Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon National Park is a little over 2 hour drive northeast from our campground. I saw snow capped mountains way ahead while driving north on I-15 and I was thinking maybe they were near Salt Lake City/Park City.

I was driving down the road, watching the view and singing along to the radio (we have two nieces getting married this summer and if either of them have karaoke at their receptions – watch out because I’ve been practicing) when I saw a speed limit sign that said “80”. Seriously? It is saying I can legally drive 80 miles an hour?

I knew I liked it out west!!! (and if you infer from that statement that I have illegally driven 80 mph, you would be correct).

Getting to Bryce Canyon, I drove through Red Rock Canyon. The burnt orange rocks were a different color than I had seen anywhere.

I had a pleasant surprise entering BCNP – it was free today! You have to be thankful for the little things. . .

My first stop was the visitor’s center and after watching the orientation film I learned that Bryce Canyon is not really a canyon, but a long plateau. The formations here were not formed by flowing streams or rivers (definition of a canyon). Acidic rainwater dissolved the limestone to create the beauty of Bryce Canyon.

What makes Bryce Canyon different from the other National Parks we’ve seen?

Hoodoos. They are pillars of rock left by erosion and no two look alike. They rise up out of the canyon floor in fantastic shapes. They are truly unique.

There are several ways to experience Bryce Canyon. One option is to take a horseback ride to the canyon floor. I strongly considered this. When I got to the registration spot, the lady said a group was just getting ready to leave. Boy, I am getting old. In my younger days, I would have slapped down my money and took off running to the stables to join the group. Instead, I got a hot dog!

Another option is to hike the trails. There are some that go along the rim and others that wind down to the bottom of the canyon. My independent, can-do spirit (that I must have inherited from the early settlers who blazed the way west) kicked in and I chose to hike the trail that leads down the canyon. It was a narrow trail that gave close up views of the hoodoos. Unlike the Zion trails, these were narrow at times. More than once I rounded a curve to find people coming from the other direction waiting to continue because two people would not fit side by side.

My gung-ho attitude faded when I remembered that reverse law of physics: what goes down must come up. The 1.5 mile hike down was matched by a 1.5 mile hike back up. The last .6 mile was a killer. Fortunately, I wanted to stop often to appreciate the terrific views . That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

I came upon two women on that last stretch – REAL hikers (see yesterday’s definition) who were both older than I. I walked with them for a while. They put me to shame, chatting away while I was sucking air.

The third option to see the canyon is to drive the rim – 18 miles south and 18 miles back on the same road. There are 14 viewpoints you can stop at. Some are pull-offs where you get out of the car and can see the canyon. At others, it is a short walk to the viewing area. I did this rim drive last. The northern end is Rainbow Point with an elevation of 9,115 ft. The view from here was very different (see picture). The hoodoos are mostly in the southern part of the canyon so this area was more canyon-like covered with trees. The hoodoos are definitely more interesting!

After 4 and ½ hours in the park, I had the 2+ hour drive back to the campground. I chose to go home a different route – more scenic as I wasn’t on the freeway as long. It added about 20 minutes to the trip because I couldn’t drive 80 mph on the twisty road, but it was a nice drive.

I will not be posting to the blog tomorrow or Wednesday. Tuesday is a “clean the inside of the RV” day and paperwork to catch up on. I know I have a captive audience here, but I don’t think you are interested in how I get soap scum off the shower door. Wednesday Mike returns (hip-hip-hurray) so the bulk of that day will be the 4-hour round trip to pick him up.

I could post a bazillion pictures of the hoodoos but I hope you get the idea of their uniqueness from the few here. Pictures today are: one of two arches in the Red Rock Canyon that I drove through; the entrance to Bryce Canyon National Park; two views from Sunrise Point, my first stop in the park; me trying to show you how close I got to the hoodoos in my trek down to the canyon floor; a hoodoo close-up; a hoodoo at the end of The Queen’s Trail that took me to the canyon floor. It resembles a statue of Queen Victoria in London and she is looking over her garden; I left my own little hoodoo on the canyon floor; me at the point the upward climb got VERY strenuous (and I had 3/4^th of a mile after I got to the top to get back to my car; how different the canyon looks at Rainbow Point; the Natural Bridge (actually an arch); and what some of my drive home looked like – I felt like I was back in Northern Michigan!