Following is a list of parks that are within a days drive from Salt Lake. Also shown are the distance and approximate driving time (not including stops) to each of these locations. I used the Salt Lake Airport as the starting point for each of these drives. Distances shown are one-way.
Bryce Canyon National Park - 265 miles / 4:10
Zion National Park (canyon) - 315 miles / 4:40
Capitol Reef National Park - 225 miles / 3:30
Arches National Park - 235 miles / 3:35
Canyonlands National Park (Island in the Sky District) 250 / 4:00
Great Basin National Park (Nevada) - 240 / 3:40
Dinosaur National Monument - 240 / 4:25
I've visited all of these parks at least once and this is my opinion. Since you only have a day for this trip, it's going to involve a significant amount of driving. You should pay attention to the drive time rather than the distance. Whichever park you choose, the roundtrip drive time will be at least 7 hours not including stops you may make along the way. All things considered, my order of preference is as follows.
1. Arches %26amp; Canyonlands National Parks - If this is a summer visit (mid-June to mid-Sept) move this to the bottom of the list. During the summer months it gets too hot to do anything active in the park after noon. Otherwise, this is a great place to go hiking in the cooler months. Hike out to Delicate Arch. Time permitting, hike out to Landscape Arch and Double-O Arch. Canyonlands is nearby so stop to enjoy the views from Grandview Point in the Island in the Sky District. Also stop to enjoy the views from Dead Horse Point State Park nearby.
2. Bryce Canyon National Park - Starting at Sunset Point, hike down into Wall Street (part of Navajo Loop Trail) but instead of completing the loop, branch off onto the Queens Garden Trail at the bottom of the amphitheater. Follow the Queens Garden Trail back to the rim at Sunrise Point and complete the hike by following the rim trail back to Sunset Point.
3. Great Basin National Park, Nevada - Hike up to the Bristlecone Pine Grove at the 10,500 ft elevation of Mt Wheeler to see 3,000+ year old trees. The Prometheus tree grew here and was ring dated to be 4,844 years old. Unfortunately, they killed the tree to date it not knowing that it was the oldest living thing known to man. This is a relatively easy 3 mile roundtrip hike with trailhead at 9,900 feet. Be sure to tour Lehman Caves behind the visitor center. Tickets are required. It's a small cave but is the most profusely decorated for it's size that I have ever seen. Huge shield formations and delicate helectites abound.
4. Zion National Park - Zion Canyon is a long day trip but if you start before dawn and return at night you should have time to hike to Angels Landing. This hike is not for acrophobes so if you have a fear of heights try the Narrows instead. Rent canyoneers (river boots) and a walking staff (if you don't have one) from Zion Adventures in Springdale just outside the park. Take the park shuttle to the Temple of Sinawava and follow the paved Riverside Walk to the entrance of the Narrows. From there the trail is the Virgin River. The river is usually just knee to thigh deep but could be chest deep in a few places. Don't let it scare you off. Keep going. You should have time to get two or three miles upriver before you have to turn around. Great experience if you have never hiked a slot canyon before. Warning - check the weather report at Zion Adventures or the park visitor center before entering the Narrows. You don't want to be in there during a flash flood.
5. Dinosuar National Monument - Another long day but if you want to see dinosaur fossils still in the matrix then the Dinosaur Quarry is the place to go. If you have time, drive out to Harpers Corner to see more of the monument. Be sure to stop at the Field House - Natural History Museum in Vernal on Main Street. You might want to stop here on the way out to Dinosaur because as I recall the museum closes early.
I don't think I would go to Capitol Reef unless I had more time. This is a place to do some backpacking to explore the backcountry. So unless you're going to be in the area anyway, I recommend you skip it.
I hope this information is of some help and remember that it's just my opinion. Others may disagree. If you need maps to these parks, go to the Harpers Ferry Center web site and download the National Park Service maps in PDF format.
http://home.nps.gov/applications/hafe/hf鈥?/a>
If you are just planning to drive down, look around, then leave that same day, I would recommend that the one park you really ought to see (for pure visual amazement) is Bryce Canyon.
If you are able to spend one night, so that you can get in a full day of physical activity (hiking, to be specific), I think I would rather recommend Canyonlands. Or, another fun activity (though technically not in a National Park) is either mountain biking on the slick rocks southwest of Moab, or rafting/tubing in the Colorado River northeast of Moab.Utah national parks which best/closest to Salt Lake City?
I'm sorry to tell you that there aren't any National Parks that would be suitable for a day trip.
Arches would be the closest, but it is a 4 hour drive from Salt Lake, you have to buy a 7 day pass, and then it's probably another hour of driving inside the park to get to the attractions.
Bryce Canyon is about 4-5 hour drive, Zions is 5 hours, Capital Reef is 4 hours.
Once you take into account driving time, you'll be spending 8 hours in the car.
For a day trip, your best bet would be Bear Lake. It's about 2 hours North of Salt Lake City, suitable for a day trip. However, in April it's going to be FREEZING cold.
The warmest place would be Arches. It's probably about 80 degrees this time of year. So if you don't mind driving for 8 hours, I would go with that one. It's the warmest, and the prettiest, and the closest.
During the summer though, it is sweltering hot. If you're willing to spend the night, I would suggest going down one day and then doing a raft down the Colorado.
In my opinion, Capital Reef is BORING. I've been there at least a zillion times and there's nothing that Capital Reef has that Arches doesn't have, Capital Reef just has less of it.
Bryce Canyon is beautiful, but it does get some snow and can be cold in the early spring.
The best hike to do in Zion's would be Angel's Landing. It goes waaaay up to the top of a red rock spire, and does have a small stretch of hike with a cable hand-rail embedded in the rock, but it's nothing too bad.
They are all to far to do as a day trip from Salt Lake. If it was me, I would go to St. George and stay the night. Zion is only about 45 min. from St. George. You can drive around, and do a few short hikes. It costs $25 for a day pass.
Next time you need to give yourself more time. Utah is an amazing place with tons to see.
Enjoy your short time here.
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