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In Our Own Backyard

Why go overseas when you can visit some of our own great national parks?

John Kelliher

Sunday, September 09, 2007

I'd visited all seven continents, but my experiences lacked one key adventure: I'd never been to any of America's National Parks. Last spring, while returning from a month in Japan, I had the chance to take a day trip to Yosemite National Park. I was unprepared for the impact of Yosemite's beauty—thunderous waterfalls, crystal clear air, majestic mountain peaks.

Several weeks later I received a travel brochure from Vantage Deluxe World Travel in Boston, with whom I travel regularly, offering a trip to six of America's Western National Parks. "This," I thought, "is for me."

Our journey began in Bozeman, Montana. There, my fellow travelers and I met our program manager, Marcia. Marcia had been so taken with the Grand Canyon years earlier that she left her home in California and moved to Flagstaff, Arizona just to be near it. She has hiked to the base of the Canyon more than 20 times, and knows the name of every wildflower and critter in the West. Her expertise enhanced my experience greatly.

It was fitting that Yellowstone National Park, our nation's first, was our first stop, replete with wildlife, hot springs, mud pits, fumaroles, and, you guessed it, geysers. A highlight was viewing "Old Faithful" by moonlight from the Snow Lodge, about 100 yards away, where we spent the night.

The next day, after touring the park, we headed south to Jackson, Wyoming. In a thunderclap moment, the view of the Grand Tetons soaring in the distance stole my breath. We stopped at Mt. Moran Lookout, and then continued to Jenny Lake, enjoying a scrumptious lunch, and even better view, at The Jenny Lake Lodge. In Jackson, we moseyed on over to The Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, pulled up some saddle-shaped stools, and had a wonderful dinner.

Up next was Salt Lake City's Temple Square, a 10-acre plot in the heart of the city where our guide was a Mormon missionary. The center of the square is the granite six-spired Salt Lake Temple topped by the golden statue of the angel Moroni. Next door is the domed Tabernacle, home to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The following day we went to the church's renowned Family Search Center, where I researched my family tree.

Next we were off to Park City, home of the 2002 Winter Olympics. A future Olympic athlete guided us through the park facilities, where we saw a ski jumping show that used a swimming pool for landings instead of snow! On our final day in Salt Lake City, we attended a performance of the famed choir, and then departed for Red Rock Country and Moab, home to Canyonlands and Arches National Parks.

In Moab, we had delicious barbecue at a riverside restaurant, and as night fell we set sail on "The Canyonlands by Night" cruise. We floated for two hours through canyons illuminated by spotlights. The effect was spectacular.

The next day we explored Arches National Park, home to more than 2,000 rock arches. The Balanced Rock looked like it weighed hundreds of tons, yet rested easily on its small base. Another formation appeared like a herd of elephants, and The Delicate Arch resembled fine china. The Red Rock landscape offered limitless photographic opportunities.

As we drove down US 163 in Navajo Nation on our way to Monument Valley, I half expected to see Forrest Gump running by the side of the road. Monument Valley has more sandstone buttes, mesas, and spires than the rest of the Southwest put together. The next morning we boarded mini-coaches driven by Native American guides for a tour of the valley. It was exciting to see firsthand where John Wayne and John Ford had filmed so many classic westerns. The scene changed with the movement of sun and the shadows cast by rock formations.

Nothing can prepare you for the enormity of the Grand Canyon, not even the IMAX film we viewed at the park entrance. We entered through the South Gate, made the customary stop at Maher Point, climbed the stairs of the stone tower and got the jaw-dropping view of a lifetime. Looking out across the canyon, all I could think of were the words of an old song, "I climbed so high I could almost see eternity." That evening we explored the South Rim. We hiked, accompanied by an expert Ranger, to Vavapai Point, and down Bright Angel Trail.

Our lodging, Thunderbird Lodge, sits on the rim of the canyon. I could throw a stone from my room's window into the canyon! The next morning I took a "flightseeing" tour of the canyon; the views were spectacular. The best time to view the canyon is at early morning and sunset. As the sun arcs across the sky, the canyon's color changes from light pink to dark orange. Unforgettable.

En route to Utah's Bryce Canyon National Park, we visited Glen Canyon Dam and beautiful Lake Powell. Our accommodations were right in the park at Bryce Canyon Lodge, a national landmark and the last of the original lodges designed in the 1930s by William Stanley Underwood.

On our first full day in Bryce, we visited Rainbow Point, Fairyland, and Natural Bridge. I rode a mule to the base of the canyon for a close look at column formations called "hoodoos," which form when ice and rainwater wear away weak limestone.

The next morning brought our last stop. Zion National Park was the frosting on the cake - beautiful and, unlike the others, viewed from the base. Zion Lodge, a rustic setting with a large village green where tourists congregate by day and deer by night, sits at the canyon bottom. We rode a tram through the canyons and cliffs of the park, observing Tucupit Point, Checkerboard Mesa, and Weeping Rock.

That afternoon I hiked up the Virgin River to the entrance of The Narrows, a slot canyon that extends for 16 miles. Zion has many trails with varying degrees of difficulty that - be warned - are dotted with the beautiful but poisonous Datura Flower.

I returned home satisfied, with a new appreciation for the beauty to be found in our own country. I've been fortunate to travel to some of the world's most awesome locations, but after visiting these six National Parks, I firmly believe you don't have to travel to New Zealand to see beautiful scenery. You can find it in your own backyard.

Editor's note: In addition to the National Parks tour, Vantage Delux World Travel has tours to many exotic places in different parts of the world. To learn more, visit vantagetravel.com.

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