A Week in the Southwest

[dvbl]

Bryce in June

A quick note about Bryce. I went there in early June a few years ago, and some of the trails were closed. The rangers explained to us that those trails in Bryce take a severe beating when the winter snows start to melt. Gravel/pebble/dirt slide city. Takes a while for them to clean up the trails. Even on some of the open trails, we had to negotiate the mini pebble avalanches.

Oh yeah, one more thing...go to Bryce anyway.

 

[Bob]

Kit Kat Ranch ?

Nice place, nearer to Lake Tahoe

 

[miehoff]

One more general question:

I do appreciate the helpful info. Thanks.

If I want to make last minute plans, how easy is it to find campsites (both primitive and car accessible)? I might not get my plan together until just before I leave (first or second week in June).

Should I worry about getting turned down for a campsite when I arrive at the parks?

 

[sli74]

I had no problems getting last minute camping spots at Bryce but did have an issue at Zion and had to drive to a place 30 minutes away. I had reservations at Paria for backcountry camping and recommend getting permits ahead of time for something like that . . .

sli74

 

[markv]

Paria camping

Hey Edelweiss, with your Buckskin/Paria itinerary, i'd recommend for nights #2 and 3 going a short distance (perhaps a mile or less) upstream from the Confluence. On a bench on the left as the river takes a sharp turn, there is a campsite perhaps 15 ft. or so above the river. I thought it was a lot nicer than the mucky area around the confluence, and you're closer to a spring there. (Wall Spring? i gotta find the old map of this to confirm these details...but point is if you're exploring upstream the next day anyway, it's worth it to go a little past Confluence before camping.) Get permits in advance for sure for Paria/Buckskin.

Such a great area. And Flagstaff is a great town to rest at between hikes. Check out Beaver Street Brewpub.

 

[audrey]

Aaron,

I suggest that as your plans firm up, you keep an eye online on the NPS campgrounds availability, at http://www.recreation.gov/

Then if you see them dwindling you can always make a reservation. I checked the Watchman campground in Zion and there are about 50 tentsites available throughout June.

If the heat gets to you, there are plenty of high-elevation hikes, such as the Pine Mountains west of Zion, the Brian Head/Cedar Breaks area, the Aquarius Plateau north of Escalante.