Utah National Parks vacation: 7-day guided geology tour

The group will meet in the morning at a location in central Grand Junction for an overview of the tour and then depart for a drive across the Colorado National Monument, discussing the geology and the history of the Grand Valley with a few short walks for dramatic overviews. Drive west with a brief stop at Thompson Springs to view petroglyphs and pictographs on cliff walls.

Continue west across the San Rafael Swell, a major dome rising from the desert floor, making several stops for panoramic views to ‘read’ the landscapes and hear about Native Americans, ranchers, outlaws and mining. Picnic lunch at one of the stops.

Continue southwards into Torrey along the Fremont River. ...more ...less

Visit Capitol Reef National Park, beginning with a stimulating walk to the spectacular Hickman Bridge, a large natural arch (1.5 miles / 3km, 400 foot / 120m elevation gain), passing a Fremont pit house and granary ruin along the way. After a brief stop at the park’s visitor center we will visit the old town of Fruita, review the area’s geology and have a picnic lunch.

We then drive along Slickrock Drive to Capitol Gorge, absorbing the landscapes, geology and history of the park. We will take a short, easy walk into the narrow, impressive gorge (1 mile / 1.6km roundtrip, no elevation change) to view petroglyphs and see Register Rock with names of early explorers.

Return to Torrey, stopping along the way to admire spectacular Fremont petroglyphs along the Fremont River. If the night is clear after dinner, return to the park for star gazing. The park is designated as an International Dark Sky Park.

Leave our Torrey hotel following breakfast and drive east to Hanksville and then southward past the Henry Mountains to the Colorado River. Stops will include key geological and archeological sites, such as petroglyphs exposed near springs, and panoramic views of Lake Powell.

Continue to Blanding making several stops to view prehistoric ruins along the roadside and abandoned ruins at the end of a short trail. Turning south on UT 191 at Blanding leads across the flat plains into Bluff.

Morning free to enjoy the hotel spa, explore the town of Bluff and Bluff Fort, or participate in an optional morning tour with choices of the Wolfman Panel, Monarch Cave (with 3 miles of moderate hiking) or a drive across the Valley of the Gods and up the Moki Dugway to the Muley Point Overlook. Many of these areas are now protected in the boundaries of the Bears Ears National Monument. We can arrange a tour with a local guide.

After lunch, we drive to Gooseneck State Park for spectacular views of the meanders in the San Juan River, and then on to the Navajo Tribal Park in Monument Valley, known for its rock spires as backdrops to westerns, for a tour from a Navajo guide.

Dinner at the View Restaurant in Monument Valley before returning to Bluff.

We begin with a stop at a renowned site of petroglyphs along the San Juan River and then head to Blanding and the Edge of the Cedars Museum, adjacent to rebuilt ruins and kivas. Our visit will include a back-room tour to see many artifacts not normally on display.

We then continue northward towards Canyonlands National Park to a spring in the valley adjacent to Newspaper Rock, a cliff panel with pictographs that represent different Native tribes over a thousand years. This is one of the most dramatic assemblages of petroglyphs discovered and is now protected as part of the Bears Ears National Monument. Picnic lunch.

Free afternoon in Moab to visit the visitor center, shops and have dinner in town on your own.

Breakfast in the hotel and early departure for Arches National Park.

Morning and picnic lunch in the park, where we will elaborate on the fascinating 300-million-year history of the rocks – a story of ancient seas, deep burial of the rocks and later uplift back to the surface. Our expert will reveal how the origin of the different rock layers helps create the spectacular arches and discuss controversies about their evolution. We will view some of the park’s many arches up close. Our visit will include a short walk to the Delicate Arch viewing point (1/2 mile / .8km).

Drive north to Dead Horse Point State Park, with dramatic views of the Colorado River and Canyonlands National Park. Stops to see classic Fremont petroglyphs along the river and dinosaur tracks.

Leisurely morning at the hotel to enjoy the sunrise along the cliff faces and the peaceful views of the river. For early risers, a walk into red-rock country can be arranged before the 11 AM checkout.

Return to Grand Junction along the river road through Cisco, a ghost town, onto I-70. In Fruita, Colorado, take a short hike along a trail to an active dinosaur quarry.

Tour ends; participants can be delivered to a downtown hotel to continue their exploration of the American West or to the Grand Junction airport.

Note: If required for reasons beyond our control, GeoCultura reserves the right to substitute alternative accommodation of equal or higher quality or adapt the itinerary if required.