Of all the parks we have visited, Claudette and I both agree that this one is the most amazing. We really looked forward to Grand Canyon, and were not disappointed. And Bryce is a Canyon too, but the color palette here is just amazing. Grand Canyon is stunning for its depth and width, but Bryce Canyon is impressive for its hoodoo formations, and the changing sights every few feet we walked.
We were concerned about being unwell due to high elevation (9000 ft), but we were careful about hydration, and we had no breathing issues. The culmination of our park experience was a 3 mile loop hike, that reached down 625 feet into the canyon, called the Queen’s Garden/Navajo Combination loop. Some segments were actually a bit scary due to the trail being narrow and having steep drop-offs, but we took our time and made it successfully within the park’s completion estimate of under 3 hours (and that was with very frequent photo stops)
Claudette’s Two Cents.
Well, I have so much to say about this place and I conquer with what Bernard shared. This park took my breath away, both metaphorically and literally. I’m so proud of us both for having taken on such a hike. We prepared well and did what we needed to do to make this hike an enjoyable one.
The secret though it to drink plenty of water, wear a hat and take your time. Seriously. I stopped often. We drank a lot of water. And we looked up and side to side. This is an incredible place and deserves it’s full attention and respect. If you ever do plan to visit, give yourself a few days to adjust to the elevation and another few days to do a few hikes. The Rim trail is easy and doable for most people.
Here are some photos that we took. This is probably the hardest thing about writing the blog – the selection of photos. Out of the hundreds we took collectively, deciding which to share is a challenge. And of course, pictures never do full justice to any of the places we’ve visited.