Visit to Bryce Canyon, Utah

[Scopegeek]

As part of our trip to Zion National Park, Cindy and I made a day trip to Bryce Canyon National Park. We left our TM 3124KB at Zion rather than take it through the tunnel on Hwy 9 in Zion. There's a $15 charge each way for trailers and oversized vehicles going through the tunnel from the valley floor at Zion NP to Mt Carmel Junction to the east. There are campgrounds in and near Bryce Canyon, but since we weren't going to do any hiking, we just made a day trip and returned to our TM at Watchman Campgrounds at Zion NP.

Below are just a few of the unusual sites that can be seen at Bryce Canyon National Park.

[2blueranger]

Thanks for sharing your pictures. I, for one, really enjoyed them. Happy Camping

[Catawbalea]

Is there a charge from Bryce to Zion? We would be coming from Grand Canyon area.
Thanks for the tip.

[Scopegeek]

If you travel from Mt. Carmel Junction to the Visitor's Center at Zion you must travel through a tunnel that was built in the 30's. Although it is two lanes, the walls round off near the top. With our TMs, the concern is that the lanes are narrow and a trailer would cross over the centerline in the curves that are in the tunnel. There is a fee both ways because they stop traffic from the opposite direction while trailers and oversized vehicles are in the tunnel.

[Catawbalea]

Thanks for the quick reply. We want to see both. I gather there is no other route. We sure must plan ahead.

[Scopegeek]

Catawbalea - there is another route that goes up and over to Cedar City and then back down I-15 to the Zion exit. Kolob Canyon - another part of Zion NP is in that area north of the main park and may be worth a stop and view. I imagine this route would add at least an additional hour or more to the trip between the two parks. It might be worth calling Zion NP and asking the Rangers about the actual restriction. I didn't pursue it since I wasn't interested in taking my TM over to Bryce.

[Catawbalea]

We will print your reply and save it for our trip planning file. Thanks again.

[Scopegeek]

You are most welcome. There are a lot of sites to see out here. Utah has more National Parks than any other state, I believe. Canyonlands, Arches, Capital Reef, Cedar Breaks National Monument, and Natural Bridges are just a few of them. The North Rim of the Grand Canyon isn't far. In fact, in June the Las Vegas Astronomical Society participates in a 3-night public star party at the North Rim Lodge. It's a great time for us to share our love of the night sky with the public. I take my scope with me when I visit the National Parks, because the skies are normally quite dark in the parks. I'm sure you'll have a great time visiting the parks out here.

[Catawbalea]

You have a job with the C of C for Utah? chuckle
I keep telling Pennsylvanians that if our state were moved out West (I used to be a proud westerner) it would be one big national park. Not counting battlefields and historical sites the best we can do is a national forest.
I checked the Zion web site and that $15 for the tunnel is good for two trips over 7 days.
Our scopes would be a bit big so such a long trip. We have a nice place to do some gazing if the neighbor's darn night light would burn out.

[Scopegeek]

Since the edit function isn't working, I've added this posting to invite you to see additional photos on Doug W's TrailManor Photo Gallery at http://tmphotos.org/modules/xoopsgalleryv2/index.php?g2_itemId=613. Drop by and give them a look.