Vacation help

[+iambobbrown]

Hello everyone,

 

We are wondering if you can help us plan a long weekend getaway. I have a conference in Vegas, Oct 19-22. My wife is going to fly in after the conference. We will hang in Vegas for a night and in the morning drive to a destination. This is where you can help us. We have from Thursday till Sunday morning. Two places we are thinking of are Grand Canyon, and Sequoia/Kings Canyon national parks. We have not been to either place. Our activities would be limited to hiking and touring. I have this feeling there would be more to do in Sequoia/Kings Canyon. Geocaching does not weigh into the decision. Any advice to give? FYI - we would be flying out of our destination spot, thus we would not have to drive back to Vegas.

 

Thanks

 

Bob and Linda

[+wxsby]

Will you have camping gear? Sequoia/King's Canyon are mostly campgrounds... I think they may still have a limited amount of cabins at Lodgepole/Giant Forest. Plenty of great hiking but I don't know about organized tours.

 

Grand Canyon has hotel facilities at Bright Angel but we prefer to stay in Williams and take the train to the canyon, then take the bus tours of the canyon. The train ride up and back has entertainment... and gets robbed.

 

There are lots of guided tours from Williams. From the hotel at the train station in Williams we have gone river rafting and taken tours of the Indian ruins. The guides are very good. And it's a short walk to lots of restaurants in Williams.

[+iambobbrown]

Hi,

 

No we will not have camping gear. There are a few National Park lodges in Sequoia/Kings Canyon. I have not checked availability yet.

 

What I meant by touring is us driving on paved roads in our rental car.

 

Thanks

[+wxsby]

Hi,

 

No we will not have camping gear. There are a few National Park lodges in Sequoia/Kings Canyon. I have not checked availability yet.

 

What I meant by touring is us driving on paved roads in our rental car.

 

Thanks

 

In that case you might enjoy Sequoia more, if you can find a place to stay. The Canyon has a couple of hours of paved roads... Sequoia/Kings Canyon has a couple of days. And I love canyoneering, but I prefer hiking the Sierras. Lots more to see on foot there.

 

If you do decide on Grand canyon, try to get the book, "Over The Edge. Death in the Grand Canyon", before you go. Lots of great info and really a great read. Can't think of anything comparable for the Sierras, although it's been a while since I looked.

[2oldfarts (the rockhounders)]

If you head east from Vegas you can visit Zion Nat'l park on the way to Lake Powell. This will be about 5 1/2 hour drive depending on how often you stop for pictures and food, etc. At Lake Powell there is a tour boat ride to Rainbow Bridge Nat'l Monument (the worlds largest natural bridge). From Lake Powell you are about 2 to 2 1/2 hour drive from either the North Rim of the Grand Canyon or the South Rim of the Grand Canyon or Monument Valley.

 

If you would like to collect a few pieces of petrified wood (legally) check out This cache.

 

John

[+geodarts]

The last time we were in the area (July), my wife and I swung through Zion, Bryce, and the North Rim before returning to Vegas for the purpose of our trip. Zion was beautiful (both the Canyon and the Northern part of the park). Hiking up the Virgin River through the Narrows was one of the highlights. Bryce was as spectacular as I remembered from a visit as a young child -- an earthcache brought us down into a narrow slot and the hoodoos, one of my all-time favorite caching experiences. I enjoyed the North Rim much more than the South Rim -- less crowds, but still wonderful, sweeping overlooks. And of course there were some great caches along the way -- caching brought us to remnants of the Old Spanish trail, petroglyphs, historical sites, beautiful red rocks, and climbing up a fire watch tower. We had one more day than you, but any one of these areas would be a great destination.

 

Sequoia and Kings Canyon are also beautiful, so you can't go wrong. But we are already talking about a return trip to the Zion/Bryce area that could include Toroweap.

 

If you end up with a little extra time in Vegas, the Red Rock Canyon area is a beautiful place to visit, along the with Valley of Fire.

Edited August 4, 2009 by Erickson

[+WeeWillie]

From Flagstaff AZ you can visit the Grand Canyon, Sedona (art and scenary), Wupaki (Indian ruins) Lowell Observatory and a host of other accessable outdoor activities. Flagstaff is a college town and there are plenty of low cost good places to eat.

[Tahosa and Sons]

If you head South to Phoenix I'll take you on a hike in the Suppes which is just an awesome place.