Sometime in your life, you’ve got to see the American West whether it’s the canyons of Utah or the mountains and hot springs in Wyoming. We happen to think the best way to see this region is on a bike tour or hiking tour of the American West.

Backroads offers active tours to Montana, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming and more, giving you the opportunity to see these glorious vistas in the open air as you pedal through each state or hike on your own two feet. Smell the wildflowers, see the mountains unobstructed and drink in the fresh alpine air.

Here are a few of our top Western vacations that we think you should consider this year:

New Mexico Biking: Santa Fe & Taos – This 6-day, 5-night New Mexico bike tour takes you through the land that inspired artist Georgia O’Keefe, across the fifth highest bridge in the US, a chance to bike the Enchanted Circle around Wheeler Peak and through Spanish and Indian ruins. Runs May, June, September & October.

Wyoming: Yellowstone and Tetons Multisport – This is your chance to see mud pots, spouting geysers and steaming vents, along with the beautiful peaks of the Tetons and the Snake River as you white-water raft  down it. This 6-day 5-night tour screams adventure! Get ready to bike Wyoming, hike Grand Teton National Park and kayak Yellowstone Lake. This Wyoming adventure is offered as a Classic Tour June-September, for Singles-Solos  in July, for families June-August and as a deluxe camping experience June-August.

Montana Biking – Right next door to Wyoming is beautiful Montana where you’ll get to bike the Going-to-the-Sun Road and take in the true alpine beauty of the American West. As you bike Montana, pedal past Lake McDonald, sparkling waterfalls, through glacier-carved valleys and even take a trek into Canada and visit a National Park. As the finale, raft down the Flathead River. This is a 6-day, 5-night trip that runs July-August as a classic tour and June and August for Singles-Solos.

Utah: Bryce & Zion Biking – Red rocks galore are what you’ll find on this bike trip through Utah. You’ll see rocks of all shapes and sizes from whimsically-shaped formations to towers and arches. Get ready to be amazed at what Mother Nature creates! On this Utah bike tour, you’ll also work your way through many canyons, bike through Zion National Park with its colored pinnacles, spires and hoodoos, as well as marvel at Mount Carmel’s white sandstone Elkhard Cliffs. This bike tour of Utah runs 6 days and 5 nights June-September and is also available for Singles and Solos in July.

Where have you always dreamed of heading out West? Don’t forget to bring your cowboy boots and cowboy hat – oh yeah, and your sense of adventure!

To book any of our active trips to the American West, please call us daily 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific time at 800-462-2848.

Backroads offers a range of deluxe camping vacations to destinations in North America where travelers sleep in roomy domed tents in plush sleeping bags and enjoy gourmet meals around crackling campfires.  If you’re an outdoorsy person who loves to travel, our adventure camping trips are perfect for you. We handle all the work of set-up and tear down; you just have to show up and enjoy it!

If you’re planning a camping vacation soon, here are 8 tips that we recommend for all our adventure campers:

• Consider taking a guide to the constellations. In many of the settings Backroads’ visits, you’ll have access to stars from a different side of the world in a dark environment with fewer city lights that lends itself to seeing lots of astronomical bodies.
• Bring out the Scout in you and learn a few good knots. A bowline, for example, will never work itself loose; a figure eight will not slip but is easy to untie. These come in handy during camping trips.
• Unpack only the items you need to use. Keep items you may need in the middle of the night within arm reach.
• Beam me up Scottie! Enjoying a campground by moonlight is a special treat. However, on evenings when the moon is less than full, it’s helpful to have on hand a small flashlight with a strong beam. If you prefer to keep your hands free, head lamps make a great alternative option.
• Meet new people. Part of the fun of a Backroads’ adventure vacation is meeting people from all walks of life, especially your fellow travelers at the campsite. You never know what fun might happen around the campfire!
• Bring a spirit of adventure! Think of all the people before you who’ve lived and camped in the great outdoors. There’s nothing quite like sleeping under the stars in the fresh air. Dare to take a jump in the lake or hike that intriguing trail around the bend.
• Keep a journal. There’s nothing like documenting your outdoor adventure for the future by journaling about your experience daily. Curl up in your tent and write away! You’ll cherish it for years to come.
• Get up early. Enjoy the sun rising each morning at our gorgeous destinations. It’s a wonderful way to start your day and the beauty of the sunset just might unexpectedly take your breath away.

Backroads offers camping trips for families, camping trips for singles and solos and traditional camping adventures. Pick from destinations like Montana, Alaska, Wine Country and the Canadian Rockies. For more information about Backroads’ camping vacations, please call us 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific daily at 800-462-2848.

Written by Backroads Team Leader Dave Schifrin on his trip up the Alaskan highway to prepare to lead Alaska based tours.

Day 1:  Salt Lake City – Great Falls, Mont.
Returning Leader Training is always fun. I get to meet other Backroads Trip Leaders whom I haven’t met before and re-connect with others whom I haven’t seen for a while.  A handful of us reported to the Backroads Operations headquarters in Salt Lake City  this past Monday to learn about some new Backroads initiatives (including the new specialized bikes and Backroads cycling jerseys available to guests!). But it was the end of the week that excited me the most… the start of my journey to Alaska for the season where I’ll be leading walking/hiking tours and multisport trips for the summer.

I’m bringing a van and bikes from Salt Lake City to Anchorage, which is the hub for our three different types of trips in Alaska (hiking trips, multisport tours, biking tours).  It’s an epic drive from Salt Lake City to Anchorage, and I’m hoping to share some of that crazy experience with you.  My journey takes me from Salt Lake City to Canmore, Alberta, Canada, to drop off a trailer and bikes at our Canadian hub. From Canmore I’ll head north across the expanses of Canadian wilderness through northern Alberta and British Columbia and across the corner of Yukon Territory before driving into Alaska in a week or so.  Yep… that’s a nine-day solo drive through North American awesomeness. Just another epic Backroads journey…

Day 1 was a drive from Salt Lake City to Great Falls, Mont., for much needed sleep. I left Salt Lake in pouring rain, but the rain subsided as I entered Idaho on I-15. Idaho and Montana are just so beautiful and vast. You can just imagine buffalo herds numbering in the thousands lumbering across the prairies. While the scenery is incredible, I think my favorite part of driving the Backroads van is that everyone who passes is interested in the van and bikes. The stories that are told on the images on the van’s sides (and the bikes racked on the roof) are intriguing to everyone, and I usually get a wave or sometimes a tap of the horn from people who must be thinking something along the lines of “I want to be doing that.”

Day 2 takes me into Canada. I’m really excited to get to Canmore and meet up with some of the Backroads crew there. Hopefully I’ll get to explore Banff National Park a little bit before I continue the journey north. It’s been a must-see for me for a long time.  I’ll check in soon. Hopefully with photos and undoubtedly with interesting stories ….