NATIONAL PARKS & CANYON COUNTRY
Day 1 - DENVER. Enjoy some time at leisure to relax or do some independent exploring. Your Tour Director is on hand this evening to answer any questions. Day 2 - DENVER - CHEYENNE - BLACK HILLS OF SOUTH DAKOTA - KEYSTONE. Depart downtown Denver this morning and leave Colorado traveling north to Cheyenne. Next, see the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota and continue on to Custer. Late this afternoon, travel to see the renowned CRAZY HORSE MEMORIAL, a monument statue carved out of a mountain that pays respect to the great hero of the Native Americans, Chief Crazy Horse. Day 3 - KEYSTONE - MOUNT RUSHMORE - DEADWOD - LEAD. Deep in the Black Hills, once Indian hunting country, behold the magnificent granite faces of MOUNT RUSHMORE, a giant monument to four American presidents" Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Roosevelt. Afterward, visit TATANKA , "The Story of the Bison," and experience the richness of the Lakota people, a Plains Indian buffalo culture. Next it's on to Deadwood, a lawless frontier town during the 1876 Gold Rush, where Jack McCall murdered Wild Bill Hickok during a poker game. Your overnight stay is in the old mining town of Lead, set at the head of Gold Gulch Run. Day 4 - LEAD - CODY. On through the rich high country to Buffalo, where open-range cattle kings made war on the sheep ranchers in the 1890s. Drive by Sheridan at the foot of the Bighorn Mountains, the scene of many fierce battles between the U.S. Cavalry and the Sioux, Cheyenne, and Crow Indians. Overnight in Buffalo Bill's frontier town of Cody. Day 5 - CODY - YELOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK. Proceed through Shoshone National Forest to splendid YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK. Travel along Grand Loop Road to Artist Point on the south rim with magnificent views of Yellowstone Canyon and the stupendous Lower Falls. Next, see the geyser basins with bubbling mud paint pots and, finally, the consistent "blow" of Old Faithful, Yellowstone's most famous geyser. O vernight in Yellowstone National Park.
Note: Departures April 17-May 16 and Sept. 25-Oct. 2 will stay at the Brandin" Iron Inn in West Yellowstone. Day 6 - YELOWSTONE - GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK "JACKSON. Head south into the magnificent summer and winter playground of GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, one of America's last preserves of wild solitude. Its sawtoothed, 13,770-foot-high ridges are crested with snow most of the year. See beautiful glacier-fed Jenny Lake at the foot of the rugged spires for a stroll along the shore, before ending the day in all-western Jackson. This evening, why not complete your western experience by joining the barbecue cookout and Wild West show" Day 7 - JACKSON. With its wooden sidewalks and swing-door saloons, Jackson is like a living film set. Time today for an optional excursion - a raft trip down the Snake River. You might catch a glimpse of a moose or a bald eagle! Day 8 - JACKSON'SALT LAKE CITY. Today, we leave Jackson and drive to Salt Lake City for an overnight stay. Magnificently set on the edge of salt desert and surrounded by mountains and forests, this is the center of the Mormon religion where Brigham Young declared to his followers, "This is the place." On the included sightseeing TOUR , you will see the best of the vibrant capital of Utah, including Temple Square with its impressive 6-spire temple, the adjacent tabernacle, and the Beehive House. Day 9 - SALT LAKE CITY - BRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK. Through sagebrush landscape to BRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK with its 20 miles of breathtaking sandstone cliffs and ever-changing colors. View some of Earth's most brilliant shades of rock, which have been sculpted by erosion into pillars called "hoodoos," and other fantastic forms. Day 10 - BRYCE CANYON - ZION NATIONAL PARK - PAGE. Travel to ZION NATIONAL PARK with its striking landscape carved out by rushing streams over a period of millions of years. Steep canyons, vertical stone towers, and verdant vegetation form the contrasting scenery of Zion, once a refuge for Mormon pioneers. Head east into Arizona to Page, nestled on the shores of Lake Powell. Day 11 - PAGE - PAINTED DESERT - GRAND CANYON. Begin your morning with an optional scenic flight over Monument Valley. Fly over Lake Powell and across Navajo Indian lands before reaching the uniquely shaped monuments themselves. Then a scenic drive across the Painted Desert and through Kaibab National Forest. Arrive at the South Rim of GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK with free time to explore the canyon rim. Overnight in Grand Canyon National Park. Day 12 - GRAND CANYON - LAS VEGAS. For a once-in-a-lifetime experience, take our optional helicopter flightseeing excursion with incomparable views of flame-colored walls plunging 4,800 feet into the Colorado River. Leave the high country of Arizona and head for the modern phenomenon of Las Vegas, a fantastic city of feverish gambling, neon lights, and glamorous shows featuring some of the world's top entertainers. A stop at McCarran International Airport for guests with homebound flights. Please schedule flights after 5 p.m. The trip ends in Las Vegas at the Imperial Palace in the late afternoon. |
