A few things to know about Bryce Canyon, Utah

    Bryce Canyon Facts

* Congress created Bryce National Monument in 1923;

* In 1928, Bryce Canyon was designated Bryce Canyon National Park;

* Bryce Canyon is part of The Paunsaugunt Plateau;

* There are a lot of nicknames for Bryce Canyon, like Catherdral Valley and the Bryce Amphitheatre;

* Bryce Canyon is the youngest step of The Grand Staircase;

* The name of the step Bryce Canyon is part of is called Pink Cliffs;

* The proces of erosion happens all the year round, but especially during a period of thaw;

* The steep and heavily erode stone walls and the severe cold winters don't allow too much fauna to grow;

* The National Park is named after the Mormom Ebenezer Bryce, who tried to drive his cattle through the canyon;

* Bryce Canyon consists of 37,277 acres of scenic colourful rock formations and desert wonderland;

* Hoodoo is a pillarn of rock, usually of fantastic shape, left by erosion.

bryce canyon 2Hiking through Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon National Park contains a spectacurarly beautiful series of amphitheatres filled with colourful, eroded rock forms. It can not be adequately described in words and is only somewhat better represented with photos. It's a place where you can spend hours at any number of overlooks staring in wonder. You will undoubtedly find after a visit that you've taken many more pictures than you had thought, in an attempt to capture it's brilliance.

Bryce Canyon has an easy scenic drive to great lookouts, but the best way to appreciate Bryce Canyon is to walk over the hiking trails down into the amphitheatres and among the Hoodoos - the name given to the eroded rock pinnades and spires that fill the park.

Trails which wind down below the rim through the rock formation include:

- Fairyland Loop (12,8 km round trip);

- Peekaboo Loop (10,9 km round trip);

- Queen's Garden (2,9 km round trip);

- Navajo Loop (2,4 km round trip).

Keep in mind that all trails below the rim involve steep climbs out of the canyon. Wear hiking boots with good traction and ankle support. Brink plenty of water. Know and respect your own physical limitations!

Bryce Canyon National Park- Amphitheatre / The Rim

In contrast to the massive mass of rocks of the close by National Parks of Zion and The Grand Canyon the Bryce Canyon National Park excells in refined beauty. But still it's scale is impressive. Walking at the rim we saw a variety of sandstone rockboulders. Erosion has shaped colourful Claron limestones, sandstones and mudstones into thousands of spires, fins, pinnades and mazes. Collectively called 'hoodoos', these unique formations are whimsically arranged and tinted with colours too numerous and subtle to name.

A beautiful experience was the fact that the colours seemed to change every time. Therefore it was possible to observe one part of the park and be touched by it's beauty every time.

Looking at the shapes of the sandstone rockboulders you'll be able to identify some of them as cathedrals, castles, minarets and even The Pope. But with some imagination you must see some more familiar images.

The best way to overlook the amphitheatre is by walking over the Rim Trial between Sunset Point and Sunrise Point. It's an easy walk of about 1 hour and it offers numerous nice views and takes you opast the extraordinarily hardy Bristlescone Pines, some of which have withstood the elements for over 1,700 years.
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Read about Bryce Canyon in our travel-guide
Our Bryce Canyon trip