lorilou Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Hello! We are planning to take a 1 week roadtrip from Texas to the south rim of the Grand Canyon within the next month or so. I'm searching through old threads, but was wondering what sights we shouldn't miss on the way there and back! Feel free to link anything you feel is helpful! :001_smile: Thanks! Lorilou :) DS (11) DD (9) DD (7) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catz Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Where in Texas are you coming from? We drove west through Texas a couple winters ago (from MN) and some of my favorite stops were Palo Duro Canyon in Texas http://www.palodurocanyon.com/ Carlsbad Cavern, Guadalupe Mountains National Park, and Santa Fe. In Arizona, Saguaro National Park, Petrified Forest National Park, Montezuma Castle (we did a 3 week road trip!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lorilou Posted March 8, 2012 Author Share Posted March 8, 2012 Central Texas. I had thought about going down to Carlsbad Caverns on the way back...I remember going there as a kid and loving it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Where in Texas are you coming from? We drove west through Texas a couple winters ago (from MN) and some of my favorite stops were Palo Duro Canyon in Texas http://www.palodurocanyon.com/ Carlsbad Cavern, Guadalupe Mountains National Park, and Santa Fe. In Arizona, Saguaro National Park, Petrified Forest National Park, Montezuma Castle (we did a 3 week road trip!). Oh, we loved going there! There's a cool outdoor, historical play done with lighting effects on the canyon that's just great! You get dinner, too. Definitely an exciting, fun thing to do. I'm not sure where it is, but I remember a dormant volcano in the area you can climb (well, you can't climb it, you can start at the top and take a few steps into it, I think). You turn around and look out over the plain and see a ton of dormant volcanos rising out of the landscape. It's WAY cool, and another not-miss. I'm sorry, I don't know exactly where in W. TX it is, but it's on the way to Colorado, so probably easy to google. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrappyhappymama Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 We enjoy stopping at Meteor Crater in AZ. There is also a ghost town along the way called Two Guns and my family had a lot of fun tramping around seeing the remains of an old zoo and other homes and stores. Just beyond the Grand Canyon, about an hour, is a little town called Seligman on the old route 66. It's one of the towns that inspired the Cars movie. We spent a fun afternoon seeing the sights and chatting with some of the older folks in town who have kept it going, despite being bypassed by I-40. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Oh, we loved going there! There's a cool outdoor, historical play done with lighting effects on the canyon that's just great! You get dinner, too. Definitely an exciting, fun thing to do. I'm not sure where it is, but I remember a dormant volcano in the area you can climb (well, you can't climb it, you can start at the top and take a few steps into it, I think). You turn around and look out over the plain and see a ton of dormant volcanos rising out of the landscape. It's WAY cool, and another not-miss. I'm sorry, I don't know exactly where in W. TX it is, but it's on the way to Colorado, so probably easy to google. Clayton, NM. is where or close to where the volcano is. Drove by it going to Colorado right after Christmas. I used to live on the south rim of the Palo Duro so I highly recommend it--especially BEFORE the Grand Canyon. lol The play is during the summer and it quite fun! There is a terrific history museum in Canyon, Texas. Lots and lots of how that part of Texas was settled. Cowboys, natives, wildlife, Farming/Ranching, and the oil industry. Very fun and educational. We loved Carlsbad, too. Not exactly on the same highway as the Palo Duro though. There are some great things to see and do in NM, but it's been a long time since I traveled that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catz Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 We loved Carlsbad, too. Not exactly on the same highway as the Palo Duro though. Carlsbad is out there, but that was far and away the best cave experience we've had if you're into that kind of thing. (We've been to Mammoth, Jewel, and Wind caves in the National Park System, plus some smaller regional caves too.) We drove different ways out and back too. Although we did hit Palo Duro and Carlsbad on the way out (ended up going through Tucson - also did Saguaro National Park - nice as well!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Carlsbad is out there, but that was far and away the best cave experience we've had if you're into that kind of thing. (We've been to Mammoth, Jewel, and Wind caves in the National Park System, plus some smaller regional caves too.) We drove different ways out and back too. Although we did hit Palo Duro and Carlsbad on the way out (ended up going through Tucson - also did Saguaro National Park - nice as well!) I agree. My sons loved Carlsbad. You could do both by making a circle trip. I should have thought of that. There are some nifty sand dunes near Monahans. My boys loved sliding down them on plastic sleds. We spent maybe two or three hours there..had a picnic and then hit the road again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
higginszoo Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 We're in Central TX, and last year, we made a loop -- headed out up through Abilene, Lubbock, Amarillo and then up along the road that follows the CO/NM border in NM -- Capulin Volcano was in ds's Cub Scout handbook and was a great, off the beaten path National Park. (From the north Austin suburbs, Amarillo was a comfortable drive, and then we hit Capulin still pretty early on the next day). Santa Fe was interesting, and Aztec Ruins NP ... we went to Chaco Culture park, too, but it is WAY off of the beaten path -- we camped there, but the roads were so rough, I don't think that our van will be the same again!) On the way back, we headed further south -- Carlsbad, El Paso, and in on I-10 -- we didn't go all the way across AZ -- our focus was the Four Corners area -- Mesa Verde, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Oh, we loved going there! There's a cool outdoor, historical play done with lighting effects on the canyon that's just great! You get dinner, too. Definitely an exciting, fun thing to do. I'm not sure where it is, but I remember a dormant volcano in the area you can climb (well, you can't climb it, you can start at the top and take a few steps into it, I think). You turn around and look out over the plain and see a ton of dormant volcanos rising out of the landscape. It's WAY cool, and another not-miss. I'm sorry, I don't know exactly where in W. TX it is, but it's on the way to Colorado, so probably easy to google. That's Capulin Volcano, iirc it is in north east New Mexico (if indeed we are thinking of the same one). It's a great geology/topographical geography field trip. We enjoyed the climb and the view from the rim is great. One could gaze out and imagine the area once dotted with small active volcanos - for whatever reason I just don't tend to connect the continental US with active volcanoes (well aside from Mt St Helens!), so it was a memorable experience for me. The kids also enjoyed identifying the wildlife of the area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn. Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Balmorhea in W. Tx., Carlsbad Caverns and White Sands in New Mexico. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matilda Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Also try Acoma, the ice caves near Grants, and in eastern AZ the Petrified Forest. In Albuquerque you can do Explora, the Natural History Museum, Tram, and Botanical Gardens/Zoo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhonda in TX Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 We went from Houston, to Carlsbad Caverns (loved it!), then up to Albuquerque, then west. We loved Meteor Crater. We also took a very short trip down to Sedona from the Grand Canyon. Wish we could have stayed longer. Oh, and we took the train ride from Williams, AZ up to the G.C. That was a blast! We also drove through the Painted Desert. That was such an awesome trip. I'd love to do it again, but we've headed west twice now. We've decided we really need to head east and see other parts of the country. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXMomof4 Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 If you make a circle trip - in southern NM you can go to White Sands. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that place. You can rent sleds and spend hours out there on the sands. Carlsbad is pretty amazing. Cloudcroft is a cute little ski town with fun shops and restaurants. Going the north route - don't miss Palo Duro. I'd go there first because I'm sure it would be anti-climatic after seeing the Grand Canyon. Then head over to Taos and Santa Fe. Especially Santa Fe. The Palace of the Governors is very interesting and the Native Americans set up right outside to sell handmade jewelry and crafts. The whole square is amazing just to visit. I've heard great things about the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum as well. The Petrified Forest is really cool as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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