By Alex McClintock (Twitter: @axmcc)
Word to the wise: if you’re a relatively inexperienced hiker, don’t start your 12-day hiking trip with a 19-mile trail. Definitely don’t hike said trail on a 91-degree day. Am I talking from experience? You bet. My girlfriend Sarah and I decided we liked the idea of being hikers and figured going on a hiking trip from Las Vegas to Escape’s Denver campervan rental location was a good place to begin.1. West Rim Trail, Zion National Park, Utah
Maybe we bit off a little more than we could chew with Zion’s West Rim Trail, though. We could barely walk by the time we finished. We couldn’t walk the day after. The North Rim is higher altitude, colder and so much quieter than the South. As we drove from our campsite (Demotte, just outside the park entrance) to the trailhead through pine forests and meadows, a herd of jet black bison slowly made their way across the road. We were the only people in sight. That wasn’t the case once we got to the North Kaibab Trail, which was busy with hikers and mule tours, despite the 95-degree heat. The trail is essentially a never-ending series of red dirt switchbacks, plunging into the canyon at as steep an angle as a human (or mule) can handle. You can see why it attracts the crowds though, the views are spectacular.3. Supai Tunnel, Grand Canyon National Park
Due to the condition of our legs post-Zion, we only hiked down to the Supai Tunnel (2.4 miles return, plus one or two to the visitor’s centre), but that was enough given the steep grade of the path and the heat. Suffice to say, I’m glad I wasn’t born a mule.4. Wildcat Trail, Monument Valley
We headed to Monument Valley and parked our van in the blasting desert wind. At sunset, a herd of mustangs walked silently through our campground and out into the open space beyond. We got up at 5 am the next day and followed suit: the four-mile Wildcat Trail is the only self-guided trail open to the public in the Tribal Park, and we were the only people on it.5. Crystal Creek Trail, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado
Our original plan had been to hit Durango and camp at the Blue Lakes trailhead before heading over the Rockies, but a huge wildfire meant we had to change plans and head slightly further north. Instead, we camped on the edge of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and hiked the Crystal Creek Trail in the morning. It was our first glimpse of alpine scenery, and what an introduction. Though it was a little shorter than the advertised 3.2 miles, we weren’t complaining. The trail follows a wildflower-lined ridge through an aspen grove and out onto a spectacular lookout on the canyon rim. Again, we were the only people on the trail.
That certainly could not be said for the road out to Crystal, perhaps the most Instagrammed ghost town in America, 80 or so miles up the road. The nine-mile track is open to ATVs and jeeps, and there are plenty of hikers, but it doesn’t take away from the charm of the snow-capped mountains above and bubbling creek beside. And yes, I got the shot.
