Bryce Canyon National Park

Of the 5 National Parks of Utah, Bryce Canyon was our last to explore. To reach Bryce Canyon from our campground at the edge of Panguitch, UT, we drove through the scenic Red Rock Canyon.  There is a system of trails through Red Rock, but that will have to wait for another stay.

From the moment you get your first view of Bryce Canyon at Bryce Point, you are overwhelmed by the canyon’s immenseness and stark beauty.  It is literally comprised of thousands of acres filled with rock formations.

The valley, created by erosion, is constantly changing and emerging.  Over time, tall thin ridges called fins emerge.

Fins erode into arches, then into pinnacles and spires called hoodoos, that weakening and eventually falling, add their colors to the hills below. As with many of the areas of the West, the ancients had their own explanations for the formations.  An elderly Paiute explains:  “Before there were any Indians, the Legend People lived in this place.  They were of many kinds, birds, animals, lizards,and such things – but they had the power to make themselves look like people.  For some reason, the Legend People were bad, so Coyote turned them all into rocks.  You can see them in that place now, all turned to rocks; some standing in rows, some sitting down, some holding onto others.  You can see their faces with paint on them just as they were before they became rocks.”

The scenic drive through the park stretches a little over 20 miles.  If you do not wish to drive, a shuttle bus  makes stops at all the overlooks in the area called Bryce Amphitheater.  We were told at the Visitor Center, that the largest majority of visitors never see the park beyond the shuttle route of the Amphitheater.

We decided to drive the length of the park, stopping at the major viewpoints.  Our first stop was the popular Bryce Point, elevation 8300:

Looking across to Sunset Point:

Here, cave-like grottos have formed in the walls.

I could hear a steady, rhythmic sound, and finally, with the help of the zoom lens,located the source:    

We drove the length of the park to begin working our way back.  At the end of the road lies Rainbow Point and Yovimpa Point, one of the highest points in the park at an elevation of 9115.  The view at these points, on a clear day, can extend 90miles away into Arizona and New Mexico.   

Ponderosa Canyon shows off its multicolored hoodoos framed by the pine forests.Amazingly, there are even trees growing on the top of that tallest hoodoo. 

Natural Bridge is not a true bridge at all, but rather an arch.  Bridges are carved by running water underneath, while arches are formed by rain and frost erosion from the top.

The view from Inspiration Point has been named Silent City.

Although another formation is named The Poodle, I think I found one here also:

Fairyland Point’s view is highlighted by the Sinking Ship, upper left center of photo:

As mentioned above, most visitors never see the southern end of the park.  Far fewer decide to venture into the canyon on one of the many hiking trails.  We decided to take a 3 mile hike that would cover parts of both the Queen’s Garden trail and the Navajo Loop.  If the views from above seem outstanding, hiking through the formations is better described through pictures than words.  Join us on the hike by clicking on the collage:

Canyonlands National Park – Needles Section

Canyonlands National Park  covers 530 square miles of southeastern Utah where the Green and Colorado rivers come together.  It is perhaps one of our more unusual national parks, geographically speaking, as it is comprised of three different distinct areas, each difficult, if not impossible to access from the other.  Countless canyons, arches, spires, buttes, mesas, and a myriad of other spectacular rock formations are found within its boundaries.

Last year, we visited the Island in the Sky region, the more accessible and popular of the three areas of the park (Island in the Sky, Needles, the Maze).  Today, we decided to drive south to the Needles region.  It is located 40 miles south of Moab, and then 35 miles west on Highway 211, the only paved road into the region.

Along the way, Wilson Arch is adjacent to the highway.

Newspaper Rock is located on Highway 211.  A State Historical Site, Newspaper Rock, containing hundreds of petroglyphs, is one of the more impressive petroglyph sites we’ve viewed.  The etchings are estimated to contain images spanning 2000 years and cover almost 200 square feet.  In Navajo, the rock is called  Tse’Hane’, or “rock that tells a story”.    As is the case in all petroglyph sites, there is no way to know why the images were placed there.  Were they placed there to record a story, to leave a message for travelers, or were they just ancient graffiti?  No one will ever know for sure, but they are always fascinating sites.

The Needles District is separated from the remainder of the park by sheer, non-bridgeable canyons.  It forms the southeast corner of Canyonlands and was named for the colorful spires of sandstone that dominate the area.  Much of the Needles District is only accessible by hiking or 4 wheel drive vehicles.  You do not see these spires on the scenic drive through the park, except at a distance, so the second photo is from the Internet.

One of the more unusual arches in the park is this one titled “Wooden Shoe Arch”.  Some named formations in southern Utah really require an imagination to see how they obtained their name; not this one.

The main road ends amongst a jumble of small ravines and pinnacles at the scenic Big Spring Canyon Overlook.

To more of our favorite photos from the day, click on the collage. 

Arches National Park – 2010 Day 3

Delicate Arch is probably the best-known natural arch in the world.   It has been featured on both postage stamps and license plates.

Last year, during our visit to Arches National Park, we hiked to the Delicate Arch Viewpoint, but decided this year to actually hike to the Arch itself.

We began early in the morning, to avoid as much heat of the day as possible.

The trail head leads first past Wolfe Ranch.  In the late 1800’s John Wesley Wolfe and his son moved here from Ohio looking for a drier climate to help with the pain from a Civil War wound.  He chose this spot along Salt Wash for its water and grassland.  They erected a crude cabin, a corral and a small dam.  More than a decade later, John’s daughter and family joined them.  Shocked at the conditions her father and brother were living in, Flora convinced them to build a new cabin with a wood floor – that cabin, still very primitive by our standards, remains today.

  The 3 mile round trip hike then leads over a footbridge stretching across the wash.

  

This first stretch of the hike climbs slightly, and runs though a rugged area with lots of scrub brush.

The next part of the hike is the most strenuous, up an incline of slickrock (a word coined by early settlers whose metal-shod horses found the expanses of barren rock slick to cross).  We stopped several times, both to catch our breath, and to take in the breathtaking panoramas of the surrounding area.

 

At this point, there is no visible trail, just small cairns of rock to mark the way.   

Once you’ve scaled the slickrock, there is less of a incline, but the trail twists and turns and climbs through washes, around outcrops and between stands of twisted brush and trees.   

Quite abruptly, you emerge at another span of slickrock.

The National Park Service has created a trail at this point around the base of the promontory.  The view is fantastic, but Delicate Arch is still nowhere in sight.

Across the ravine we spot an arch

and up a steep incline to our right is  Frame Arch.  Some hikers climbed to this arch to get their first view of Delicate Arch, but we decided not to; if you fall, it’s a long way down.   
A set of stairs has been carved into the stone

and then, just as you round a sharp bend, 

a few more steps, and

you get your first look at Delicate Arch!  

The immediate area has unguarded cliffs plunging down one hundred feet or more.  Walking across the slickrock to the arch was the hardest part of the hike for me.  If one was to lose their footing, there is nothing to catch onto, or to hinder your fall to the floor far below.

What a feeling, though, to look out across the great vista stretching from horizon to horizon.

Standing near the arch, we were able to look across at the spot we viewed the arch from last year. 

We took several pictures of the arch,

and then it was time to head back across the slickrock to the trail.

At the rim, another hiker offered to take a photo of the two of us.

The hike back is almost all downhill, thankfully, and offers some great views.     

As we neared the footbridge, we took a short side trip to a Ute petroglyph panel.

We have not often seen panels depicting horseback riders, as many such sites date to an era before the horse was introduced to the area.  This panel is estimated to have been created sometime between 1650 and 1850.

 

It’s been a long, hot day, but the hike to Delicate Arch is one well worth the effort.