April 20-23, 2018
After our first night in Utah we set our sights on two famous national parks in Utah; Zion and Bryce Canyon.
What happened…
Amanda writes: We left the comforts of our cheap hotel to head toward what we hoped would be some beautiful sights and we weren’t disappointed. The first day we cycled close to the entrance of Zion National Park. Turns out our timing was great because it was some special day that happens once a year where you don’t have to pay an entrance fee; score! We arrived at our warm showers host which was a super cute little cable nestled on his big property. We had a roof over our head and access to toilets and showers. We also shared some cycling stories and heard about his amazing journey.
The next day we headed into the park. The park was beautiful! The rock colours and mountain formations are spectacular. If you’re a hiker you should definitely come to these parts. Because we were traveling with our all of our gear and knew we had a couple of nights of wild camping we didn’t fully participate in the river canyon part of the historic park. We would have been wet with no way to dry and we would have to leave our gear for a long period of time. It was still amazing to see from a distance. After we made our way out of the park we we camped at a spot we found via freecamping.net website. We met other travellers and it was a really nice atmosphere. We met Sam & Phoebe from London who were driving around the States in a sweet van, JC & Justyna from Europe driving around on their motorbike and two guys from the States just camping around for a couple of days on a cycling vacation. We had awesome chats and shared shitty Utah beer. For a free campsite it was pretty sweet.
The next day we continued cycling toward Bryce Canyon which took us two days. We found a great campsite the first night along a river and it was so secluded and pretty. We’re really enjoying the camping opportunities in Utah so far. We finished the pretty easy ride into Bryce Canyon the next day and got a hotel. Time for this princess to glam it up. Well truth be told I wasn’t feeling myself and it was a way for us to secure our bikes while we toured around Bryce Canyon. It also gave us an opportunity to do some laundry.
Andrew writes:Snow. It snowed on us. And rain. I think it’s the first rain drop I’ve felt while riding in a year?
Zion was everything I expected it to be…which was kinda meh. There were so many tourists, and I didn’t really find the scenery to be that unique really. Also, the park didn’t feel really well set-up for cycle tourists. There was a mega long tunnel that we weren’t allowed to cycle through, and I just didn’t really feel the draw to Zion. Bryce Canyon on the other hand was really awesome. The hoodoos, the layout, it was all really a great experience.
A couple of cell phone photos
Our awesome BLM riverside camp.
Future crazy bicycle tourers, Chris & Sophie.
Today’s Flickr Photographs
[flickr_tags user_id=”17145280@N00″ tags=”042018,042118,042218″]The aerial view of cycling days:
Cycling Stats
April 20, 2018
Start Point: Kanab, Utah, USA
Destination: Clear Creek Ranch, Utah, USA
49.75 km trip, 13.9 km/h average speed, 47 km/h maximum speed, 3:34 time on the bike
April 21, 2018
Start Point: Clear Creek Ranch, Utah, USA
Destination: WC Near Hwy 89/Zion junction, Utah, USA
45.91 km trip, 18.10 km/h average speed, 46.4 km/h maximum speed, 2:16 time on the bike
April 22, 2018
Start Point: WC Near Hwy 89/Zion junction, Utah, USA
Destination: Mile Marker 112 Highway 89 Wild Camp, Utah, USA
56.08 km trip, 15.6 km/h average speed, 55.9 km/h maximum speed, 3:36 time on the bike
April 23, 2018
Start Point: Mile Marker 112 Highway 89 Wild Camp, Utah, USA
Destination: Bryce Canyon, Utah, USA
39.52 km trip, 15.6 km/h average speed, 55.9 km/h maximum speed, 3:36 time on the bike
Route Description:
April 20, 2018 Today’s ride was on a paved highway with no shoulder for some parts. It’s uphill for about the first 15K and then down to the junction with the Subway with stores, restaurants and a hotel. You turn left here to go to Zion and it’s immediately uphill again.
April 21, 2018 We started the day and went into Zion. We started with some undulating hills heading into Zion with beautiful views. By law you have to get a lift in a truck through the tunnel which seems common and was no problem. After the tunnel its a big downhill to the right hand turn for the scenic drive. From here its a gradual uphill on the scenic parkway with very limited traffic. It’s an out and back and beautiful scenery in the park. After we turned around it’s totally uphill back to the tunnel and we knew we had to catch a lift through the tunnel so saved ourselves the trouble of climbing the hill and got a lift early. We found an awesome guy who drove us all the way to the junction; score! Then we turned right at the junction and went to a camping spot we found on a free camping app.
April 22, 2018 We were on highway 89 the entire day and there is a shoulder for most of the day. The first 40K is a gradual uphill and then undulating hills. It is paved and pretty busy because you’re close to the two big national parks. There are many campgrounds, hotel, cabins and stores along the route. At the highway 14 junction we got water at the gas station. In the first 23K there are two rest areas. The 2nd one has toilets, picnic tables and running water.
April 23, 2018 The first 25K of this day was uphill and then undulating hills down to Bryce Canyon. The road is paved after you leave the camp area. There are lots of free camping spots available near Bryce Canyon but we decided to glam it up and stay at the Bryce View Lodge. The hotel didn’t have laundry but we walked across the street and did laundry there.
Accommodations:
April 20, 2018 We stayed at a warm showers host close to the park. There are very little wild camp opportunities in the area as it’s mostly fenced. There are hotels and campgrounds in Zion.
April 21, 2018 We wild camped just south of the Hwy 89/Zion junction. It’s on the free camping app. We met some other great travellers who were also camping there because they found the spot on the app.
April 22, 2018 When we got water at the gas station the attendant told us about some BLM land up ahead for camping. We turned on old Hwy 89 which is a gravel road at the 112 mile marker. You ride for 5-10 minutes to a bridge/river crossing and on the right you will see awesome spots on the river for camping. If you’re coming from the the North take the turnoff for the old highway 89 on your left just patch the town of Hatch.
April 23, 2018 There are lots of free camping spots available near Bryce Canyon but we decided to glam it up and stay at the Bryce View Lodge for $60 USD with tax. The hotel didn’t have laundry but we walked across the street and did laundry there.