Grand Canyon in June

1,573 Views | 21 Replies | Last: 1 yr ago by Fuzzy Dunlop
Fuzzy Dunlop
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AG
I have never been to the Grand Canyon and my family and I are planning to visit this summer, probably in June.

We have a travel trailer and I've scoped out the Williams KOA for "camping". It appears to be about an hour from the National Park. How many days should we take? Right now I have a spot booked from 6/12 through 6/17.

Any advice and anecdotes would be very helpful.
Travelag08
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I would say 2 days in the actual park of the Grand Canyon. 1 for viewing and looking around the park, another for hiking into the canyon. Your legs will be shot after that. Maybe spend some time in Sedona and I think there are some things to do in Williams.
AgRyan04
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In my opinion, if you're not planning on hiking into the canyon, you could do the national park in a half day.

Hiking the canyon is one of the coolest things we've done, so if you're physically able, I would recommend. You don't have to go all the way down to the rivet- there are several resting areas on both the Bright Angel Trail and the S. Kaibob that you could use as a turnaround points.

I think there is an iMax theater in town but we didn't check out if there was anything specific to the park

There is also a lot of cool kitschy Route 66 stuff in Williams, which is kinda cool.
AggieOO
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AgRyan04 said:

In my opinion, if you're not planning on hiking into the canyon, you could do the national park in a half day.


This. If you aren't going down into the canyon, just look in the canyon, take some pictures, and head somewhere more interesting.

As a kid we visited. It was cool, but just a big, scenic hole in the ground. Been back as an adult a couple times, and I've been all the way across the canyon multiple times. COMPLETELY different. And the north side in the canyon is better (more scenic) than the south. South has better views from the rim.
chick79
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AG
We stayed in Williams AZ several years ago and made the day trip on the Grand Canyon Railway. Vintage train that was "held up" by train robbers. It was a great trip and we had plenty of time in the park. Unless you really want to hike I would recommend this. We went in June as well and the weather was perfect.
drewbie96
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AG
We are doing this exact trip pulling a trailer. Staying at the Williams KOA from 5/29-6/4. I think we plan a day in GC, day or two in Sedona, and haven't decided on much else. Maybe Jerome, Prescott, Montezuma Castle, a Jeep Tour, and Route66 stuff. Coming from Katy, TX, so it will be a haul.

On a side note, we are going up through Waco, Abilene, Lubbock, Albuquerque to Williams. Pretty much straight through, not stopping more than a night anywhere on the way. Not sure route back. Was thinking going south through Phoenix, Tucson, Las Cruces, Alamogordo, Lubbock and then backtrack from there. We did a Durango, CO trip last year and came back through Carlsbad, so didn't want to do the exact same trip back. I wouldn't mind going back through Seminole though to grab a Doc Holliday at Slim's BBQ!! But that would be out of the way.
archangelus2
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AG
We really enjoyed renting bikes and biking along the rim.
91AggieLawyer
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AG
I recommend the North Rim and 1-2 days are enough, unless you're going to do some more serious hiking. If you have small kids, then the South Rim might be better. I don't know if you reservations will jive with the North Rim but I also recommend Sedona.

If I did it over again, I'd probably do the Grand Canyon on day 1, maybe 1 and 2, then drive up to Bryce Canyon in Utah. Its 4-ish hours north (or maybe Zion, a little west in Utah) and you can get a Parks pass to get you into all parks for a year for about what 2 entry fees would cost.
Fuzzy Dunlop
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AG
Thanks to all your responses the past few days. I also talked with others I know to determine our trip and how long to spend in the Grand Canyon. I've booked our KOAs for the trip and have what I think is pretty good plan, at least until it isn't.

Here is our itinerary so far:

Day 1 - Longview to Tucumcari
Day 2 - Longview to ?? Will need to find a Good Sam or independent campground
Day 3 - Arrive in St. George, UT
Days 4 and 5 - Zion NP, Bryce Canyon NP, and Arches Nat'l Monument
Day 6 - Travel to Grand Canyon
Days 7 and 8 - Grand Canyon NP
Day 9 - Travel to Benson, AZ
Day 10 - Tombstone
Days 11 and 12 - Travel home. We are going to try and make it home day 11 but that is a 15-hour drive with no stop. My limit pulling the trailer is about 12 hours. No one else drives so I doubt we'll make it all the way on Day 11.

Our kids will be 12 and 13 when we make the trip and they ride well. We stop when I need to stop but the initial drive to St. George is 20 hours by Google Maps so really 24 to 25 hours with fuel stops and stopping to make sandwiches, bathroom breaks, detours, etc. We'll likely do some light to moderate hiking in Zion and Bryce Canyon and Grand Canyon. Nothing too serious but we do like to walk quite a bit on these trips.

We'll also be able to add three states to our travel map: New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah.

This trip was supposed to take place in 2020 but Covid put the brakes on it so it's time now. Looking forward to it.

Keep the ideas coming so I know if I'm missing anything.
drewbie96
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AG
Wow, that seems like an aggressive schedule, at least it would be for our family. Of course, I can't get our family on the road before 9 am and have to stop every 2 hours between gas, bathroom, or lunch and by late afternoon, the natives (8 and 12) are done. I also dont drive over 65. Just to Flagstaff for us is 4 days. Couldn't imagine hitting arches, bryce and zion in two days. Good on you, though, you will see a heckuva lot more than we will.
Travelag08
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FYI - Arches and Zion (Angels Landing) now has a reservation system.

Hiking is the fun part in these parks. Sounds like y'all are in good shape to enjoy more moderate hikes, which these parks have plenty of!
Fuzzy Dunlop
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AG
We do pretty well. Everyone knows we don't stop until I'm ready. We made it from Longview to Gettysburg in three days with a couple of 4 to 5 hour detours. I really only stop for fuel and we ise the bathroom and get food from the cooler at fuel stops.

We used to get going a lot earlier, now that our kids are teenagers, we've noticed they don't move as fast. We'll see how this one goes.
oldarmy76
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When you are in St george, you could check out snow canyon state park which is pretty much in town. Some great short hikes through slot canyons, lava flows, up to caves, etc.

if you decide not to drive out to all three national parks on the two days on your schedule it would make a good day with minimal traveling.
Fuzzy Dunlop
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AG
Noted. Tha.ks for the advice!
AggieOO
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Quote:

Days 4 and 5 - Zion NP, Bryce Canyon NP, and Arches Nat'l Monument
3 parks in 2 days, you won't be doing much (any) hiking. but guessing you already know that.
drewbie96
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AG
Yeah, that was my thinking. Seems like a lot of car time.
AgRyan04
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I agree with the last couple of posts and would strongly recommend dropping Arches....St. George to Moab is 5 hours each way (without accounting for trailer time).
That's a full day of driving on it's own.

If you're doing Zion, Bryce, and Arches in 2 days minus your 10 hours of driving minus whatever time it takes to get between Zion and Bryce (~1.5 hours each way)....you'll only get a couple hours in each park.

At least if you cut off Arches you'll get a full day in Zion and a full day in Bryce.

If you're just 100% dead set on Arches, I'd at least drop one of the two days at the Grand Canyon and reallocate it to the Utah parks. You'll still be rushing through those parks though.
Fuzzy Dunlop
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AG
I agree with all of you regarding the Arches. Arches is 5 hours from St. George. I don't see that happening on this trip unless we move things around. We'll have to hit it on another trip.
Martin87
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AG
Can combine Tombstone with a visit to Kartchner Caverns. It is a bit different than Carlsbad and you will need reservations. Tombstone probably will not take all day. Bisbee is about 30 min from Tombstone and has some good mine tours - underground - and you can see an open pit copper mine there also.
milner79
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Fuzzy, love the family vacation and appreciate the aggressive schedule. However, you know you attempting to cover a lot of ground - and some stunningly beautiful place - in a limited amount of time. This summer, on a modified schedule to yours, we did Grand Canyon North Rim, Bryce and Zion. Here are some thoughts:

  • Not sure why you are going all the way to St. George, given that the Utah parks you want to visit can all be accessed from well east of St. George. Consider looking for a place to park the trailer in Kanab or somewhere up along 89. That way, you could enter Zion from the east (pretty and not to be missed) and without your trailer you would not have to worry about the tunnel. Mt. Carmel Junction is just a collection of gas stations and curio shops, but I think there are some RV parks there perhaps worth looking into.
  • We only spent a day in Bryce and pretty much got squashed on our hiking into the canyon because of lightening concerns. It was cool to walk along the rim, but I cannot comment of hiking into the canyon and among the hoodoos.
  • Of the places we visited, Zion is the one I wish we had devoted more time to. Overcrowded, but beautiful. They use a shuttle bus system to move people into the popular spots in the canyon. Mention above was of a reservation system for the shuttles, but when we were there, they had eliminated that; you just waited in line till your turn to catch the shuttle. Check their website to be certain.
  • One of the big attractions is hiking into the slot canyon where the Virgin River comes gushing into the canyon. For that, rental of special boots and hiking sticks is recommended. Places in adjoining Springdale have rentals. Three-tiered Emerald Pools trail is another popular place. Just hanging out under this huge cottonwood at Zion Lodge is not a bad way to catch your breath.
  • Speaking of Springdale, Zion Brewery is just outside the park's west entrance, if that is of interest to you.
  • It was mentioned above that if you are not hiking into the Grand Canyon, no need to spend much time there. That may be true, but you don't want to miss the canyon and I will put in a plug for the North Rim. We stayed in one of the cabins, but there is a campground there also, as I'm sure you know. There are some campgrounds outside the North Rim entrance as well, where again, you could park your RV and then venture into the park. Consider Jacob Lake campground at the intersection of 89A and 67 (the road into the park). If I was going to stay there or somewhere else outside the park, I'd get up the next day, drive into the park, take a left on Cape Royal Road (well before getting to campground/lodge) and go see the vistas at both Point Imperial and Cape Royal. I disagree with the earlier poster; the views from North Rim are stunning. After that, you could chose to go down to the lodge, hang out on the patio with a drink or a meal. There is plenty of information out there about hikes of varying lengths that you can take from the North Rim. As mentioned by someone, you do not have to go all the way to the river to get the canyon experience.
  • North Rim is not open year-round - only summer dates - so make sure your schedule and the park's mesh.
  • I don't know anything about Arches. But again, you are trying to cover a lot of ground there in a limited time.
  • If you go to all these parks, consider an annual pass. Given the price of single park admission (which I don't begrudge them, by the way), I bought the pass and saved money over paying for three separate park admissions. I'm older than you and bought a lifetime Old Man's Pass (they don't call it that), so any National Park I go to from now on is free admission.





Fuzzy Dunlop
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AG
Fuzzy Dunlop
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AG
Quick update:

Just pulled in to Mt. Carmel Jct which is about 12 miles from Zion. We secured an RV spot at Thunderbird East Lodge which is about 10 back in spots. One other RV is here right now.

Took a good 3 days to get here from E TX. Spent the first night in Tucumcari. We headed to Flagstaff next and went through the Petrified National Forest on the way. A great detour that took about 2 to 3 hours.

Left Flagstaff this morning and made Mt Carmel about 1:30 this afternoon. Just got back k to camp from Zion. We'll be hiking the narrows early tomorrow.
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