Bryce Canyon National Park

Bryce Canyon National Park is another planet in itself. They often call it an alienated one amongst rest of the National Parks in the United Sates. I happen to have a naughty kid who is our next door neighbour, named Bryce. I have always called him out in anger because of his ruggedness. In Bryce Canyon National Park, Ruggedness is another word for Hoodoos. Let me walk you through how it touched us and became mellow in our hearts.

Ever wondered how Bryce Canyon got its name? It's named after Ebenezer Bryce who was an early settler in the area who found the park cliffs. Hoodoos for which Bryce is known for, is irregular columns of rock that exist almost in every continent, but here at Bryce Canyon National Park, it is the largest concentration found anywhere on Earth. Colored Hoodoos in this Canyon are a complete miracle. They are spire shaped limestone rock formations that leave a landmark. Their beauty leaves you spellbound.

Bryce Amphitheater & Bryce Point

Coming all the way from Zion National Park to Bryce in a nutshell was nothing but a fairy tale.  Wish I could reel it out to you just as we lived it. Two -Two and a half hours of drive with gorgeous limestone views was a side treat to all four of us. We came across a series of bowl-shaped amphitheaters.

As we drove by, we embossed in ourselves that this is by the far the most iconic section of the park, the Bryce Amphitheater! Indeed it was! Viewpoints along the first 3 miles (4.8 km) of the main road provide access to this area. This area is referred to as an "amphitheater" as it is a bowl-shaped area shaped by the drainage of seasonal rains and melting snow.

The breathtaking views can extend nearly 100 miles (161 km) along the eastern horizon. Bryce Point provides a soaring view of the Bryce Amphitheater from the south. Native American people called it to be the "Red Rock Standing Like a Man in a Hole"

Visiting this place was like warm fuzzies full of bliss. Weather had pleasentaries along the trip. It rained at one vista and we were in our fleece almost for the whole day....guess that too in the month of September!

There are bounteous views of the Bryce Amphitheater that includes Bryce Point, Sunset Point, Inspiration Point and Sunset Point. These views are accessible year-round, and also serve as trailheads for the variety of hikes that descend below and travel along the rim of the Paunsaugunt (named after a certain place within Utah) plateau. Especially if you're only here for a couple hours, these viewpoints should be your highest priority when seeing the park.

Sunset Point to Sunrise Point Hike

Onset for a mountaineer range point cannot exclude hiking, can it it anyway? No way! We hiked the Sunrise Point Trail. Parking was easily accessible at this point though it exists at both the Sunrise and Sunset Point Trailheads.

I often go by the guide to a happy and successful vacation and that is to go by your family instinct. Here too we followed the same rule. Easy to moderate hikes and this one was the easiest Trail hike that meanders along the rim of the iconic Bryce Canyon Amphitheater, giving you views of the hoodoos to the bottom. The hike was more than having a paved section for walk, it was fun, it was enacting a majestic walk and it was much more than covering the vista points.

The Queen's Garden Trail

The Queen's Garden Trail was the least difficult of the trails descending from the rim into the Bryce Canyon Amphitheater. We hiked this out-and-back trail to the Queen Victoria hoodoo at the end of a short spur trail and experienced the splendor of hiking amongst the hoodoos.

Remember, you are none other than Queen walking down one of the aisles for your kingdom! Voila!

This trail is commonly combined with the Navajo Loop to create a 2.9 mile round trip trail where you can descend at Sunrise Point and ascend at Sunset Point. Check the loop entrance below. As always our trail blazers Nishant and Suhana hit the route first and nailed it

Inspiration Point

The point and the picture names it all. I adore how Suhana hid behind me in the picture and it captured the whole essence of the vista.

Lodging & Shuttle Service

We stayed at Ruby's Inn, a complacent and satisfying place to rest. A mountaineeting niche of all essentials and souveniers with Bryce motifs. Shuttle service is exemplary. Did you know it's free with the park entrance fee? The park shuttle is the perfect transportation option for hikers. It provides convenient access to trailheads for almost all of the park's hike routes. But as they say, go by your family's instinct, we chose to ride our car instead. And glad we did since we hit the rains and our closest parking lot saved us. Did not have to wait for the shuttle. No, we did not have umbrellas, this time we were still learning to travel....grin! I know you are probably counting the pros and cons of the transportation options by now ;) Fun Fact: This place seemed like an oasis in the desert.

The Bryce Canyon Lodge did give me an all together a delightful porbella mushroom sandwich recipe. This was the first of its kind for me and simply scumptuous! Portobello Mushrooms, stacked with Roasted Red Bell Peppers, Avacados and Fried onions was a delight to the core! Fun Fact: I still enjoy this recipe munching away in the home backyard with my family!

Southern Scenic Drive - Natural Bridge

Remember we took car instead of the shuttle, so we had leisure to decide where we wanted to go next. Reading through the park guide, the southern scenic route definitely attracted us to explore and we hit that road.

You might have imagined a river flowing below the bridge as its named such. Natural Bridge is one of the most iconic overlooks along the Southern Scenic Drive. Like some other features in the park, Natural Bridge is not what its name would suggest. Natural bridges are formed by the movement of a stream or river cutting through rock. The impressive feature seen here is instead a natural arch, or window, formed primarily by the expansion of ice in cracks deep within. A more weathering-resistant layer of rock protects the softer rocks below from more rapid erosion, while ice, rain, and wind slowly open the arch wider and wider.

As the edge of the plateau has eroded back, a small gully has formed that flows with rain and melting snow (now more than 125 feet below the arch). Scary Fat: Undoubtedly some day, the top of the arch will collapse, leaving behind new hoodoos on either side.

Sign Off

We viewed the Bryce Amphitheater, the Bryce Point, Inspiration & Rainbow points. Hiked the Sunrise Point Trail, Queens Garden Trail. The Natural Bridge vista point that imposes the red rock arch gave us a feeling of walking thru the heavenly cave. We soaked ourselves in this immaculate beautiful Bryce. And now guess what? I will always look upon that little kid next door with love 😉. This one is tattooed forever...

I will let you decide your next trip, but if Bryce has not been a part of your list, the grin on our face in the picture below will probably make you edit the list, will it?

Cya soon viewing my next one....