National Parks of the Southwest Rail Circle
September 21-October 3, 2012
Tour from $3299.00
Once again Rail Travel Adventures offers this classic
National Parks rail tour as a late September/early October autumn color
departure. There is a fantasy of stone and sky in the southwest United
States. Between the eye and the horizon lies a panorama of plateaus,
buttes and stone monoliths of startling shapes and sizes.
New in 2012 are
added national park visits to both Canyonlands and Painted
Desert/Petrified Forest National Parks and to historic Santa Fe, New
Mexico. Another new addition is a ride on the unique Rail Runner Express
on the new mainline to Santa Fe.
Participants experience Amtrak’s magnificent
CALIFORNIA
ZEPHYR from Denver to Grand Junction CO, traveling through multicolored
deep canyons into the heart of the Rocky Mountains. We return using the
SOUTHWEST CHIEF from Lamy NM to La Junta CO over Raton Pass atop the
Rockies. These are two of the most beautiful rail trips in North America.
Also included are rides on the Grand Canyon Railway in Dome Class and on
the Verde Canyon Railroad out of Clarkdale AZ in the First Class Parlor
Car with luncheon on board.
 A spectacular jet-boat cruise takes us down the mighty
Colorado River into the red-rock gorges of
Canyonlands National Park. A
jeep tour with a Navajo guide explores Monument Valley to see ancient
Native American ruins and towering rock walls. This tour includes a
two-night stay in spectacular
Westwater Canyon at beautiful
Red Cliffs
Lodge, a night at famous Goulding’s Lodge in Monument Valley, and three
nights in Flagstaff, AZ at the Little America Resort while visiting
Grand
Canyon National Park and the Verde Canyon in northern Arizona.
The parks we explore include
Canyonlands National Park,
Arches National Park,
Dead Horse Point State Park,
Monument Valley Navajo
Tribal Park, Glen Canyon National Monument,
Capitol Reef National Park,
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument,
Bryce Canyon National Park,
Zion National Park,
Painted Desert/Petrified Forest National Park, and
Grand Canyon National Park.
Native American legends, history, and geologic wonders
abound throughout our adventure in this red rock wonderland. We invite you
to join Rail Travel Adventures popular Tour Manager Wil Doak on this
unique journey certain to enthrall even the most seasoned traveler.
Complete details follow. All aboard!
Day One, Friday, September 21 Independent arrivals into
Denver today. Participants arrive in Denver, where a pre-tour night is
included at the Comfort Inn Downtown, attached by a sky bridge to the
famous Brown Palace Hotel in downtown Denver. We can enjoy all the
amenities of the Brown Palace while at the Comfort Inn.
Day Two, Saturday, September 22 (B) CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR to
Grand Junction, CO. We board the
CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR this morning and climb
through the Front Range of the Rockies seated in comfortable leg-rest
reclining seat coaches. Lunch can be purchased in the mid-train dining
car; and we also can enjoy all-around viewing, snacks and beverages in the
glass-topped
Superliner Lounge-café car. The train follows the former
Denver and Rio Grande Western RR’s “Mainline through the Rockies—not
around!”, now operated by the Union Pacific RR. The route evokes Teddy
Roosevelt’s comment that a rail journey through the Rockies is the “trip
that bankrupts the English language!” In just the first 50 miles, we climb
over 4000 feet through the South Boulder Canyon and traverse the 6.2
mile-long Moffat Tunnel.
California Zephyr departs Glenwood Springs by
Kevin Morgan. Photo Courtesy of www.Coloradorailfan.com
From Winter Park, the tracks follow the sparkling Fraser
River through the forested
Fraser Canyon. At Granby we meet the headwaters
of the mighty Colorado River. For the next 200 miles, the tracks closely
follow the Colorado through a succession of unique and ever more
spectacular gorges. In sequence the line traverses the
Gore, Red, Glenwood, and
Palisade Canyons. Each offers a different vista. The
Glenwood Canyon is over 4,000 feet deep, and its awesome spectacle of
soaring cliffs, waterfalls, and rapids inspired the invention of the
vista-dome car. In late afternoon at Grand Junction, we meet our motorcoach and drive to beautiful Red Cliffs Lodge for a two-night stay in
Westwater Canyon. Breakfast is included here for the next two days.
Day Three, Sunday, September 23 (B, L) Canyonlands by
jet-boat; Arches National Park; Dead Horse Point. We begin our southwest
sojourn with a jet-boat cruise down the gorges of the Colorado River into
Canyonlands National Park. After an included lunch, we explore
Arches
National Park, which boasts the greatest density of natural arches in the
world. We then travel to
Dead Horse Point State Park, an overlook 2000
feet above the Colorado River on the boundary of Canyonlands N.P.
Day Four, Monday, September 24 (B, L) Tour Monument
Valley. We drive south through the immensity of the red-rocks country of
southeastern Utah and cross the border into Arizona, arriving at our hotel
in Monument Valley. We are staying at panoramic
Goulding’s Lodge, which
previously served as a trading post and location housing for movies filmed
nearby. Lunch is included before our guided jeep tour deep into Monument
Valley Navajo Tribal Park. With its many arches, buttes, Anasazi ruins,
brilliant colors and the famous “mittens”, this is a superb area for
photography. Monument Valley is a place of haunting beauty, frequently
used in Hollywood films including the John Ford/John Wayne classics “Fort
Apache”, “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon”, and “Rio Grande”. A stop is included
to visit an authentic Navajo hogan and see Navajo rug weaving.
 Day Five, Tuesday, September 25 (B, L) Goosenecks of the
San Juan; Capitol Reef N.P. After an included breakfast, we drive
northwest, crossing back into Utah. We see the amazing vista of the San
Juan River canyon at the
Goosenecks of the San Juan, cross the Colorado
River in Glen Canyon National Monument, and drive through
Capitol Reef
National Park with sightseeing stops en route. Box lunches are included
during this day. Our hotel tonight is the Best Western Capitol Reef Resort
in Torrey UT.
Day Six, Wednesday, September 26 (L) Grand
Staircase/Escalante National Monument; Bryce Canyon National Park.
 We
drive to Bryce Canyon, crossing Boulder Mountain at over 9,000 feet enroute. We also traverse the new
Grand Staircase/Escalante National
Monument and drive the amazing Devil’s Backbone. The aspen colors here
usually are at peak. After an included lunch at the historic landmark
Bryce Canyon Lodge, we explore the red cliffs of
Bryce Canyon National
Park. At more than 8,000 feet in elevation, Bryce Canyon is nestled in
twelve huge bowls sinking nearly 1,000 feet into the earth of southern
Utah and cutting through layers of colorful stone formations. It is noted
for thousands of freestanding “hoodoos”, made from eroded stone columns
and monoliths. Our hotel for the next two nights is the new Holiday Inn
Express Hotel in Kanab UT. Breakfast is included here each morning.
Day Seven, Thursday, September 27 (B,L)
Zion National
Park. The bottom layer of rock at Bryce Canyon is the top layer at Zion
National Park! Today at Zion we see the outcome of what began as a
relatively flat basin near sea level 240 million years ago. The colorful
sediment layers of sand, soil and minerals have left a geologic showcase
for our observation. Here we are in a deep canyon setting with the flowing
waters of the Virgin River contrasted with the towering cliffs of the
gorge. After lunch at the Zion Park Lodge, we return to our hotel in
Kanab.
Day Eight, Friday, September 28 (B,L) Marble Canyon and
Flagstaff. This morning we drive to the town of Marble Canyon AZ for
an included luncheon at Lees Ferry Lodge. Our scenic route takes us along
the edge of
Vermilion Cliffs National Monument and across the mighty Colorado
River on the soaring Marble Canyon Bridge before we turn south for a
relaxing three-night stay at the luxurious
Little America Hotel in
Flagstaff.
 Day Nine, Saturday, September 29 (L) Grand Canyon
National Park; Grand Canyon Railway. We take a short drive this morning to
Williams, where we board the restored former Santa Fe Railway line to the
Grand Canyon. We travel in vista-dome car class on the
Grand Canyon
Railway as we ascend from the desert to the deep pine forests lining the
South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. There is free time at the South
Rim for us to enjoy the Canyon on our own. There are level paths along the
crest of the gorge, and a free shuttle service runs to even more
stupendous West Rim vistas. The Park Service Museums also beckon. We have
a wonderful included luncheon at the famed El Tovar Hotel, which sits
directly on the canyon rim. In late afternoon we follow the East Rim Road
past the Desert View Tower back to Flagstaff.
 Day Ten, Sunday, September 30 (L) Verde Canyon Railroad.
This morning we depart on our motorcoach for Clarkdale. A buffet lunch is
included on the Verde Canyon Railroad while riding in First Class. Along
the way we may see bald and golden eagles and native wildlife. Sinagua
Indian ruins are located along the route, which also passes through a
680-foot tunnel and along the upper Verde River. This former Santa Fe
Railway branch line traverses a deep canyon with soaring cliffs of red and
bronze sandstone setting off the sparkling waters of the Verde River.
Day Eleven, Monday, October 1 (D) Petrified
Forest/Painted Desert National Park; Rail Runner Express to Santa Fe. We
motor across the immense emptiness and brilliant coloration of the Painted
Desert to explore
Petrified Forest National Park. Later we board the new
Rail Runner Express regional train service at Belen NM for the run to
Santa Fe. Much of the route follows the former Santa Fe Railway mainline,
but the last 20 miles into historic Santa Fe are a totally new railway. We
overnight at the Old Santa Fe Inn in the downtown area. Our special dinner
this evening is at the renowned Pink Adobe restaurant.
 Day Twelve, Tuesday, October 2 (B) Free morning in Santa
Fe; Amtrak’s SOUTHWEST CHIEF to La Junta CO. We enjoy a free morning to
explore the museums and shops surrounding the square in the heart of
Santa
Fe. At noon we make a short transfer to the Amtrak station in nearby Lamy
for our departure on the
SOUTHWEST CHIEF. Our scenic route parallels the
old Santa Fe Trail as we retrace the steps of Native Americans and
pioneers. We cross towering Raton Pass enroute. Our view is enhanced as we
gaze through the wrap-around windows of the Sightseer Lounge Car. Lunch
and dinner can be purchased in the mid-train diner from an extensive and
reasonably priced menu. We arrive at La Junta CO in the evening and
transfer to our hotel for the night, the Hampton Inn.
Day Thirteen, Wednesday, October 3 (B) To Denver; tour
ends. Our private motorcoach takes us to
Denver, where this colorful tour
ends with mid-day drop offs for independent departures at Denver
International Airport (for flights departing after 2:30 p.m.) and then the
Denver Amtrak station.
TOUR PRICES are inclusive roundtrip from Denver and
include all rail and motorcoach fares, all lodging, and sightseeing and
meals shown as included above. Connecting travel in/out of Denver, meals
not shown as included, alcoholic beverages, and items of a personal nature
are not included in the tour price. The tour is escorted from our Denver
departure on Day Two through to departures from Denver on Day Thirteen.
Transfers and luggage handling are included during the escorted portion of
the tour.
$3299.00 per person, double occupancy
$3899.00 single
occupancy
BOOKING CONDITIONS AND CANCELLATION POLICIES
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