Everyone who has been to Bryce Canyon has always told us “You have to go there, it’s incredible”. And on our trip we learned they are right! You don’t really need more than a couple days to get a feel for the whole park, but it really is a unique place.

After a long drive from LA (with a short stop in Mesquite, NV to get a little sleep), we made it to Bryce and first claimed a campsite. Although we were surprised to find out that it was a national park fee-free week, the campgrounds were not too crowded so we got a nice site at our first-choice campground. Then we put our hiking shorts on, grabbed all our camera gear, and headed to Sunset point for a first look at the Hoodoos and Bryce Amphitheater.

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Bryce Canyon really seems to come out of nowhere, you can’t see anything from the road… instead you have to get right up to the rim to see it. We admired the views from Sunset Point, then walked to Sunrise Point along the rim and headed down into the canyon towards Queen’s Garden.

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We did a 6 mile figure-8 loop which gave us some great views amongst the hoodoos.  The 6 mile hike took most of the day since we were still getting used to hiking above 8,000 feet so the “photo stops” were a welcomed as we needed to catch our breath.

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Portions of the hiking trail are also shared with a horse trail.  For those of you not interested in hiking for 6 hours this could be a comfortable option.  As the sun started to set behind the canyon walls we headed up the steep switch backs to the rim of the canyon.

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Because the Bryce Amphitheater faces east sunset isn’t the best time to photograph the hoodoos.  You can see the dark shadows creeping across Thor’s Hammer, a popular photographed hoodoo.

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We then went to Bryce Point to get a better view of the entire amphitheater from above and look for potential sunrise locations. Even though the lighting wasn’t ideal, the view point was crowded with visitors trying to get a last glimpse of the unusual landscape.

Bryce Amphitheater at Sunset

We decided to wake up early and beat the crowds to Bryce Point for sunrise.  Even Katharine got up before sunrise, which is a first for her on a camping trip.  There were a couple other photographers with their tripods, but most sane people aren’t willing to stand in the cold and dark setting up their tripods by headlamp.

Bryce Amphitheater at Sunrise

Once the sun was above the horizon and the hoodoos lost the dramatic lighting we left the now crowded view point.  We went back to sunrise point and hiked a couple switch backs down into the canyon where we found several other photographers camped out with tripods taking photos of the glowing hoodoos.

Thor’s Hammer at Sunrise

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It’s always comforting when you go to a location and there are 5 other photographers with $5k+ setups; it let’s you know you’re probably on the right track.  When you take the chance and setup your gear alone and then 30 minutes later those 5 photographers show up and have to rethink their location because you’re standing in their spot, it’s priceless.

After sunrise was over, we had breakfast at our campsite and drove to the southern end of the park to check out the bristlecone pine trees which are the oldest species in the world!  The oldest tree is believed to be in the White Mountains of CA (almost 5000 years old), but the exact location is not publicized. In comparison, the oldest bristlecone pine tree at Bryce is 1,600 years young, and in our opinion looked pretty dead. (Apparently it is still growing inside, protected by the dead bark around it.)

A more lively looking bristlcone pine tree

On our way back to our camp we spotted two pronghorn antelope grazing in an open field.  They were obviously rather accustomed to humans and let us within a 100 feet, but were wary if we got any closer.

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We ended our time in Bryce by driving back up the park road stopping at most of the view points and enjoying the variety of landscapes. With this trip in mind Katharine bought a new wide angle lens, which paid off with the vast landscapes.

Bryce Canyon certainly did not disappoint; we heard several groups exclaim that they thought it was more impressive than the Grand Canyon. We aren’t sure about that, but it is definitely unique and amazing to see. Next time we’d like to visit in the winter when snow gives a little more contrast to the rock formations.

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Another day of crappy gray and cloudy weather but luckily no rain.

Mountains Surrounding Our Campsite

On our fifth day we planned to hike Hidden Canyon which is a slot canyon near Weeping Rock and where we returned from the East Rim trail.  Hidden Canyon was discovered in 1927 while rescuing a climber who fell off of the Great White Throne.

The hike is a strenuous 1.1 mile, 1,000 foot gain to the entrance of the canyon.  The hike is once again lined with chains, but after Angel’s Landing they didn’t seem necessary.

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String of Pearls, Notice the Waterfall in the Background- Nice Shot Katharine!

A string of pearls, or a series of pools, were at the entrance to the slot canyon.  Beyond this point the trail isn’t maintained and it’s up to each hiker to determine how far they hike/ climb.  During our visit, since there was so much water, there were more obstacles than usual (unless you were willing to wade! We thought it was too cold for that.)

What Isn’t Pictured is a Pool of Water Below Katharine

We climbed rocks and used fallen branches as bridges making out way into the canyon to find the free standing arch.  After almost a half mile of boulder hoping and climbing we reached this small arch, almost hidden against the steep canyon walls.

We did have someone else take this photo of us

Surprisingly only 2 photos on the entire trip were taken by someone besides us.  We continued quite a ways further until we were faced by a high wall of boulders and debris.  We also started feeling rain drops but weren’t sure if it was from the moist canyon walls or the clouds above.  We took some final photos of the canyon and headed back.

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The orange sandstone walls were impressive as usual.  It was hard to capture how massive they were when we were trapped in the canyon.

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The walls also make for a good background for portraits.

After we returned to the trail head the wind was picking up and it was drizzling on and off.  We didn’t have much more planned for the day considering the weather threw us off our original plan to backpack Kolob Canyon and our trip was threatened to be cut short by a federal government shutdown.  So we walked to Weeping Rock and stood under the waterfall as the wind blew mist into our face. In the summer, this rock is always dripping with water that seeps through the rock even when the canyon is over 100 degrees and very dry. But at this time of year, the Weeping Rock was somewhat overshadowed by the huge waterfall pouring off the cliff.

We then decided to hike a short ways to Emerald Pools.  The wind was picking up and we could see the trail passing around the backside of the waterfall but with the wind it was like an unmanned fire hose.  You could hear the screams of kids getting soaked echoing through the canyon.  We videotaped a couple groups getting soaked like they were on a amusement park ride- it was quite entertaining!  We then made a run for it ourselves and managed to get through getting to wet.  We hiked to all three pools then headed back to the shuttle.

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Because of the uncertainty with the weather and the park possibly closing we didn’t know what to expect, so we just headed to bed early.

Trip Stats (Running Total, 5 days): 37.3 miles, 8,276 feet of elevation, 652 photos

As you can imagine, we took a lot more photos than we can fit in the posts, so check out more photos from the trip!

It was a pleasant morning but gray clouds had rolled in overnight giving a gloomy feeling to the canyon.  Today we were going to attempt Angel’s Landing, which is a day hike to the top of the 1,488 foot peak overlooking the canyon.  The rock formation gets its name from some early settlers that described the peak as so remote only an angel could land on it.  Of course this became a challenge for adventurers of the time, and in 1926 a trail was carved allowing hikers to climb the rock. Now it is the most famous hike in the park. Even though a trail has been developed, the last 1/2 mile is treacherous with steep cliffs on either side.  There are chains to hold on to in some areas, but the rocks can be slippery even when dry so extra caution is required.  Every description of the trail warns hikers of the sheer drop offs, so we were excited but a little hesitant as we headed out on the trail.

We started up the switch backs and kept our eyes fixed on the top wondering where is this trail headed? And how are we possibly going to make it to the top?  There were only a few people on trail since it was still still pretty early and the tour buses hadn’t started dropping off large groups yet.  We wanted to make it up and down the rock before large crowds of unprepared tourists made the narrow trail too crowded.

View of Angel’s Landing from below

We soon were behind the rock and made our way up Walter’s Wiggles which are 21 steep but short switch backs.

Katharine headed back down Walter’s Wiggles

Once we got to the top we looked across the spine that led to Angel’s Landing.  We could spot people like ants crawling up the rocks.

The spine of Angel’s Landing

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As we started making our way to the spine, we ran into an old volunteer ranger who was coming down. We asked him for any advice and he was very supportive and encouraging. Turns out it’s his favorite hike in the park, and he’s done it 41 times!! We figured if he could do it, so could we and so we headed toward the peak with confidence.

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It started off fairly easy and there seemed to be a ledge not too far from the trail that might catch you if you fell.  But soon the ledge became shorter and we found ourselves climbing up rock faces.  We stayed close together letting others pass if needed.  Katharine didn’t like the feel of the swinging chains and chose to hold on to the rock instead.

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We became more comfortable with the insane cliff and just focused on the next step or link of chain.  We took turns in some areas letting people come down then we would head up.  Everyone was calm and respectful of each other giving each other time and space to make the climb.

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When we finally made it to the top 40 minutes later, we realized that there wasn’t really one part in particular that was the worst, nor was it as scary as we thought it might be, but it takes some mental strength to keep climbing for a full 0.5 mile.

Katharine at the top

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We managed to walk to the point and position ourselves across the ridge to have lunch.  The view was amazing but the sun remained behind the clouds and the wind started to pickup forcing us to add more layers.

The Virgin River wandering through Zion Canyon

While eating lunch, chipmunks would run around us with no  fear of humans or the cliff edge.  They were begging for food and would climb in your lap if you would let them.  Battling chipmunks and wind on a thousand foot cliff made us both nervous so we took some photos and headed down before the weather turned any worse.

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Heading back down the spine was a challenge, it was like a salmon swimming up stream…kind of.  People were now heading up the trail in large groups and not always respectfully waiting for others to pass.  The kids were the scariest because they had no fear of the edge and were rushing to get to the top.  Some parents were yelling at them to stay on the chain while others had given up trying to corral them.  There were also many people from different countries and at one point,  miscommunication caused two people to get temporarily trapped/stranded in a narrow part of the trail.

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Climbing down while looking at the ground was daunting.  It was also hard and awkward to figure out the best climbing method, do you turn toward the rock or do you slide down on your butt?  At one point I decided to video tape Katharine climbing down but then looked behind me to find a group waiting so I scurried ahead with the camera recording in one hand.  I became more comfortable climbing with one hand while filming with the other.  I haven’t had a chance to look at the video, but I hope it captures the feeling of being on the trail.

We made it off the treacherous section just as it started to sprinkle.  We couldn’t imagine finishing that section in the rain with all the crowds! We put on our rain jackets and headed down the switchbacks with a feeling of accomplishment.  On our way down we ran into another couple who were finishing a backpacking trip on the West Rim Trail (we did the East Rim).  This wouldn’t be so impressive except that they were backpacking with their 2 year old daughter! We can’t imagine the challenge of backpacking with a small child… we’re struggling to reduce our pack weights as it is!

When we reached the canyon floor, we headed to the famous Narrows which is normally open for hiking but was closed with the fast moving Virgin River.  We hiked a mile in on the paved trail that was open and took some photos but didn’t stay too long since it wasn’t too impressive (compared to the photos you see from deep within the canyon). We’ll definitely be back when the Narrow are open though!

.Virgin River rushing through the canyon

Sunset at Our Campsite

Trip Stats (Running Total, 4 days): 30.3 miles, 7,076 feet of elevation, 550 of photos

As you can imagine, we took a lot more photos than we can fit in the posts, so check out more photos from the trip!