14 Day Round Trip From Denver Options

[Jerry S.]

Just a quick note before you finalized your route:

I checked the Zion National Park website concerning the "too big for the tunnel" problem. The site says that RVs over 40' long and/or over 13'1" tall cannot fit through the tunnel at all. So, if your rental RV is "only" 40' long and less than 13'1" tall, you may be able to fit through the tunnel. Personally, I'd error on the side of safety.

Even if you can't take the more direct route from Zion to Bryce Canyon National Park due to the size of your RV, you should still take the longer route (UT9 to UT17 to I15 to UT14 to US89 to UT12) and visit Bryce. You should be able to do the longer route in about 3 hours unless you take a 1-2 hour side trip through Cedar Breaks National Monument. There are 3 fantastic viewpoints from above 10,000' elevation. CBNM is just off UT14 about 20 miles west of Cedar City, UT.

[Jerry S.]

Hey Adam,

You haven't posted in a couple weeks. Are you still making plans for your summer trip? Do you need any more suggestions and/or advice?

[adamabz]

Hey Adam,

You haven't posted in a couple weeks. Are you still making plans for your summer trip? Do you need any more suggestions and/or advice?

Hi Jerry, the other guys that are coming with me are away on vacation, so planning on hold for a month.
If i need more advice which Im sure i will i will post.
Thank Adam.

[jamarynn1]

Just a quick note before you finalized your route:

I checked the Zion National Park website concerning the "too big for the tunnel" problem. The site says that RVs over 40' long and/or over 13'1" tall cannot fit through the tunnel at all. So, if your rental RV is "only" 40' long and less than 13'1" tall, you may be able to fit through the tunnel. Personally, I'd error on the side of safety.

You want to be darned careful that you're within the length and height restrictions, because if you get up there to the mouth of the tunnel and the attendant won't let you through, there's no place to turn around. I don't know what they do when that happens. I was talking to a lady in the park who said that the guys at the park entry told her that she was OK to go through, and she paid the fee (you must pay a fee because they have to stop traffic coming from the other direction, as you have to drive down the middle of the tunnel) and when she got to the mouth of the tunnel, the attendant refused her entry. She argued with him and showed him her permit and he reluctantly let her through. She said she was sweating bricks at the fear he'd refuse to let her go. We're 39' long and 13'1" high and there's NO WAY we'd try that. It's fun driving through in a truck, though.

[Jerry S.]

Hi Adam,

Even though you are not in need of any more advice/suggestions right now, I'll just continue with my ideas while I have the time. By the end of this month, I am hoping to be busy with my own planning.

Three weeks ago we had you at the Grand Canyon. Hopefully, you will be able to get an RV site at the Grand Canyon Trailer Park in the national park. From there you should be able to make it to Las Vegas in 5 hours or so. That will allow you enough time to stop and see Hoover Dam on the way. As previously suggested, I think the Circus Circus KOA is your best bet in Las Vegas for somebody without a car. From Las Vegas it's on to Zion National Park. Again, if you can, try to get into Zion Canyon Campground and RV Park in Springdale, UT. It is just outside ZNP and withing walking distance of the ZNP Visitor Center. If you go from ZNP to Bryce Canyon National Park, I would suggest you try to get a reservation as Ruby's Inn Campground a few miles outside BCNP. During the summer season there is a shuttle bus that goes from Ruby's to the national park and you can use it to see the entire park. Again, you won't need to be driving the 40' RV through the national park trying to find parking in the often full overlook parking lots.

If you decide to go east from Bryce to Capital Reef NP and then further east to Canyonlands NP and Arches NP, I have RV park suggestions for those areas also.

[nedmtnman]

You want to be darned careful that you're within the length and height restrictions, because if you get up there to the mouth of the tunnel and the attendant won't let you through, there's no place to turn around. I don't know what they do when that happens. I was talking to a lady in the park who said that the guys at the park entry told her that she was OK to go through, and she paid the fee (you must pay a fee because they have to stop traffic coming from the other direction, as you have to drive down the middle of the tunnel) and when she got to the mouth of the tunnel, the attendant refused her entry. She argued with him and showed him her permit and he reluctantly let her through. She said she was sweating bricks at the fear he'd refuse to let her go. We're 39' long and 13'1" high and there's NO WAY we'd try that. It's fun driving through in a truck, though.

When you enter the park the gate attendant has a set of lines drawn on the road that measures the length of your rig. That is how they determine if you are legal. If you are within the lines you are ok. If over the lines they tell you you can't go and put a sticker on your windshield.

[edcornflake]

I really like reading all the collaborative planning being done here. In a few years when my kids are old enough to appreciate it, I'm hoping to drive from NJ to Yellowstone with plenty of historic/scenic stops along the way (I mentioned this as a possibility in another thread) and will be looking for similar support from my RVParkReview friends!

Adam,
When you finish with this trip, i'd love to see a link to pictures! Congrats on your decision to take such a splendid vacation in the US.

[rkw99]

I really like reading all the collaborative planning being done here. In a few years when my kids are old enough to appreciate it, I'm hoping to drive from NJ to Yellowstone with plenty of historic/scenic stops along the way (I mentioned this as a possibility in another thread) and will be looking for similar support from my RVParkReview friends!

Adam,
When you finish with this trip, i'd love to see a link to pictures! Congrats on your decision to take such a splendid vacation in the US.

Ed, when you plan your trip make sure to post your route. because we too are waiting till our kids are old enough to appreciate Yellowstone (but not too old to be bored with it). And we are in NJ also! We stay pretty local for now.

[edcornflake]

Ed, when you plan your trip make sure to post your route. because we too are waiting till our kids are old enough to appreciate Yellowstone (but not too old to be bored with it). And we are in NJ also! We stay pretty local for now.

RKW, I absoluty will do that. I think we're going back to WDW in Florida next year (pretty straight shot down 95). I'm hoping that the year after that will be the time to take 2 + weeks off and see a whole big bunch of the country (as much as a non retired RVer can see in 2 weeks, anyway).