By Annette White · Originally published in Bucket List Journey November 5, 2018
From Snow Canyon to Bryce Canyon, it is no doubt that Utah is home to some of the most beautiful mountains, trails and landscapes. Thousands of people visit the state each year, typically getting to the breathtaking parks and landmarks by car. But, for those of you looking for something more unique—shall we say bucket list worthy—how about an adventurous e-bike tour?
That’s right you can bike the perimeters of the mountainous parks getting closeup views that can not be seen from the front seat of a car. Oh, and because you will have pedal assist with your electric bike, 20 miles will seem like a breeze! Not to mention, there are picnic lunches, educated tour guides and picturesque hikes along the way.
About Escape Adventures
Escape Adventures has been the innovation in eco-friendly biking and multi-sport tours since 1992, giving people memorable experiences in the Southwest United States and beyond. Their main goal is to combine a low-impact to the environment with an epic tour. These tours typically range from 5-7 days, and can be anything from first class camping to luxury inns. You pick!
Their main headquarters (and the impressive net zero energy bike shop) are in Las Vegas, and this is where many of the tours begin too. If yours begins here, make sure to pop into Las Vegas Cyclery where the building was designed to meet the high standards of LEED, a system used to rate green buildings.
Whether you want an adventurous mountain bike ride of the north rim of the grand Canyon or a luxury road bike tour through the California wine country or even a family friendly e-bike tour through Utah, you will find it with Escape Adventures.
What is an E-Bike (AKA: Electric Bike)
An e-bike opens up opportunities for people to get out of their cars and enjoy the outdoors, with minimal effort and maximum fun. The electric bikes have a pedal assist feature, that gives you a small (or big) boost every time you push the pedal depending on what power level you have set it to. This makes going up mountains a breeze!
Don’t worry you exercise buffs, you will still be getting a workout (it’s not a motorcycle!) and even more of one if you turn off the assist feature all together. Enabling the electric option at your desired comfort level will allow the whole family bike together as a group no matter what the individual fitness levels are.
Utah Bryce and Zion Backcountry Electric Bike Tour
Escape Adventures took their most popular mountain biking tour and made it friendly for for all fitness levels. The Bryce and Zion Backcountry e-bike tour is typically a 5-day and 80ish mile excursion, but we did about 50 miles and in 3 days instead. There were also breathtaking hiking trails each day that took us deeper in to the backcountry.
Here’s a glimpse at our itinerary stops:
Snow Canyon State Park
Snow Canyon State Park is one of the world’s most remarkable travel destinations, and for all the right reasons. With swirls of red and white sandstone juxtaposing dramatic geology, this park dates back to over 27,000 years ago and emanates a distinct otherworldly feel with its sprawling landscapes.
Lava flows have shaped the canyons, water has cut the landscape, and most of what you’ll be seeing has been sculptured by the strong forces of wind. Who doesn’t love soaring cliffs effortlessly blending with lava fields and sand dunes snaking their ways through this dramatic terrain?
There are plenty of things you can do at Snow Canyon and it’s quite popular amongst all sorts of travelers. Kids love it, cyclists love it, wildlife enthusiasts love it…You get the point! Make sure to be there at dawn or dusk if you want to catch some coyotes in the wild!
This park is also where the Escape Adventures crew proved they had mad cooking skills by making us a parking lot picnic that made all the other visitors jealous. We dined on a fresh green salad, hummus with pita bread, fresh fruits and sandwiches with all the fixings.
Cedar Breaks National Monument
Cedar Breaks National Monument is nothing less of delightful. Perched 10,000 feet into the air on top of the Colorado Plateau, the park offers incredible panoramic views, camping opportunities, hiking opportunities and much more.
You’ll be spending some time surrounded by natural wonders like fir trees and summer wildflowers (or winter snow) but that’s not it. Millions of years have shaped this place into one a unique amphitheater-like structure that makes it a perfect hidden gem to explore.
Bryce Canyon National Park
If there’s one thing Bryce Canyon is known for, it’s the otherworldly spires colored in different hues of orange and red contrasted by the greenery of the surrounding forests. There is no doubt that Bryce Canyon National Park is one of the top national parks in the world thanks to its exquisite geological wonders.
Dramatic viewpoints, horseshoes-shaped canyons, whimsical rocks and much more—the park quite literally looks like something straight out of a movie.
You could spend hours or days or weeks hiking around the park, and you could find different trails and hikes with varying levels of difficulty that you can choose from. We went from Queens Garden to the Navajo loop and the elevation to the top was steep switchbacks as far the eye could see.
Hatch Hut
After a visit to Bryce Canyon we made our way to the Hatch Hut. What is a Hatch Hut? I’m glad you asked. These lodging structures are made of recycled shipping containers and four of them will be strategically placed along the 175-mile Aquarius trail for riders who need a fully equipped, cozy place to stay.
Though we didn’t spend the night there we did have a delicious taste of the hut experience. We were cooked a dinner of grilled salmon, sriracha green beans and bacon roasted potatoes. Then we dined surrounding a toasty fire pit, as we shared stories about the experiences we had just had.
Currently only the Hatch Hut is ready for visitors and you can book at Aquariustrail.com
Zion National Park
The oldest national park in the states is also Utah’s crowning jewel and should definitely be on your bucket list when it comes to national parks. Words fail to describe just how jaw-dropping the scenery is at Zion. The place is brimming with all sorts of juxtaposing geological formations – from red rocks, to lush vegetation to unreal views all with the backdrop of soaring dramatic cliffs.
It’s almost hard to imagine that this same exact place used to be a desert millions of years ago, but thanks to the flowing water, it looks the way it does now. There are plenty of major attractions you can check out there, we took the popular Narrows hike.
If you are considering a visit to Utah’s prettiest parks, taking an e-bike tour will only add to the experience.
