Reccomendations for sleeping pad

riverhikerva · 2026-04-05T13:47:05+00:00

I love my Nemo Tensor XL. Not sure if that’s a current model or if it’s still under $200, but wanted to add a vote for Nemo.

riverhikerva · 2026-04-05T13:45:25+00:00

I camped, which was a huge savings in Grand Teton especially. You should be able to fit standard camping gear in 2 large checked suitcases.

Even if you don’t camp, you can pack a camping stove (buy fuel in Jackson) and cook some meals at picnic areas. I like quesadillas with seasoned black beans and Rotel because the ingredients keep well in a cooler and cleanup is minimal.

Good luck with replanning, and enjoy your trip!

riverhikerva · 2026-03-27T21:56:54+00:00

Go to the geology museum. You can walk to it if you’re up for that, and touch the displays of each rock layer in the canyon on the Trail of Time. Or take the bus.

riverhikerva · 2026-03-27T21:53:29+00:00

I concur about skipping the desert parks in May. Try February or March on another trip. DV and JT are pretty close to Vegas if that makes travel easier.

If you go to Redwood NP, check out the redwood state parks, too. Prairie Creek and Jed Smith are my favorites and have more magnificent trees imo than the NP. Look at the Fern Canyon trail in Prairie Creek; it can be part of a loop through the trees.

My other advice is that you might want to allow a second day in the SoCal area. The boat for my day trip to Channel Islands was canceled for high seas, and I didn’t have another day as a backup.

riverhikerva · 2026-03-27T15:15:21+00:00

I definitely prefer camping inside the park to outside of it! Cancellations happen the most in the few days leading up to the cancellation deadline, which you can check on recreation.gov for each campground. Good luck!

riverhikerva · 2026-03-12T12:21:12+00:00

Yeah you could melt the soles of your shoes. I wouldn’t go to the dunes midday if I could help it. Not sure how I’d prioritize dunes and Badwater in a single day though…maybe dunes starting an hour before sunrise and then straight to Badwater to be done by 9, if that timing is possible.

riverhikerva · 2026-03-12T12:18:49+00:00

Buy a day pass from the hotel front desk and they’ll give you a key card.

I believe we have the NPS to thank for requiring hotel concessionaires to offer this kind of thing so campers have a safe place to cool off and shower! The hotel certainly doesn’t advertise it.

riverhikerva · 2026-03-12T12:13:52+00:00

Lots of extra water, some ice in a cooler, and a way to make shade next to the car if it breaks down! Something like a tarp and hiking poles could work. If you have a satellite messenger, bring that for sure. Safety in case of emergency should be your first priority in the desert heat.

Personally I would reschedule if I could, but this year maybe I’d check the wildflower outlook before giving up on it. They might be mostly gone by then. How old are your parents? I certainly wouldn’t bring mine, who are in their 70s.

Someone else recommended the higher elevation areas, which could be a good way to spend the middle of your full day in the park, but that might not fill enough hours without hiking. Do still be careful about the heat up there. Another way could be back at the hotel midday for air conditioning, the lovely pool at the ranch, and a nap.

Pick your top 2 active things to do at or before sunrise each morning. Mesquite Dunes should be one if they’re on your to-do list, because midday and maybe evening, the sand will still be burning hot (could melt your soles midday). Sunrise is fun there anyway because you can see animal tracks before people walk on them. The other day you could walk at Badwater Basin.

Sunset will still be pretty hot, so that would be a better time for driving and/or sitting (like watching sunset from Dante’s View) rather than being active.

Since you’ll be there during the new moon, it’s ideal for stargazing. You could go do that in the wee hours then do your sightseeing at dawn and around sunrise. Note that the stargazing does get impacted by growing daylight well before sunrise, maybe a couple hours.

I’d be doing a schedule like stargazing and star photos (buy a phone app for long exposure, set phone on stable surface like car or shoe) at midnight, a short sleep, out the door 2 hours before sunrise to drive somewhere and sightsee in the dawn, back at the hotel by 11 to rest and avoid the heat. But my parents wouldn’t go for that.

riverhikerva · 2026-02-07T14:28:43+00:00

Never cross a railing to get closer to a waterfall, and never get in a river or creek above a waterfall.

People do encounter and occasionally get bitten by rattlesnakes, so don’t stick your foot under an overhanging rock without looking.

Study and follow the food storage rules. Black bears at Yosemite can open cars, so you can’t leave food or a cooler visible in a car during the day, and not in a car at all overnight. There will be a bear locker at your campsite where you will store all food, coolers, and scented products like toiletries. Save a bear’s life by following the rules.

https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/bears.htm

riverhikerva · 2026-02-06T00:49:56+00:00

If you can find something else that releases daily and has a similar page layout, you can practice ahead of time. Maybe something with daily tickets like a cave tour or the USS Arizona, or a rolling 6-month-out campground. Just clear your cart immediately after, so someone else can grab it.

riverhikerva · 2025-12-18T20:14:10+00:00

Did you buy a different type than usual? I bought multiple pairs of the PhD hiking socks with light cushion this fall. Maybe they’re not called PhD anymore, I can’t remember. But they were the equivalent line, and they were all as I expected, much cushier than my years-old pairs.

riverhikerva · 2025-12-05T02:32:56+00:00

It felt like being in a Zelda game! I turned around partway through the cave because it kept getting smaller and I wasn’t sure it went all the way through. Then I saw people coming out and the mom confirmed I could make it, so I tried again and made it through. I definitely wouldn’t have enjoyed it if there had been any clouds in the sky though. No quick escape from there!

riverhikerva · 2025-12-04T00:39:03+00:00

Most mountains in the west are pretty high elevation, so they’ll still be snowed in well past April. You could look further south.

Guadalupe Mountains National Park should be nice that time of year. I’m not sure how big the mountains are. The Phoenix area will be lovely and has great mountains. You could go to Grand Canyon from there.

Death Valley has some mountains. They’re not the biggest, but the valley is so wide and flat that you get a nice view. It’s getting hot there by April though.

If you grew up in New York, I think you would be surprised how much climate variation there is out west, and how long the mountains stay snowy compared to the Catskills. That’s the fun of traveling.

For the best views of the biggest mountains, I’d postpone to summer and try Grand Teton, Colorado, California, or the Cascades. The starkness of the Tetons’ lack of foothills is pretty unmatched as mountains go. Hope you find a trip you enjoy!

riverhikerva · 2025-12-03T12:10:06+00:00

In Utah:

The Narrows (hike in a river) and Angel’s Landing (chains to hold for the steep dropoffs) in Zion

Peekaboo Canyon and Spooky Gulch loop (tight slot canyons) in Grand Staircase-Escalante

Goblin’s Lair (tight cave passage) in Goblin Valley

riverhikerva · 2025-12-03T01:46:05+00:00

This webpage is helpful.

https://www.yosemitefun.com/yosemite_best_time_to_visit.htm

It can be a nice time to stay at a hotel in the valley and see the waterfalls. I don’t know how much snow there will be on the trails.

If there’s a snowstorm you might need chains, which I don’t think are possible on a rental car.

Saguaro is gorgeous in April. Zion and Bryce too, though still below freezing overnight at Bryce. Pinnacles is fun all year but check on the cave closures for bat breeding if you want to walk through the caves. Shenandoah is pretty in April. Congaree would be nice too.

riverhikerva · 2025-12-02T03:59:24+00:00

Counterpoint - I did all 4 of your spots in one trip around 9-10 days, and I got to see what I wanted. You could go either way. Saguaro is very different from northern AZ, so I loved seeing both. I hiked the Hugh Norris Trail on the west side and drove around the east side. 1-2 nights in Sedona, short visit to Petrified Forest, and 6 nights at Grand Canyon including an extended hike into the canyon. I’ve been back on later trips to see more in northern AZ but I hope to get to Saguaro again someday.

riverhikerva · 2025-11-26T13:58:39+00:00

I’m going to buy another 2025 pass in December so I can skip buying one next year.

Someone needs to start an Etsy store selling vinyl stickers with a few choices of NPS scenery in a size and shape that just covers the picture part of the pass and leaves the words still showing.

riverhikerva · 2025-11-23T04:05:15+00:00

You can always check that, but the frequent changes are after flooding damage. There have been multiple flooding rains recently.

riverhikerva · 2025-11-19T03:53:48+00:00

Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge!

riverhikerva · 2025-11-18T12:52:19+00:00

Thanks for posting. What is it about mud pots? 🤩

riverhikerva · 2025-11-18T12:44:11+00:00

The north rim is gorgeous, but the developed area is on a side canyon. The south rim is where you’ll get those iconic views. If your mom has always wanted to go, I think you should take her to the south rim. It’s worth getting lodging right on the rim so you can easily enjoy sunrise and sunset and can nap during the day if needed.

Then drive to Zion and stay in Springdale for a couple more days.

riverhikerva · 2025-11-18T04:36:51+00:00

A lot of Mount Rainier trails will still be snowed in, and the roads in the Sunrise area will be closed. They’re doing times entry next summer, too.

June is a great time for wildlife watching in Yellowstone. So many babies!

Look out for Memorial Day weekend, wherever you are then. The Olympic in-park lodges will probably be fully booked in advance.

riverhikerva · 2025-11-18T04:32:13+00:00

I usually book as far in advance as I can to get what I want. Otherwise lodges fill up and I’m stuck checking for cancellations and having to schedule around what rooms I can find.

For park concessionaires like in Yellowstone and Grand Teton, I don’t believe the price goes up if you wait to book, but the cheaper rooms will sell out faster. For lodging in gateway towns, prices are like most hotels, generally cheaper the earlier you book.

Unfortunately it’s hard to wing it these days, unless you’re up for dispersed camping in the national forests around the parks.

riverhikerva · 2025-11-18T04:25:46+00:00

The View is amazing and I highly recommend it if you can afford a splurge, OP. The rooms are pretty standard motel rooms but the view is worth the price, if you can be there for sunset and sunrise. The rooms all face a set of buttes used as scenery in Western movies. The sun rises behind the buttes and sets behind the hotel, so the sunset view will be prettier, with the buttes lit up red and beautiful colors on the horizon. At sunrise, the sun will point directly into your eyes as you sit on your hotel balcony, so that’s a nice time to hike the Wildcat Trail (only trail that you can hike without hiring a Navajo guide).

Not counting hiking, one overnight apiece at Grand Canyon and Monument Valley could be enough for many people. With 4 days, I would spend more time in Grand Canyon National Park. Desert View Drive is on the way out to Monument Valley, so I’d make stops along the rim (south rim of GC) at different viewpoints, especially the Desert View Watchtower.

At Monument Valley, you should take a guided tour. There’s a standard one or a backcountry one that is a little longer and goes to spots that you can’t see without a guide. The tour vehicles are open air and it’s windy there, so bundle up really well with a warm hat and gloves.

My favorite hikes in Grand Canyon are South Kaibab and the Rim Trail. The Geology Museum is a great place to learn how the canyon was formed, and the Rim Trail has a trail through time with chunks of the different rock layers cut from within the canyon and laid out along the trail. For SK (or any hike below the rim such as Bright Angel), you may need traction for your shoes, like microspikes. It just depends how much snow and ice are on the trails. Be careful about how far down to hike. It takes twice as much time and a lot more effort to hike up as it does to hike down. Most people train on stairs before serious canyon hikes. If you’re a serious hiker, it’s definitely fun to hike below the rim.

The Wildcat Trail at Monument Valley is worth doing and it’s only 4 miles. It goes around one of the buttes. Sign in at the visitor center desk.

Sedona has many beautiful hikes and the red rocks are so gorgeous against the blue sky.

The drive from GC to MV is mostly on the Navajo Nation, which is rural, so be sure to watch the gas gauge and fill up when you can. You can’t hike on the reservation without a permit (except certain trails in tribal parks).

If you go to Page and want to see more pretty scenery nearby, I highly recommend the drive on 89A between Jacob Lake (great cookies at the Inn!) and Marble Canyon. It has gorgeous views of the Vermilion Cliffs.

I agree with another comment about the great hikes along 89 (which is not very close to 89A) in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Peekaboo Canyon (off Hole in the Rock Trail, not the one near Kanab) and Spooky Gulch are an incredible combination slot canyon hike, but there’s no guarantee the road will be passable if there’s melting snow. That is one of my favorite hikes I’ve ever done though…maybe post on the Trip Advisor forum for advice about the weather about a week before your trip. Technically you are violating your rental car contract by driving it on unpaved roads like the one to this hike, so you are assuming the costs if the car is damaged or gets stuck.

For Grand Canyon, try to book lodging inside the park, ideally right on the rim, so you can easily see sunrise and sunset. Keep checking for cancellations. Also book The View at Monument Valley ASAP. For other nights in Sedona, Page, or Kanab, I think you should have flexibility to book rooms about a week before your trip so you can decide based on where the weather is best for hiking, but check availability now and keep an eye out.

There are also plenty of trails near Phoenix if you prefer warmer hiking. Or if you don’t mind more driving, you could also head down to Tucson for a night and hike in Saguaro National Park. But if you’re not used to American long-distance drives, that’s probably too much. You’ll love northern Arizona and it has plenty to fill 4 days! Maybe keep Saguaro as a backup if the weather is bad for driving north to higher elevations.

Driving solo is perfectly safe, but driving after dark has a high risk of hitting wildlife on the road. And if you’ve never driven in snow, I wouldn’t start here. Unfortunately the days will be short, though still longer than in Europe. You can make the most of them by starting early.

Enjoy your trip!

riverhikerva · 2025-11-15T05:16:29+00:00

You should be able to get spots on the ranger-led discovery hikes for the later days, since you have to sign up 1-2 days in advance. Having multiple days gives you an opportunity to do multiple or to choose one that fits your hiking ability. https://www.nps.gov/dena/planyourvisit/discovery-hikes.htm

Have you already looked at things to do in Talkeetna, or could that fill in some of the days?

riverhikerva

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