Located in Southern Utah is one of North America’s most impressive natural wonders – Bryce Canyon. The national park is home to a collection of giant natural amphitheaters and has one of the highest concentrations of hoodoos on Earth.
What the heck is a hoodoo? I wondered the same thing. A hoodoo (pictured right) is a tall rock column formation composed of soft sedimentary rock and then topped by a piece of harder, less easily eroded stone that protects the column from the elements.
These hoodoos are formed over thousands and thousands of years. In fact, Bryce Canyon, which sits at an elevation of about 9,000 feet and covers an area of more than 35,000 acres, started forming nearly 60 million years ago. Pretty impressive!
Let’s take a photo tour of Bryce Canyon and the two trails I explored – Navajo Loop and Fairyland Loop.
Navajo Loop Trail
This trail is best done during the early morning or late evening before the sunsets. Without stops and at a leisurely pace, the 1.3-mile loop trail should take less than an hour.
Fun Fact
While I was walking through Navajo Loop, I said to my friend that it reminded me a lot of Thunder Mountain at Disneyland…even the smell triggered memories of Disneyland. Sure enough, Bryce Canyon was inspiration for Disneyland’s Big Thunder Mountain Railroad!
Fairyland Loop via Rim Trail
The Fairyland Loop Trail includes a portion of the Rim Trail from Sunset Point to Fairyland Point. The 8-mile trail was listed as the longest and most strenuous day trail in the park due to its length, switchbacks and multiple elevation changes. So, naturally, this is the one I wanted to do. And the description did not lie – it was strenuous and it was long…very long. Be sure to bring a lot of water and sustenance of some sort. You’ll need it!
After a steep climb, the trail reaches a meadow. Keep an eye out for pronghorns, a type of antelope that can be seen grazing in the meadow areas. I didn’t spot any, unfortunately.
Towards the end of the hike, you will come across Tower Bridge. You can’t actually walk across the bridge. It can only be admired from afar.
The picture above shows what you just accomplished from the mountain in the background all the way across the entire canyon. Lots of switchbacks going up and down repeatedly. Very exhausting but definitely worth it!
