Some of our national parks have unfortunate, uninspiring names. Bryce Canyon National Park is named after a 19th century pioneer who settled in the area. Also, it’s not a canyon, but an amphitheater cut into the edge of a plateau. The park is on the highest level of the Grand Staircase in south central Utah at over 9,000 feet. Native southern Paiute’s named the area Angka-ku-wass-a-wits, or red painted faces. You can easily envision ancestors fixed into stone here.
Bryce Canyon hoodoos
Compared to the incredible diversity of many national parks, Bryce is a bit of a single note. However, that one note that is played superbly. The view starts on the 5.5 mile Rim Trail that extends along the top of the amphitheater.
Rim Trail in January
Rim Trail view
The clear sky and thin atmosphere helps see long distance. It’s said you can see 200 miles, but here’s a bit closer view down into the lower plateau.
The red sandstone lit in the high altitude sun smacks you in the face, so letting some of the texture in the snow and sand helps appreciate the forms here. Hiking down off the rim provides one of the best loop hikes you can take on the Navajo and Queens Garden trails.
Navajo trail
Queen’s garden
The sandstone walls reflect their color back to other walls and down to the snow creating an otherworldly glow.
The smaller trees in some of the pictures are junipers, and can be hundreds of years old. If you like that, grab a juniper berry flavored gin, and provide a toast to long life. The junipers don’t hold a candle to the Bristlecone pines in the park that can live thousands of years. The 250 million year old sandstone and ancient trees offer a long-term perspective.
