Bryce Canyon

Sans dad, we hopped into the truck and made our way 12 miles into Bryce Canyon. We had already picked out a few possible trails to hike but given our delay on getting in here while we waited on the van, we were not sure if we had time.

We parked near the sunset viewpoint and walked the main path to the sunset viewpoint. The sun was starting to set and the brilliant orange spires in the amphitheater were the color of fire. We awed over the shear spectacle of this canyon for several minutes.

Then off we set for the supposed Worlds Best 3 mile Hike. It really was the best. For nearly an hour we descended into the base of the canyon, crawling through carved doors in the rock, around spires and over natural bridges. We kept going down, down, down. There was a storm brewing over the ridge of the canyon, which made us a little nervous. We also saw some people but not a lot. It was quiet, peaceful and stunning in the bottom of that canyon.

Gady fell and had a little meltdown but Steve was able to run him around. He offered Grady the use of his knee as a resting stop if Grady ever got tired. Occasionally we would look behind to see Grady perched on Steve's knee to catch his breath.

Eventually we came to the Queens Garden where a certain spire has a strong resemblance to Queen Victoria (really!). We started to climb the Navajo portion of the trail and came upon 2 bridges. After snapping some photos there, we turned to head up a significant series of switchbacks that climb several hundred feet up to the rim of the canyon. This area was significantly more crowded, with very few English speaking people. I think we heard nearly a dozen different languages but the funny part is they all understood the word rainbow. Somebody shouted and we all turned to see a rainbow perfectly framed between the sandstone slabs.

Amidst the furry of photos being taken, we continued our way up the steep climb and finally made it to the top. It was a good, challenging hike that took over 2 hours to complete and was worth every step.

Other than being too crowded, we really enjoyed Bryce. We checked out the lodge and then finished our evening with pizza outside the lodge. Then we headed home to catch up with dad and turn in for the night.

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