Bryce Canyon

[resqgeek]

After leaving Zion National Park, we headed further east to Bryce Canyon National Park. This park is higher on the plateau, with the lowest layers of rock here at about the same level as the top layers of rock at Zion. Here, the forces of erosion had formed Hoodoos, or columns of rock with fanciful and interesting shapes. These shapes are the result of the differences in hardness between the rock layers, which allows some layers to erode faster than others. It was evening by the time we reached the park, but the low angle evening light only seemed to enhance the colors of the rock formations, providing some absolutely breathtaking scenery. At the far end of the park road, the elevation is well over 9,000 feet above sea level, and it was getting pretty chilly, so we didn’t linger long before starting back down towards the park entrance, stopping at the pullouts along the way to admire the views.

We also encountered our first wildlife induced traffic jams of the trip. The first was about halfway down, when a group of cars stopped in the middle of the road to admire a pair of pronghorn antelope that were grazing in a meadow along the roadside. Then, as we neared the park entrance, a group of mule deer were grazing near the road. The group included a pair of fawns, young enough to still have their spots. Again, the traffic came to a complete standstill to admire the animals.

The timing of our visit was fortunate as well. Until only a few days earlier, the road through the park was closed about halfway through the park, because of a fire started by a lightning strike. Apparently, the fire was still burning somewhere in the park, though we didn’t see any evidence of smoke or signs that the fire was still burning. However, we did drive through the area that had burned, with blackened trees lining the roadway on both sides for about two miles through the middle of the park. Thankfully, the fire had moved away from the main parts of the park and we were able to enjoy all the terrific views.

Comments

[miketroll.livejournal.com]

Bryce Canyon is on my "must see" list. The name also makes me smile every time I hear it: there's an episode of 3rd Rock From the Sun in which Bryce Canyon is the name of an idiotic character. Wonderfully silly!