We finally made it to the first Utah national park!
Thursday morning we left the Visitor Center on the shuttle and headed to Sunset Point.
We were WOWED by the amazing views of the amphitheater. The hoodoos and rock stratification are really incredible to see in person!
We headed down the Navajo Loop Trail, which started with very steep switchbacks.
Once we were at the bottom, this section is known as "Wall Street."
We all kept commenting on the striking blue of the sky. This picture below captures how the sky looked to the naked eye. I've never seen such a clear, beautiful blue sky!
Once we made it through Wall Street, we were down among the trees, heading around the loop back toward the canyon rim.
The kids spotted this "Hike the Hoodoos" marker and realized they could collect yet another prize for completing at least 3 miles of hiking and finding these benchmarks along the way.
Another cool site along the trail was Two Bridges.
Soon, we had to head back up the steep trail to the rim.
We were rewarded on the way up with spectacular views and the famous "Thor's Hammer" hoodoo.
Once we all made it back to the top, we joined a Ranger program about the geology of the hoodoos. Then it was time for lunch!
That afternoon, the lucky half of our group took their electric bikes for a ride along a dedicated trail. Chris and I took the kids on a drive along the scenic route, all the way to Rainbow Point at the end. The air was even cooler, the views much higher, and we just had to hike a little of it!
We hiked the Bristlecone Loop Trail.
The kids found another Hike the Hoodoos benchmark and completed their three miles!
 |
| I thought this was sweet until I realized Chris wasn't just putting his arm around Audrey... he was nervous about the drop-off. |
Natural Bridge was a quick stop along the scenic drive.
The visitor center was busy that afternoon, but they received their Ranger badges and their stickers for hiking the hoodoos.
 |
| Visitor Center fun |
After dinner, I somehow convinced the group to go on just one more hike... the Mossy Cave Trail on the north end of the park. It was a beautiful evening to hike, and I don't think anyone regretted it!
 |
| Another Hike the Hoodoos benchmark! |
 |
| Mossy Cave. It was kind of neat, but the whole hike was more scenic. |
When we finished our hike, we were able to meet up with Mom's cousin Jo and her husband Matt at Sunset Point!
We enjoyed visiting around the campfire that night with them! What a full, wonderful day!
2 comments:
It’s an amazing park! Great pics! We need to go back because when we were there it was foggy and snowing!
Love love this one. We are actually thinking of returning to Utah and doing the Wall Street, queens garden, Navajo loop. We just did not allocate proper time at Bryce on our first trip. These pictures are absolutely spectacular.
Post a Comment