SLC? I get off work at 9am Sunday morning, gonna run home throw my gear in the truck and hit the road, but that puts my in/around SLC between 10pm and midnight.

 

If you have a smartphone, you might want to look for an app called Campwhere. I love it. You can search for an area as long as you have cell coverage.

Bountiful Peak, Tanners Flat, Spruces, Sunset. There are a ton of them.