Bryce Canyon

We left Zion this morning to explore another national park - Bryce Canyon, which actually isn’t really a canyon. Let me explain. For a canyon to form, there has to be a river. At Bryce, there’s no river. Multiple forces, including wind, water and ice plus millions of years have given Bryce its unique landscape. We took the short but steep 1.3 mile Navajo Trail (500 vertical feet down and then back up again) to explore in and around the Bryce Amphitheatre. The fins and hoodoos rise from the ground like delicate sculptures and look as though a fierce breeze just might blow them away like piles of dust. Fins are the long thin formations and hoodoos are the tall, skinny spires. Each structure is comprised of many different types of rock, some soft, some hard, thus the columns’ bumpy appearance. After the hike we drove up to Rainbow Point to hit some of the designated ‘must sees’, including Natural Bridge. Ben, Abby and Emmett each gained another Junior Ranger Badge and then we hit the road, on to Escalante. We arrived at Broken Bow RV at just about 6:00 with James and I quarreling about setting up the tent. As we were only staying one night and it takes some time to set up the tent, the beds, bedding and other gear, I suggested the kids and I sleep in the car and the other 4 adults share the two other tents. Oh, no. James cannot sleep on a ‘regular’ airbed any more having been spoiled with the purchase of a ‘double’ one. Lucky for all of us the campground had 2 sweet little cabins which we upgraded to. The friendly man at reception who spoke to us at length about the different hikes we could take in the area quickly sorted us out and off we went. Luxury. I’m telling you – these cabins are fantastic! Bright, clean and oh-so-comfortable. It’s a doubly-good thing we had them as a monster thunder and lightning storm rolled in not too long after we arrived at camp. Tomorrow, we may hike somewhere around Escalante before heading up to Capitol Reef to camp for the night. There are so many choices – Devil’s Garden, Peekabook Slot, Zebra or tunnel slot canyons. Looking forward to tomorrow.