Smaller than other Utah national parks (less than 36,000 acres) and with fewer visitors (2.7 million per year), Bryce is nonetheless one of the more spectacular places you might find anywhere. It's not really a canyon, but a series of amphitheaters formed by erosion of several types of sandstone, each a different color. Situated high on a plateau, the park ranges up to 9100 feet above sea level, making it much cooler than most other parks. An eighteen mile scenic road leads to thirteen overlooks that have similar, yet different shapes and colors. Eight trails offer access below the rim for a walk among the hoodoos, majestic rock formations sculpted by wind and water over millions of years.
Native Americans lived in the area for thousands of years, but the first exploration by Europeans was led by John Wesley Powell, shortly after exploring the Green and Colorado Rivers through the Grand Canyon. Mormons attempted to settle the area, and one of them named Ebeneezer Bryce built a cabin at the bottom of one of the amphitheaters. Bryce ran cattle in the lowlands and reportedly called it "a helluva place to lose a cow". Failing to provide needed irrigation, the Mormons moved on to greener pastures, but left the name "Bryce's canyon".
I have visited Bryce Canyon five or six times, Summer and Winter, but have never gotten the perfect conditions for photography. On this particular visit, I took more than 200 photos. Don't worry, I'm not going to bore you with all of them.
Some great photos . . I worked at Bryce one summer . . 2 years ago my daughter and I did a tour of Bryce, Zion, and Grand Canyon . I was so-o-o-o looking forward to seeing Bryce again . . but it was drizzly and overcast .. clouds opened once or twice so I got a few photos and the next morning (Oct 6) as we were leaving . . it snowed
ReplyDeleteThanks. I saw Bryce once with snow all around. It was gorgeous.
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