Take hike-bike trip to red-rock paradise in southwest Utah

Many visitors to the vast, magnificent red-rock serenity of southwestern Utah’s national parks and forests begin their trips in the most impossible contrast imaginable — Las Vegas. That was my own experience on our recent six-day, five-night trip to Bryce and Zion national parks.

On this, my first timein Vegas, I wore my feet out, plodding through the seemingly endless strip, gazing and gawking. The next morning, I traded the noise and glitz for the spectacularly beautiful red rocks of southwest Utah.

I chose to take an escorted group tour with Montana-based Austin Adventures. It is one of several tour operators that lead guided trips in the Bryce and Zion areas, and it has been doing so for 15 years.

On the first morning of the hiking and biking combo tour, our guides picked us up early at our hotel in Vegas. About a dozen of us drove in the comfortable company van for two hours to reach St. George, Utah.

There, we first glimpsed the famous striped red rocks for which this region is known, as well as the unique Joshua trees, a yucca species that only grow in the Mojave Desert of southwest California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona.

Named by Mormon pioneers for their upraised “arms,” akin to the prophet Joshua beckoning them to the “promised land,” they would be our first reminder of Utah’s Mormon culture.

Stopping for a brief orientation with our guides in Snow Canyon State Park (named for the pioneer Snow brothers, we reveled in the russet- and cinnamon-striped sandstone cliffs, peachy-tinged sand and black volcanic lava rock surrounding us.

One might wonder why folks choose to travel here with tour operators when they can explore the region on their own. On this trip, I felt spoiled in many ways.

After a hot hike, for example, we were presented with silvery trays of fresh-cut pineapple, cookies and cheese and crackers; arriving from a hot bike ride, chilled scented towels for our faces awaited. Picnic lunches offered chicken Caesar wraps, pasta salads, fresh fruit and other goodies.

Plus, the guides were certified in CPR and emergency response, knew the hikes and parks intimately, and were well-versed in the the history and culture of the region.

Starting a bike tour

After lunch at the scrumptious Xatava Gardens Cafe in Ivens, we were “introduced” to our bikes. Each had a name, such as “Cowgirl,” “Diddlybug” and “Big Horn.”

We cycled on a pleasant bike trail into St. George, a delightful little community surrounded by red rock cliffs where we stayed at the Seven Wives Inn, a historic bed-and-breakfast with warm hosts and a refreshing swimming pool.

St. George focuses on arts and wellness, with many famous spas, art galleries and top-quality restaurants aiming for the rather upscale types who frequent and live here.

In St. George, we dined at the casually elegant Painted Pony, where the heirloom tomato salad was outstanding, the jalapeño carrot soup was sublime and the waiter, John, was the most enthusiastic we’ve ever had. “Wonderful,” he’d exclaim as you ordered. “Yes, good,” if you agreed to have him sprinkle fresh pepper on your dish.

Next morning, we scampered up the sheer layered white rocks of Snow Canyon’s Timber Creek Trail, with its crisscrossed rocks and deep lava caves. We then drove on to the very scenic Dixie National Forest, named for the early settlers who planted cotton in the area.

Here, we marveled at Cedar Breaks, where we stopped to gaze at the overlook’s stunning views of “hoodoos” (tall, thin, strangely-shaped spires of protruding rock, formed by thousands of years of water erosion), arches and “windows” (holes in the rock) on the outer edge of a deep gorge, and drove on Scenic Byway 143, a spectacular road with altitudes reaching 10,200 feet and gorgeous panoramas.

From an off-road stop, we hopped on our bikes and were soon rudely shocked by an impromptu hailstorm — thankfully short, but cold and stinging. Within moments, the sun was back, along with a glorious rainbow, which the group stopped to photograph.

Cycling down through tiny towns and the expansive Panguitch Lake, we arrived in Bryce Canyon National Park, and the very cozy, recently renovated Lodge at Bryce Canyon, the only lodge within park limits.

That night, we had dinner at the rustic Bryce Canyon Pines — where we all saved room for the delicious pies.

Canyon descent

The next morning began with heavy rains; in other parts of Utah that day, flash floods in low-lying places caused deaths. But our guides knew to wait for our morning hike, and after an hour sitting by the fire in the warm lodge, the skies cleared and we were off to the lookout point of the rim, starting our descent into the canyon.

We gazed in wonder at the orangey-red pinnacles and bizarre hoodoos, enveloped in the the misty clouds from the morning rain; bright green pines glistened with dew in between the towering spires.

Indeed, the unusual rain made the extraordinary scene even more beautiful.

Bryce seemed like something out of a fantasy film — shapes so strange, so exotic, so impossible that it was hard to believe they were real. In fact, American Indians believed the hoodoos were formerly people, made into stone by a god punishing them for misdeeds.

Famous formations such as Queen Victoria, flanked by Squirrel Playing Piano, didn’t require much imagination to see their namesakes.

Exquisite turquoise and black Steller’s jays flew about, adorable chipmunks scurried below, and the fragrance of vanilla emanated from the bark of the Ponderosa pines. Rivulets of water gurgled between the hoodoos. I wondered: What must the early settlers who “discovered” this place have thought when they first set eyes on Bryce?

Hiking Zion

Then we were off to Zion National Park, cycling in the cool morning air through Red Canyon. The enormous red cliffs and monoliths of Zion are more majestic and imposing than those of Bryce’s somewhat delicate formations. The canyon walls are dramatic and the hikes, such as the one to Angel’s Landing, can be quite strenuous.

This hike is one of the top-rated hikes in the world but is quite harrowing. Most of the journey is safe but steep, with incredible views increasing with the quick ascent on the narrow switchbacks.

Many stop hiking up at Scout’s Landing — fearing the ascent to Angel’s Landing, which most accomplish with the help of a heavy chain cemented into the ground.

Zion is also famed for the bucket-list Narrows Hike, named one of America’s best adventures by National Geographic. Indeed, hiking the Narrows was one of the week’s highlights.

It involved a full day of walking and wading alongside and in the Virgin River, into the sheer walled canyons of the aptly-named “Narrows,” at times in water chest high.

Our guides rented us neoprene booties and socks, which not only kept our feet warm in the cool water but also ensured our safe footing on the underwater boulders.

I couldn’t imagine doing this without the booties, socks or the very useful large wooden poles we were given to help navigate our steps through the currents, boulders and holes. No one in our group fell or had a mishap — in fact, the experience was fun and exciting, affording eye-popping canyon scenery.

The six-day trip into red rock country ended with a three-hour drive back to Las Vegas. I had decided that I would spend whatever change I had in a slot machine. I had a quarter and a penny, and found the first slot machine at the airport to try my luck.

But, what was this? No coin slot? I asked the woman monitoring the machines and she laughed. “Oh, they say 1 cent, or 25 cents, but you have to start with a dollar bill. No more coins.”

Well, that did it. Gambling was not my game. I’ll take red rocks, hiking and nature any day.

This story was originally published February 17, 2016 at 11:17 AM with the headline "Take hike-bike trip to red-rock paradise in southwest Utah."