Hiking Utah's National Parks

Welcome to Las Vegas! Your trip starts with a Welcome Meeting at 6pm followed by a welcome dinner where you will get to meet your fellow travellers. After dinner, you might like to hit the shops, ride a rooftop roller coaster or simply wander along the Strip, soaking up the glitz and glamour. Tomorrow is an early start for an adventurous and active day, so make it a (relatively) early night.

You’ll be up bright and early this morning for the drive to Zion National Park. After you arrive in Springdale, your base for next two nights, check into your accommodation, grab lunch and head towards Zion National Park for your first hike of the trip. Warm up with a gentle leader-led orientation of the park, and an easy walk to the lower end of the Emerald Pools, passing sparkling waterfalls and streams along the way. Continue on a more difficult trail to the upper section, checking out another waterfall on the way to Zion's 'beach'. This afternoon, you’ll have some free time to relax at your accommodation or perhaps head out and enjoy dinner at one of the restaurants in town.

Today is an early start for another, longer hike in Zion and one that’s worth getting up early for. In fact, this is one of Zion’s most iconic walks, the famous half-day Angels Landing hike (up to Scout’s Lookout). The stunning views of Zion Canyon's 270-million-year-old rock layers will take you back in time to the Triassic period when this section of the Colorado Plateau was just a flat basin at sea level. Just a heads up, there are some sheer drops and a narrow-ish path you will have to cross, but don’t worry, anyone in an average physical condition can make this trek. However, it can be mentally challenging with its steep switchbacks and sheer drop-offs. There are chains bolted into the cliff to provide secure handholds on the final stretch, but people who have a severe fear of heights should not attempt this section. Please consult your leader before the hike if you are concerned.

In the morning, drive to Bryce Canyon where wind and water erosion have formed the park's crimson hoodoos – uniquely shaped rock spires rising out of the desert. The park’s main road leads past the expansive Bryce Amphitheatre, a hoodoo-filled depression lying below the Rim Trail hiking path. It has overlooks at Sunrise Point, Sunset Point, Inspiration Point and Bryce Point. After checking into your accommodation, we’ll hike the iconic Navajo Loop Trail which begins and ends at Sunset Point. Travelling by switchbacks between narrow walls of colourful limestone with views of towering Douglas-fir trees, this trail takes you to the park's most famous hoodoo: Thor's Hammer. This trail has two sides - Two Bridges and Wall Street – so the trip out and back is different with unique scenery on each side of the loop.

Today, after breakfast, we’ll hit the road for Moab. On the way, we stop in Capitol Reef National Park to hike to Cassidy Arch, named after – you guessed it – Butch Cassidy. Enjoy this fantastic there-and-back hike to a towering natural arch that is just as admirable from afar as it is from atop it. If time allows once we arrive in Moab, we’ll take a short hike to Dead Horse Point to take in the beauty of Moab’s sunset as it lights up the cliffs of Canyonlands National Park.

Another day, another adventure! Today you will be guided by your leader, who will take you around Arches National Park, home to more than 2,000 natural stone arches, rock formations and giant, balancing rocks. We will definitely visit the Delicate Arch, a stone icon of the park which has become the unofficial symbol of the State of Utah. Along this trail you’ll also see the Wolfe Ranch cabin and Ute Indian petroglyphs. This trail can be very hot so you’ll need at least 2 litres of water, a sunhat, sunscreen and sunglasses. The rest of the day is up to you. By now you will have covered a fair amount of ground so you may like to take it easy in the afternoon. If not, you are free to enjoy some additional hiking through this stunning area.

Perhaps get up early to see yet another unforgettable scene, a sunrise over Moab desert, then drive south to Canyonlands National Park for a short hike in The Needles. With almost 100 kilometres (60 miles) of interconnecting trails, your leader will help the group choose their own adventure in this spectacular section of the national park. Take it easy along one of the scenic paved trails or challenge yourselves with sandy washes, steep passes, and ladders – the choice is yours. After the walk, we’ll travel south to Bluff, your overnight base, but not before we stop for a very special experience – a guided walk with an expert First Nations guide. Explore beautiful country filled with an abundance of native plants, animals, incredible geologic features, archaeology, and most of all, authentic indigenous stories.

After a big day yesterday, it’s time for more adventure! It’s an early start for the trip to Monument Valley where a Navajo leader – one of the Keepers of Monument Valley - will take you around their lands in an open-air vehicle for a very special off-the-beaten track adventure. Learn about the history of the Anasazis, the “Ancient Ones,” as you take in the beauty of Monument Valley’s famous arches, explore significant sites and see ancient petroglyphs. For lunch, you’ll enjoy an exclusive ‘Navajo Taco’ lunch. Tonight is the last night of your trip, so you might like to head out and celebrate your incredible Utah adventure with the rest of your group.

Today, we’ll head back to Las Vegas but there’s still time for one more hike, this time at Horseshoe Bend in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. This horseshoe-shaped incised meander of the Colorado River is the perfect place to wrap up your trip with one final walk which offers unlimited options for incredible photos. We’ll arrive in Las Vegas at around 5pm when your trip will come to an end. No accommodation is provided tonight, however, if you do wish to spend extra time in Las Vegas, we'll be happy to book additional accommodation for you (subject to availability).