grand canyon to yellowstone in one day possible

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Apr 7, 2004
Messages
1,166
Location
NJ
For those who live out west, is it possible to drive from grand canyon to yellowstone in one day. leaving at 7am.I would like to know if it is doable or should I alot 2 days. Mapquest say 15 hours, is that accurate
 
Yes, it's possible. Rural stretches in Utah and Idaho are now 80mph, and if you go less than 90 you get your doors blown off. As you get closer to the parks on either side it's a bit slower.
 
Originally Posted By: raaizin
Mapquest say 15 hours, is that accurate

Google shows around 11 hours, from North Rim.

It's only around 700 miles, so it should be doable in 1 day, as long as you don't waste too much time during food/gas/potty stops.
 
Northwest entrance of the canyon to Yellowstone shows 695 miles. Assuming an average speed of 65 mph, that's 11 hours roughly. Google maps says 13 hours; do they include time for pee breaks or something???
 
I was at the North Rim last week. Be advised, there was LOTS of road construction on highway 89 north of Kanab, UT, so it would probably be better to head west to Hurricane and pick up I-15. I'm looking at google traffic right now, and highway 89 is red near the turn-off to Zion National Park, so its still pretty bad this week. Make sure Google is routing you through Hurricane, and the estimate will be pretty good (and no it doesn't account for pee/food/gas breaks). The best drive time estimator I've personally used is Motion-X GPS Drive (app for smartphones and tablets). It pretty much nails the drive times right on the money, and takes traffic reports into account on the fly. It sometimes over-estimates if it doesn't have correct (or any) speed limit data for a highway. Ran into that a few times out in Utah.
 
The question would be: Why?

There are half a dozen routes that are the most beautiful in the country. You could easily enjoy a few weeks on that route.
 
Yes it's possible. 2 weeks ago I drove from Phoenix to Livingston, MT in 20 hours only stopping for gas although I was really tired. I believe the highway 89 through Page, AZ is closed because of a landslide a couple years ago. Take the 89 to highway 89A. The highway 89A heads north starting in Fredonia, AZ toward Kanab, UT. Continue West onto the 389 all the way through Hurricane, UT and hop onto the I-15. If you look at a map you'll see what I mean. It's much faster as the speed limit on the I-15 is 80 mph and is a breeze. There is a Chevron just west of Fredonia, AZ, like less than 10 miles.

The blue line is the suggested path by my iPads maps and is wrong, you'll see what I mean on a map by following the 89 to the 89A to the 389.

25z3wuw.jpg
 
Originally Posted By: widman
The question would be: Why?

There are half a dozen routes that are the most beautiful in the country. You could easily enjoy a few weeks on that route.

Unlike other countries, vacation time in the US is not seemingly unlimited.
smile.gif



But I agree... sometimes it's about the trip, not about destination.

Back when I was young, we did the whole US (from east to west and back to east) in 4 weeks. Would I do it again? Yes, but not in 4 weeks.
smile.gif
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: widman
The question would be: Why?

There are half a dozen routes that are the most beautiful in the country. You could easily enjoy a few weeks on that route.

Unlike other countries, vacation time in the US is not seemingly unlimited.
smile.gif



But I agree... sometimes it's about the trip, not about destination.

Back when I was young, we did the whole US (from east to west and back to east) in 4 weeks. Would I do it again? Yes, but not in 4 weeks.
smile.gif



There's also not a lot to see in Utah.
 
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
There's also not a lot to see in Utah.

There's Zion National Park, there's Bryce Canyon, there's SLC where I'm sure you could find things to see as well.
 
Originally Posted By: widman
The question would be: Why?

There are half a dozen routes that are the most beautiful in the country. You could easily enjoy a few weeks on that route.


Yes! Richard is right. Highway 12 in southern Utah is amazing, and few there are that see it. Five National Parks in southern Utah and all are amazing.

Back to the original question, if I start at 7am in Vegas I can be in Pocatello by 4pm. Another three hours and I can be in West Yellowstone, MT. And, that's driving and a nice easy pace.
 
Back in '90, I drove from Idaho Falls to Phoenix. I was 22 and driving an '89 Civic Si which cruised! I was at the beginning of a cold and didn't want to spend another night camping in a KOA. I'm glad I did it because it was a [censored] of a cold the next few days.

VERY long day and would not want to do that again.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
There's also not a lot to see in Utah.

There's Zion National Park, there's Bryce Canyon, there's SLC where I'm sure you could find things to see as well.



What you should do is forget those other parks and go to Zion, Kodachrome Basic, Grand Staircase, Bryce, Capital Reef, Canyonlands, Dead Horse Point, and Arches, and Monument Valley. ;-) My favorite is Arches.

For me that drive is almost automatic. What I mean is, it's no problem. Even I-15 is scenic if you get in the right state of mind. The backroads are slower and much more scenic.
 
One more tip... everyone who makes that drive needs to choose one way to get from Highway 89 to I-15. I like highway 20. Back in the day it was wild and wooly. Now it's a great big 5-lane thing with no traffic at all. I'm not sure which is better, but usually it is my choice if I just want to get from one main road to the other.
 
Originally Posted By: Nick1994


There's also not a lot to see in Utah. [/quote]

I assuming that's sarcasm, because Utah was EXACTLY where I felt like I didn't spend ENOUGH time last week! Zion, Bryce, Grand Staircase Escalante, Arches, Monument Valley... and that's all just in the southern third of the state!

But like I said... don't try route 89 north from Kanab right now. One lane, alternating traffic flow behind the "follow me" trucks for miles.
 
Considering we drove from seattle to el paso in a little under a day...sure.

Did 7k miles in six days on that trip. Doesnt mean it was the best way to do it.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: raaizin
Mapquest say 15 hours, is that accurate

Google shows around 11 hours, from North Rim.

It's only around 700 miles, so it should be doable in 1 day, as long as you don't waste too much time during food/gas/potty stops.



I know it's not the same drive, but for a distance/time comparison:

It has usually taken me around 20 hrs to make the Drive from here in NW OH, to DFW (1100mi, Google says 17hrs)

but that was in my Neon w/o Cruise, and i would catch myself down to 50-55 in the dark hrs.
hopefully this year, with cruise, it'll be closer to 17hrs than 20
 
Originally Posted By: earlyre
It has usually taken me around 20 hrs to make the Drive from here in NW OH, to DFW (1100mi, Google says 17hrs)

Well, as has been said above, Google's time is actual driving time. It does not account for any stops that you make along the way, and I can't imagine you'd be able to drive for 17 hours straight without refuelling several times, using a restroom, and grabbing some food.
 
when I went from Nashville, TN to Grand Canyon. I drove 16 hours a day. tiring for sure. stopped just for gas/food. cruise control saved me.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top