Planning a 6 day trip this summer starting from Colorado Springs (?) and going to some of the national parks in southern Utah. Looking for advise from some of you colorado people as to what roads to take and can this be done without being in the saddle all day. The friends im going with are the stop and smell the roses type and dont want to be rushed. im looking to do a big loop and coming back to the springs if possible. also i dont have to leave from the springs if there is a better way its just that we were going to have that as a meet point.[/align]

 

I don't know about the Utah trip, but I do know you can spend a month in CO. and still not see everything. A group of us from Iowa have taken three trips to CO. and still want to go back. Make sure you go up Pikes Peak, Mount Evans,(the highest paved road in the US) and across the rocky mountains not to mention all the other mountain passes. Have fun, Dahog

 

hammer1... Have made this ride. It is outstanding. You're going to have some challenges seeing the great parks of southern Utah, stopping to smell the roses,and returning to the Springs in six days. The distances are not insignificant. But this trip is easy if you can crank out at least250-350 mile days.

Example...

Day #1 Take 160 over Wolf Creek Pass to Durango.
Day #2 Pass through Cortez to Blanding, UT. Take 95 through the Glen Canyon area to Hanksville, then 24 to Torrey.
Day #3 Ride the great UT 12 to Panguitch, then on to either Zion or Cedar Breaks.

There's much to see along the way, but getting all the way to the great Zion will take hours in the saddle.

Return via the north through Moab and CO 50, or south through Grand Canyon country. May want to head north through Moab. Southern Utah is HOT in the summer.

 

Here are two pictures of the area. The first is on 95 overlooking the canyon and a bridge that spans the northern tip of lake Powell. This road has sweeping, serpentine turns that one can ride at high speeds and the views are spectacular.

The next photo was taken on a hike at Arches. Sometimes you just have to get off and walk.



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Here's some places I'v ridden to and enjoyed.

1. Four Corners.

2. Monument Valley.

3. Medicine Hat, AZ

4. Page, AZ

5. Grand Staircase/Escalante NP

6. Zion NP, Bryce Canyon NP, Arches NP

7. Moab

 

Being from Utah, I do know one thing, Sounthern Utah is hot as Hell in the middle of the summer, we went the end of May and it was just getting really hot in the middle of the day. Plan to go before the end of June.