Off-Roading & Hiking Southwest National Parks

Arrival in Las Vegas, individual transfer from airport to hotel.

Your guide will welcome you at the hotel. We pick up our vehicles in Las Vegas and head out through the Mohave Desert to the Colorado Plateau, spending the afternoon hiking over petrified sand dunes, past lava tubes, and over moqui marbles. Then there is a chance to wade in the remote Narrows of Kanarra Creek (water shoes and poles required).

Accommodation: Ramada St. George or similar

One of the West’s most iconic hikes is Angel’s Landing in Zion National Park, which is famous for its sheer, dark red sandstone towers carved by the Virgin River. Today we climb up Walter’s Wiggle to the Saddle, where you may choose to continue on the Via Ferrata and to the top of Angel’s Landing (this section is self guided). Then, we will drive a remote desert track through Zion’s wilderness to the small Mormon settlement of Kanab.

Desert roads lead us through changing vegetation from the desert sagebrush up to beautiful ponderosas of the high plateau along the Grand Canyon North Rim. Maybe we spot the endemic Kaibab Squirrel, isolated by the surrounding desert, or encounter deer, elk or even bear. Suddenly the land opens up into the immensity of Grand Canyon. A sparsely used trail is today’s hike – the Rainbow Rim Trail. We are granted ever changing sweeping views over the Grand Canyon as we hike along its rim. Tonight, we camp near Timp Point in utter solitude and silence with the most amazing stargazing. We provide the equipment, the food, and the water for this unforgettable night.

We start our day with a beautiful sunrise over the Grand Canyon. There is a chance to take a shower at a local campground (approx. $5 pp). Back in the desert we leave the pavement behind to find the longest slot canyon in North America: The Buckskin Gulch. Here you have the opportunity to hike the canyon (self-guided). 12 miles of 500-foot deep, dark Narrows beckon (the Narrows requires proper footwear / poles due to mud). On to our next highlight: Vermillion Cliffs National Monument. This is a rarely visited park due to the lack of infrastructure or roads. The park is famous for its amazing rock formation, “The Wave”. While “The Wave” is accessible by permit only, many areas are open for visitation without permits. Follow your guide along the 4x4 desert tracks for a second night of camping in amazing wilderness. Expect amazing photography as we explore this trail-less rock splendour in the soft evening light.

Maybe you want to enjoy the soft morning light before we break camp. Our adventure continues through the immense space of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. A remote desert road takes us north towards Bryce Canyon. The afternoon is spent at Bryce Canyon, one of the most beautiful national parks of the Southwest. Enjoy an amazing hike through the multi coloured stone towers of Bryce.

Sunrise is not to be missed and those wanting to get up early should head out to Bryce Point. Our next
destination is Kodachrome State Park where we hike far away from the crowds. Returning to the great desert wilderness of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument we head down the Hole in the Rock Road, a historic track carved out by Mormon settlers traveling by covered wagon. Here we can enjoy a great scramble through a fun, narrow, and twisted Slot Canyon. Our hotel is in the small town of Escalante in the midst of splendid desert country.

Today, another great adventure awaits – the remote Burr Trail. A dirt track cuts through Capitol Reef to the secluded Notom Bottom Road. We enjoy expansive views over the Henry Mountains and the monocline. North of here we explore and hike a rarely visited slot canyons in the San Rafael Reef. Our hotel is in the sleepy town of Green River.

A quick drive brings us to Arches National Park. Here sandstone is layered above thick salt deposits. This leads to instability in the rock, which in turn leads to cracks and erosion. Arches National Park has the world’s largest collection of rock arches with over 2000 currently recorded. We will explore Park Avenue, The Windows, and then hike to the famous Delicate Arch, truly an unforgettable sight. The afternoon finds us at nearby Canyonlands National Park. A short scramble leads to Mesa Arch, before we drive the amazing one lane desert track of the Shafer Trail into the canyon of the Colorado River. We are rewarded with breathtaking views. Our hotel is in the small farming town of Monticello.

We head south towards our next destination: Natural Bridges National Monument. This canyon is home to 3 massive stone bridges. First, we will follow a steep slick rock trail descending to Sipapu Bridge. Walking in the canyon we soon reach massive Kachina Bridge covered in rock art. A dirt track leads down the Moqui Dugway to Monument Valley. You have a chance to take a jeep tour (optional, starting at $75 pp) or drive the scenic road yourself. Tonight we stay in the historic Thunderbird Lodge at Chinle, an old trading post built in 1896.

We embark on a fantastic 2-day trek through Canyon de Chelly. The canyon is holy to the Navajo, with several families still living here today. In every alcove and on nearly every wall we find the ruins and rock art representing over 5000 years of inhabitance. To enter the canyon we descend an old stock trail into the twisted Canyon del Muerto. Trekking along the sandy wash we walk past Navajo farms and orchards scattered amongst beautiful 800-year-old Anasazi ruins and numerous rock art panels. There is no need to carry more than you daypack, as the local Navajo crew will bring our camping gear into the farm where we will spend the night. There is a chance to climb the ancient slick rock trails surrounding our camp tonight.

After a hearty camp breakfast we continue our trek. We soon reach the confluence with Canyon de Chelly and head up canyon to the iconic White House Ruin. Here we say goodbye to our local guides as our last highlight awaits: the Grand Canyon.

The Grand Canyon is one of the largest canyons in the world, at 450km long, 1600 m deep, and 16 km wide. The Colorado River has carved the canyon through layers of red sandstone, some of them 2 billion years old. The views from the south rim are spectacular. We have all day to spend at this amazing sight with a choice of hikes, from easy to hard (hikes in Grand Canyon National Park are self-guided due to permit regulations).

The morning is at your leisure with the option to take a helicopter flight and enjoy the Grand Canyon from the air (optional starting at $225). In the afternoon we head back to Las Vegas via Route 66 with a stop at Seligman for some last-minute souvenir shopping. We return our vehicles. Our hotel is near the strip.

End of the tour.