Bryce Canyon Length Limits

[N Smock]

I understand that there is a length limit of 50 feet for trailers and tow  and a 40 foot limit for a motorhome in Bryce Canyon. Called the park but not real helpful. My truck and trailer are about 52 feet, thinl I could push the limit?

    Is the limit due to switchbacks?
  Do the rangers get out and use a measuring tape? 
  How long a rig have you pulled through?
  What is the weather like in late July and early August or is it better to wait til say October till some of the Southwest sizzle is gone?
  Need to add the second A/C for that kind of trip?

Nelson

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

It's been quite a few years since we went to Bryce but my recollection is that the RV park is outside of the canyon - you don't drive the rig through Bryce Canyon itself.    We drove there by car from elsewhere, so the details of the campground aren't clear in my memory. There is a tour loop through the canyon where you could  drive your truck easily enough.

According to the Bryce Canyon NPS site, they "discourage" rigs over 45 feet  in one of the two campgrounds (Sunset) but have no limitations in the North Campground, which is out by the visitors center and lodge.  It's probably that North Campground that I vaguely recall.  We had dinner in the lodge and I recall seeing the RVs there.

Info at http://www.nps.gov/brca/camping.html

 

[Jim Dick]

Nelson,

According to their website, Bryce Canyon discourages any RV and Trailer combination over 45' but does not prohibit it. I guess they don't measure but they do at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. There are lines painted on the road. Motorhomes are limited to 35', not including the toad.

 

[Smoky]

Nelson:

For the rest of my RVing life I will honor any sign or notice that suggests a limit on length.  about a month ago we were traveling from Lake Havasu to Cottonwood AZ with friends who have a camper on a pickup.  They decided a nice scenic route would be Route 89 to Cottonwood via Jerome.  When we turned on to 89 I saw a sign saying no trucks 40 feet or over.  I was driving 40 feet with a Taurus wagon toad.

I phoned my friend up ahead in his piggyback, and he said, hey that is trucks not motorhomes.  Like a dummy I let him convince me to keep going.  I ended up with a long scratch down the passenger side of the MH from, yes, you guessed it, a guard rail on a switch back.  I was only moving 5 mph, because I was trying to inch across the double center line on a blind curve.  It was scary as motorcycles had been racing through the mountains all day long.  I had to balance making a wide sweeping turn with how close to the guard rail I could come.  I kissed the rail soft enough that I was able to spend two days buffing out the 10 foot scratch.

But I will never again question any size limitation sign I see.

When we arrived at the campground in Cottonwood, the owner was astonished at the route I took and told us we had the least damage he had ever seen from a big rig trying that route.  We were very lucky.

 

[Chet18013]

Ruby's Campground is right at the entrance to Bryce. It's a great campground. Takes any size rig. They are right next to the Best Western Motel, where you can get a good WiFi connection. Highly recommend this campground. We stayed there last year for  a week and really enjoyed it.  The entrance to Bryce is  almost within sight of Ruby's

While you are there, besure to visit Kodachrome Valley, and The Devil's Garden.  On your way to the Devil's Garden, stop at the Nat'l Park visitor's center and ask for directions to the slot canyons,  which are past The Devils Garden. --that is if you don't mind a 2 mile hike. Time your arrivval for noon and if you want some good photos make sure you have a tripod.

Here's a photo from our visit to Bryce.

Chet18013

 

[Wendy]

It's been several years since we were at the NPS campground in Bryce but as I remember it, there were some pretty tight turns in some loops of the campground as well as a large number of small campsites. Since it fills early in the summer, odds of getting a large site aren't so good unless you stop there early in the day.

Summer weather is toasty but there's more going on in the park than in October....guided ranger walks, campfire programs, etc. Of course, if you aren't looking for those kinds of things, October in southern Utah is usually lovely.

 

[John From Detroit]

Nelson:

.  When we turned on to 89 I saw a sign saying no trucks 40 feet or over.  I was driving 40 feet with a Taurus wagon toad.

ON 89 or Off 89.. I recall 89 as being a major highway (Of course I only took it from the Utah State line to Flagstaff)

 

[Wendy]

North of I-40, US89 is a major highway, 4-laner, for a fair distance. Even where it's 2 lanes, it's still a good road. It's 89 south of I-40 that's the one you want to stay off of with a big rig, through Sedona and Jerome. It's a beautiful road but in a 40-foot motorhome with a toad, you're probably not going to appreciate the aesthetics of the drive.

 

[Smoky]

LOL Wendy!  And you won't appreciate the aethetics it does to the side of the coach either.  During part of the drive Sharon left the passenger cockpit seat and went to the back of the bus where there were no windows.  The curves with guard rails can bite you.  The curves without guard rails literally take your breath away, and your lunch away as well. ;D

 

[John From Detroit]

North of I-40, US89 is a major highway, 4-laner, for a fair distance. Even where it's 2 lanes, it's still a good road. It's 89 south of I-40 that's the one you want to stay off of with a big rig, through Sedona and Jerome. It's a beautiful road but in a 40-foot motorhome with a toad, you're probably not going to appreciate the aesthetics of the drive.

Ok,, I turned LEFT at I-40  (Well, I drove the Lumina a bit further South but still in Flagstaff... All the way to Kinkos/Fed-Ex which is at South Mall road)

If you go south from the KOA (north of town) you come to a restaurant next to a hotel,  I think it's Village in or something like that (West side of the road, decent breakfasts) Hotel has a Datastorm on the roof.

The next restaurant of the same name is as far south as I got (there are 2 of them in Pheonix)