@ 

Bryce

Canyon


 
 
 

 

* Getting There 
* Where to Stay
* The Trails
* The Viewpoints 
* Is it Worth The Drive?

* Links

 
Getting There
After hiking the Grand Canyon, we headed to Utah, stopping overnight near Lake Powell in Page. There are some slot canyons worth seeing there -- Antelope Canyon is a must-see. Boating season had not yet hit, but the area was all ready for sightseeing. We left early though (no time, no Starbuck's) and drove to Bryce.
Where to Stay We had planned to stay at Bryce Country Cabins, but cancelled and got a room with its own jacuzzi at Ruby's Inn. Winter rates for the room was just $80! The jacuzzi helped me get rid of most of my limp and we were able to hike about 4 miles in Bryce.

The Trails

Check out our pictures!

Navajo Loop, which starts at Sunset Point, takes you under and around "hoodoos" and trippy formations -- all kinds of magical. Navajo Loop connects to the Queen's Garden trail. The Queen's garden is a group of hoodoos with more yellows and pinks than in other parts of the canyon. You can take the Queen's Garden Trail out to Sunrise Point, and take the super-easy, viewpoint-ridden rim trail back to Sunset Point. The melting snow turned the find sand at the bottom of the hoodoos to a clay-like muddy goop that squelches and was really hard to get off our boots, and made them a few pounds heavier! Packed snow scrapes off the stuff better than anything. Even with my limp, the trails were very easy and we got a real feel for the canyon that you can't get from the viewpoints -- its scale and mythic qualities are lost from a distance.
The Viewpoints You can pretty much see Bryce in a day -- a light, one- to two-hour hike and some driving to the park's many, breathtaking viewpoints and you've taken it all in. Have your camera ready -- the viewpoints along the park's 18-mile road range in elevation up to 9000+ feet, and some of the vistas go into infinity.
Is it Worth the Drive? I think Bryce is a must-see if you are within 300 miles, but lots of areas of Utah probably have similar hoodoos and colors ... just not as plentiful. If you've seen a lot of the southwest, such as Sonoma, you may feel like it is "more of the same."
Links for More Information

Go Utah.com's great guide to Utah: http://www.go-utah.com/a/national-parks/Bryce.htm

Grand Canyon Explorer.com's awesome guide to Bryce: http://kaibab.org/other/gc_oa_bc.htm

A lovely site all about "color country." http://www.brycecanyoncountry.com

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