Road Trip, 4 Weeks, Starting Point: Las Vegas. Any Suggestions?

J

jfive

Joined
Feb 12, 2006
Messages
201
Hey Folks,

today I don't want to talk about knives but my upcoming journey to the united states starting probably at the end of august - it's going to be a last minute trip :). Anyway, the basic information:

3-4 people (22-24 years of age),
a car,
starting point las vegas,
4 weeks.

What should we visit?

It's most likely going to be a round trip so we can see as much as possible. Our focus seems to be on the outdoors - like national parks, maybe deserts or other cool places - but is not restricted to them.
So where should we go to enjoy the country? Arizona? Utah? Nevada? Oregon? Maybe even New Mexico (white sands) or Colorado?
California should be included but since we've already been there 2 times (San Diego, L.A., San Francisco, Yosemite) we wouldn't mind not to spend most of the time there. Still I guess there are a lot more interesting places to visit.

So I'd appreciate all kind of input! If you guys have good ideas or places to be please share them with me! Of course I wouldn't mind if there are some knife stores along the road :D


Another thing I wonder about: After this road trip I'm going to be in Wichita, Kansas. What would be the best (and reasonable priced) way to get to Houston, Texas? Since I won't have a car, this is no option. I heard Greyhound bus underwent some change of image and is now pretty expensive :thumbdn:. Even I never liked Greyhound it was a frequently used transportation system when I was back in the states - due to the cheap tickets and the lack of an own car :D. What am I supposed to do now:(?
 
August in the Southwest is ~very~ HOT. I'd head farther north and higher up where temps will be cooler. Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and stay up in the mountains. Colorado is nice weather in August, in the mountains, but it's very crowded during the summer.
Come back and visit New Mexico in April (Spring) or September (Fall). :thumbup:

After this road trip I'm going to be in Wichita, Kansas. What would be the best (and reasonable priced) way to get to Houston, Texas?
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Rental car prices are reasonable in the US. Generally speaking, driving yourself is the most enjoyable, affordable, practical, and convenient way to travel in the US. :thumbup:
 
Yeah, August will be a bit warm. Still it's hard to beat Utah and Arizona for outdoor activities. Rent a 4wd SUV and head to Utah, there are 5 National Parks and millions of square KM of open space. If you want suggestions on an itinerary let me know. Will you want to hike? Camp?

Win
 
I'd opt for a lap around Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon. Head northeast out of Vegas through St. George and then methodically pick your way through Zion (overnight at the lodge if you can), Bryce Canyon, the North Rim of the Grand Canyon (a cabin here would be awesome as well), Grand Staircase-Escalante Nat'l Monument, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands National Park. I would spend the greater part of the trip exploring this stretch. From there, your journey will take you south to Bullfrog and across Lake Powell on the car ferry. On the south side of Lake Powell, the magnificence continues with Monument Valley being a must see. Then you can loop around to Canyon de Chelly, Petrified Forest, Meteor Crater, Sunset Crater and maybe Wupatki. By this time, the 7500 ft elevation of Flagstaff will be a welcome relief. After a jaunt down to Sedona for a couple days you can head back north, retrace a bit of famed Route 66 and then complete the loop up 93 to the Hoover Dam. Some might be tempted to also visit the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on the latter half of this trip, but I'd advise against it. It's just too crowded to be the least bit enjoyable.

I could happily spend all four weeks on this itinerary alone, but you could just as easily do it in two if you want to save some time for other southwestern sites. Hire a reliable car, travel with lots of water and have plenty of spare memory cards for your camera. :)
 
Bronco said:
I'd opt for a lap around Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon. Head northeast out of Vegas through St. George and then methodically pick your way through Zion (overnight at the lodge if you can), Bryce Canyon, the North Rim of the Grand Canyon (a cabin here would be awesome as well), Grand Staircase-Escalante Nat'l Monument, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands National Park. I would spend the greater part of the trip exploring this stretch. From there, your journey will take you south to Bullfrog and across Lake Powell on the car ferry. On the south side of Lake Powell, the magnificence continues with Monument Valley being a must see. Then you can loop around to Canyon de Chelly, Petrified Forest, Meteor Crater, Sunset Crater and maybe Wupatki. By this time, the 7500 ft elevation of Flagstaff will be a welcome relief. After a jaunt down to Sedona for a couple days you can head back north, retrace a bit of famed Route 66 and then complete the loop up 93 to the Hoover Dam. Some might be tempted to also visit the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on the latter half of this trip, but I'd advise against it. It's just too crowded to be the least bit enjoyable.

I could happily spend all four weeks on this itinerary alone, but you could just as easily do it in two if you want to save some time for other southwestern sites. Hire a reliable car, travel with lots of water and have plenty of spare memory cards for your camera. :)
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Perfect. I couldn't improve on this with a week's research.
 
I was stationed at 29 Palms when I was in the Marine Corps and Joshua Tree is pretty cool. If you don't want to experience the shows and rental machine guns and feminine - ahem - delights of Las Vegas, then you're pretty much going to be looking at rocks.

I live in Houston, so do you need things to do in Houston or what?
 
Thanks guys for your support, especially bronco!! That was what I had in mind ;).
Joshua Tree National Park looks pretty sweet as well so thanks totally judy ;). I don't care too much about other german visitors since we would like to experience the united states, it's countryside and people. Plus I need to improve my english conversation skills ;). But of course it's nice to exchange thoughts with other people that are from the same country.

@ TimberWolf7.62: Since I'm gonna be in Kansas after these 4 weeks I think can skip the gun rental :). I promised one of my friends to visit a strip club in vegas if he joins our journey...but i don't care much about "feminine delights" that gonna cost me :D.
The reason for Houston is that I always try to see as much as possible when I come to the united states. So since I have never been to texas (or even close) and i heard a lot of good stuff about it so I would like to check it out...and i thought houston might be a good idea. Or would you disagree? If you have some advise please share it with me :)

@Bob W
Our road trip will be mainly in september so I hope we won't experience too much heat. You are right rental car prices are reasonable in the states...but you need to be over 25...otherwise the insurance is preeeeetty expensive.
 
Depends on what you want to see. I think one of the main Houston attractions is the NASA Space Center http://www.spacecenter.org/ You can even go into Mission Control. Plenty of nightclubs, concerts, etc if you want to party. Galveston Island is 45 minutes from Houston with nice beaches (yeah, there will be plenty of bikinis on the beach - September is usually 90 degrees).

If you've never been to New Orleans, that should be on your list, although during Mardi Gras would be prime time (usually February and March). The little mining towns west of Denver are cool for some of the old West flavor. Key West is the best example of an alcohol-soaked beach town. NYC is awesome.
 
jfive, happy to be of assistance. If this truly does sound like something you'd like to do, I'd recommend you pick up a DeLorme Utah atlas as a next step:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0899332552?ie=UTF8&force-full-site=1

Benchmark Maps makes one that's equally good. These are great for helping lay out your itinerary and for doing some pre-trip exploration. They're also available for Arizona. Once you've put together a general plan, we can offer further tips and advice. Also, more information regarding your group's particular likes (i.e. serious backpacking, day hiking, photography, etc.) would enable us to recommend which parks have the most to offer you.

And don't be afraid to consider stayovers in some of the smaller towns, particularly in south central Utah. Places like Boulder and Glendale are barely dots on the map, but have some of the best restaurants and bed & breakfasts around. I'm not talking about 5 star amenities, but rather about cleanliness, comfort and friendliness. And whatever the overall trip itinerary, be sure to discuss the upcoming legs of the journey with the local innkeepers and restaurant owners. Some of the most scenic spots aren't necessarily the most well advertised and allowing for the occasional detour is well advised. The Burr Trail Scenic Byway is one such place that immediately comes to mind. Another is the section of Route 12 between Torrey and Boulder. This very well maintained stretch of two lane highway skirts the eastern flank of Boulder Mountain and meanders through some beautiful aspen groves at elevations up to 9400'.
 
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@TimberWolf7.62
At the moment I'm not quite sure if I'll make it to Texas because of the long distance. Texas was just an idea maybe it turns out that I won't have enough time to travel from KS to TX and back again. So maybe I need to consider some places around Wichita which are closer.
New Orleans sounds definitely nice but I gonna keep this in mind for another journey which is probably coming up in 2012 or 2013.

@bronco

Sure it sounds like fun so why shouldn't I take your advice ?! :) I really appreciate it because it's difficult to estimate what one need to visit by consulting google maps :D.
My group consists of 1 girl + 2-3 boys. We would like to enjoy nature but I guess we aren't looking for big hikes and stuff. Since we are probably going to use the car every day we are no backpackers either :). Sounds pretty lame doesn't it? But like I said we are going to see as much as possible in a reasonable time.
Unfortunately I'm quite busy at the moment so I don't know when I will be able to fly to the states. Therefore I can't give you a precise general plan right now :(.

And whatever the overall trip itinerary, be sure to discuss the upcoming legs of the journey with the local innkeepers and restaurant owners.
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That's most certainly a good idea. It reminds me of funny situations though when we used to talk to Americans (in LA / Washington / San Francisco....) about our itinerary and they were always like "OH dude you better avoid that spot....it's not safe". We were grateful about those advises but in some cases we had to at least cross those places to get to our destination and we always found out that it wasn't (apparently) that dangerous at all. Just wanted to share that because it always made us smile ;).
 
Bronco's giving some good advise, I live in SW Utah and traveled most of the area, if you have any specific ???. Here are some suggestions to help you plan.

Win

Vehicle: full size SUV for 4 people. You'll be able to see more using some "Backways"

Road atlas: Benchmark, seems more detailed than Delorme

Books, all on Amazon: Michael Kelsey "Hiking the Colorado Plateau" this is a must!! even if you don't plan to hike a lot
Charles Wells "Guide to Moab, UT Backroads" a great asset for that area, all rated for difficulty
Laurent Martres: photographing the Southwest, several books.

Website: www.bogley.com all activities related to being outdoors in Utah. great for information
http://www.zionnational-park.com/ my friends Bo and Tanya have a great site for Zion, Bryce, Grand Staircase

Win

I have numerous albums on SW Utah: http://winpics.fototime.com/Zion N.P. - Observation Pt
 
4 weeks? In August? I'd head north.

Salt Lake City, Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Helena (MT), Salmon (ID), Cour'd Alene (ID), Seattle, Portland, Drive down the coast to San Francisco, Yosemite, Mono Lake and take 395 south to Death Valley, and back to Vegas.

You could see the Grand Canyon, Park City, the Wind River Range, the Salmon River Gorge, two Continental Divides, Mt St Helens, dozens of State parks, wine country in WA and CA, Coastal redwoods, Sequoia, the Pacific Ocean, the Mojave Desert, Mt Whitney, Gold Rush country, and just about everything that makes the West what it is. I can't even begin to list everything along that route.
 
Colorado is gorgeous in August.
Houston is very hot and humid.
Airtran has one-way flights from Wichita to Houston starting at $114, depending on which day of the week you're flying out.
Oklahoma City - a 2 hour drive south of Wichita has some good museums (cowboy hall of fame), an interesting business district for restaurants and the occasional microbrewery, and a really good steakhouse (Cattleman's).
Kansas City (3 1/2 hour drive North East of Wichita) has some decent architecture, museums, camping, hiking, and food/breweries within an hour or so as well.
 
Bronco said:
I'd opt for a lap around Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon. Head northeast out of Vegas through St. George and then methodically pick your way through Zion (overnight at the lodge if you can), Bryce Canyon, the North Rim of the Grand Canyon (a cabin here would be awesome as well), Grand Staircase-Escalante Nat'l Monument, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands National Park. I would spend the greater part of the trip exploring this stretch. From there, your journey will take you south to Bullfrog and across Lake Powell on the car ferry. On the south side of Lake Powell, the magnificence continues with Monument Valley being a must see. Then you can loop around to Canyon de Chelly, Petrified Forest, Meteor Crater, Sunset Crater and maybe Wupatki. By this time, the 7500 ft elevation of Flagstaff will be a welcome relief. After a jaunt down to Sedona for a couple days you can head back north, retrace a bit of famed Route 66 and then complete the loop up 93 to the Hoover Dam. Some might be tempted to also visit the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on the latter half of this trip, but I'd advise against it. It's just too crowded to be the least bit enjoyable.

I could happily spend all four weeks on this itinerary alone, but you could just as easily do it in two if you want to save some time for other southwestern sites. Hire a reliable car, travel with lots of water and have plenty of spare memory cards for your camera. :)
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Got to agreee with Bronco and OP. Was lucky to do this once starting from Bastidville about 30 years ago with a good friend. Camped the whole time. One of those memories of a life time. You might be able to squeeze in Yellowstone etc in four weeks. It just depends on how much off roading you do.

Then ya gotta do it again a few years. 2 weeks in Glacier Waterton minimum, Lake Louise and the Canadian Rockies are awesome along with Glacier. (It will be a lot cooler up there in August so be prepared for snow and 25 to 30 degrees if you are hiking/camping.)
 
Thank you very much guys!!! You helped us a lot.

You trip is probably going to be: san diego - phoenix - either tucson/white sands or alburquerque - up north to colorado - utah - and back to las vegas.

time frame: 20 days

i don't know how much time we really need to cover these places. i will keep your ideas in mind (or on paper :D) and if you have any thoughts please share them with me.

Since the point of departure has changed - now it's San Diego - I would like to know if there is anything worth visiting between SD and Phoenix.
 
jfive said:
either tucson/white sands or alburquerque
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White Sands is cool, but it's not really a "spend the whole day there" thing. I was only in Albuquerque once, so I can't speak much for that area, but the petroglyphs nearby make for a cool half-day hike.

As for Tucson, there's a few very cool places to see. There's Colossal Cave, the Titan Missile museum (decommissioned nuke site), the Pima Air/Space museum, and the Desert Museum, a zoo with all the wildlife in their natural habitat. You could do 2 in a day, but probably not 3, definitely not 4.

I would like to know if there is anything worth visiting between SD and Phoenix.
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Not exactly on-the-way if you're taking the most direct route, but there is that giant crack in the ground called the Grand Canyon. There's also the meteor crater. Otherwise, there's not much inbetween SD and Phoenix. There's some sand dunes, but unless you're taking an ATV or dune buggy with you, you'll see all you need to from the car.
 
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