From Mesa to the Grand Canyon to Zion to Las Vegas

Well the time finally came to leave the beautiful sunny greater Phoenix area and head north towards the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park. The plan was to leave early from Mesa Arizona and head straight to the Grand Canyon to do some location scouting, filming and take some photos of the grandeur that is this wonder of the world.

It only took a few hours from Mesa to reach to the outskirts of the Grand Canyon. I took my sweet time driving there and seemed to be a bit of pest to all those who insist on driving like madmen while the awesome scenery around them just becomes a blur. I don’t understand the rational exemplified by these people. Maybe they are in a hurry or just really want to get there but considering there were so many out of state license plates I couldn’t help but think they too were on some sort of vacation but one structured and rigid on time.

Now I don’t remember there being a fee to enter the Grand Canyon National Park. I have been there two other times but that was at least ten years ago. The fee was $25. I do remember clearly one year it was the beginning of March and there was snow on the ground from Flagstaff all the way to the canyon. I was the only one at the popular lookouts and was greeted by a curious park ranger who was interested in seeing who this crazy person in a t-shirt was sitting on the edge while there was snow on the ground! After seeing I was from Canada he was full of questions about my neck of the woods. He commented that I came at the best time of year as there were just no tourists clogging up the roadways and scenic lookouts. Boy was he right on the money. This time it was early June and the popular lookouts were jam packed with camera toting tourists and the roads were clogged with vehicles parked in every nook and cranny.

The trick to finding a good vista point is to get a ways down one of the roads away from the main park entrance and lodging areas. Doing this affords you more peace of mind and much more opportunity to sit alone and take in the view. You also can park near to where you want to view from. Or you can just visit in March like I did that one year.

Unfortunately there was a small forest fire close to the park so that created a pretty heavy haze over the canyon obscuring much of the view off in the distance. You can see this in the pictures and video below.

I departed the Grand Canyon in the early afternoon after a futile effort of finding an available lodge to rent in the park. They were all booked – long ago too. Lesson learned there – book ahead in the peak summer travel period! I should of known better but I thought I might still get lucky…

I made my way via some of the of more obscure state routes to Zion National Park. I stopped a few times to take pictures and to make idle conversation with all the fellow tourists and locals I came across. I didn’t take a good notice of the time frame and quickly found myself racing the setting sun in trying to get to Zion before it set. Zion is stunning when the sun comes up and goes down and I wanted to really capture that on film. I was making good time and was slated to be there by 8 pm. That was until I started hitting some small towns with a speed limit of 25 mph. The town sheriffs were out in force in each town strictly enforcing these limits too, so watch your speed! That really chewed up valuable time and before I knew it, it was too late. I then started looking for a hotel room in the nearby towns and once again found myself SOL. I decided to grab some dinner – and I should have noted the restaurant name (it was at a Best Western at the foot of the main highway into Zion from the south side) – as the food was just terrible. Chef Ramsey would have torn them a new opening! I will just call the place Salties as that is what it mainly tasted like. The staff were bumbling and botched my entire order. Ugh, not a good end to a hectic day.

I made the decision to drive through the park at night (and be prepared if you do too as it is VERY dark and the road is full of twists and turns) to see if I could make it to a larger town in Utah. Driving through the park at night is free, but be aware during the day, there is a charge to access the park! I did find lodging in St. George Utah. Never ever stay at the Motel 6 there. Worst motel ever. The room was just foul. The bed was falling apart, the bathroom was covered in a odd brown smearing haze all over the walls (use your imagination), the “free” internet didn’t work without paying for it, the non-smoking room reeked of cigarette smoke and the air conditioning barely worked at all. I would have done better to sleep in my car…

I departed the next morning with my stomach feeling queasy from that horrible motel. I’ve stayed in some rat holes from my prior time traveling around the world but that place took the cake. They should be ashamed of themselves.

The drive from St. George to Las Vegas was either quick and easy via the main highways or more fun by cutting through a state park. I choose the state park – Valley of Fire State Park to be precise. It runs close to Lake Mead and has some stunning views and some rather interesting weathered red rocks. The road was under repair and in four sections was nothing more than gravel. It wasn’t all bad and was certainly easier than some of the other dirt roads I’ve taken on this fact-finding trip. Once the road is completed it would make a great road for you motorcycle enthusiasts out there. You will come out in Northern Las Vegas and it is a short 15-20 minute drive to downtown Las Vegas.

I am writing this from the hotel I chose to stay at – the Las Vegas Hilton. I got a great deal by going straight to their website, then I called the reservation line to cut an even better deal. Try it – it works.

I will be doing some filming around Vegas on Wednesday and will try to get that video and the subsequent photos and descriptions up as soon as possible. There are a plethora of travel related websites for Las Vegas so I’m not going to rehash what’s been done a thousand times – other than to add – with this deep recession you can really get yourself a great deal on just about everything if you are just not afraid to ask and be ready to bargain! They want your money and business badly so be prepared to bargain hard as you have a million alternative choices before you.

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[Video coming soon]