Do you Hoo Doo?
Trip Start
Feb 03, 2012
1
16
31
Trip End
Nov 30, 2012
Where I stayed
Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
On the way to Bryce Canyon from Zion we all stopped for lunch in the tiny hamlet of Paguitich (sp?) and low and behold there was a thrift store next door to the Cowboy Smokehouse Café where Cara found a 4 slice toaster for $1. This is cool and significant because Alan really likes toast and Cara can't quite make decent toast without a toaster. She’s tried a camp toaster (nearly burned down the Moho), fry bread (way too much butter) or just serving raw toast to him, which he was not impressed with. Now we can all enjoy fresh, hot, dry toast anytime we want! I took a picture of it.
So, here we are settled into Bryce Canyon at the lovely Ruby’s Inn RV Campground. The canyon shuttle picks up from here and delivers folks to all sorts of scenic places in the canyon. When we arrived, Alan and Cara were so excited to see the canyon that they took the shuttle to Sunset Point around 5pm – then they took a "short" hike – only 1.5 miles on the Navajo Trail. Half was down switchbacks and half, well, you can guess. At nearly 9000 feet, it was, shall we say, an effort. But well worth it. Take a look at the pictures they brought back!
As it turns out, a HooDoo is a rock formation that is created through erosion by water and wind to leave a spire-like shape. Bryce is famous for the HooDoo’s, but also the arches, bridges, windows and such that make up the exotic shapes of the red, pink, orange and yellow rocks in this place. Unlike Grand Canyon where it is quite a trip to go to the bottom of the canyon or Zion where it takes some doing to get to the top of the rocks, at Bryce you can have a very intimate experience getting up close and personal with the HooDoo’s.
After their initial hike they returned to camp tired and hungry but excited to see more. The days are long here – it is still twilight at 9:30 – and the nights are brisk, or downright cold. Last night the temp dropped into the low 30’s. At this elevation everything is exaggerated – the weather, the deep blue of the sky, the spin outs you feel from lack of oxygen…
The canyon boasts a trail that follows the rim for about 11 miles, linking together some of the most popular look outs and the Bryce lodge and gift shop. Alan and Cara followed a good portion of the Rim Trail yesterday and the view was staggering. The size of this place is incredible! The amphitheaters where the HooDoo’s are clustered are miles and miles wide. When you look down into these areas it’s difficult to keep a perspective of how big the area is and how tall the formations are until you see people on the trails below, like tiny ants, making their way through. When you are down on the floor of the canyon, your entire view becomes the wall of formations in front of you. Amazing.
Taking meaningful pictures in places like this is really hard. The biggest factor is the light, without perfect light you just can’t tell what you are looking at. The long, low, late afternoon light is perfect for bringing out the brilliant colors of this canyon.
We will probably spend two or three more nights here, then head off for Calf Creek, then onto Kodachrome State Park, followed up by Escalante Petrified Forest State Park. After that, who knows? Alan really wants to see Arches National Park.
Definitely the trio of Grand Canyon, Zion and Bryce are the jewels in the crown of our Parks system and judging by the variety of languages we hear in the park, they are a huge draw for people all over the world. Now, if only they would let birds on the shuttle bus, all would be good.
