The Cedar Breaks are elaborate sink holes in the high altitude cedar forest in southwestern Utah. The erosion reveals the underlying colorful layers of rock.
At over 10,000 ft. the Cedar Breaks are a very unique and beautiful environment. I love the way that the creek in the canyon shines in the evening sun.
Red Canyon National Forest (Park #4). This is a sample of Red Canyon National Forest. The color of the rock is intense. Makes me feel like we are in Bedrock as part of a Flinstone's episode.
Bryce Canyon National Park (Park #5). A remarkable little park with amazing rock formations. Hoo Doos and spires. All formed by the erosion caused by daily freezing and thawing. There are no rivers to form a canyon. Its really an elaborate sink hole. The colors are simply amazing. Lots of things to do in the area. Some great day hikes!
A rainbow over Bryce. How delightful.
A look down Wall Street. A deep and accessible slot in Bryce. We were lucky the park service had just cleared out a large rockslide that happened in April. The trail had just opened up that week.
The trail drops steeply into the canyon.
A big series of switchbacks.
As you can see the Wall Street passage gets very narrow.
Looking back up the canyon from where the slot begins. You can see the trail because of the visible hikers.
Diane and the boys have reached the end of Wall Street.
There are some big pines growing at the end of the canyon. They are reaching for the sun in the slot of these narrow passages.
Alex with some very orange rocks at the base of wall street. I like the way that his hat matches the colors.
A Thunder Storm came up and pounded the area with a driving rain. Luckily we found a big rock overhang for shelter, which kept us dry. The water just runs off the rocks so soon a wash next to the trail became a fast flowing creek. It pushed rocks the size of a cantalope down stream. It was extraordinary to witness a small flash flood.
The trail cleared out during the thunderstorm. We had The Queens Garden to ourselves. A rare treat. Sweet!
Diane in the Queens Garden. The colors of the wet rocks are great after the rain.
Bart and Alex show how big the fist formation is.
A look back at the fist as we hike out of the canyon.
From a viewpoint on another part of the canyon its possible to get a look at the entire area covered by the trail from Wall Steet to Queen Victoria's garden and the Fist. Great hike! One of the best in the park system.
Thor's Hammer. One of the most famous formations in the park.
We visited a nearby petrified forest near Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument (Park #5). Got hit by a big storm. We saw the forest in the rain. Hung out in the car for half hour and gave up on taking a short hike. It looked like it would rain for awhile and the trail was surely a muddy mess. We did go to the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument visitor center. The boys earned a Junior Ranger Badge (#3) as we waited for the rain to pass.
Kodachrome Basin (park #6) is a neat little State Park located as short distance from Bryce Canyon. Grovsner Arch is located nearby, but the roads (if you want to call them that) were not recommended because to all the rain. The boys earned a Junior Ranger badge (#4).
The park has a number of interesting structures and features. The most interesting are are structures that are the remnants of the plumbing system of ancient geysers or hot springs. You can see them as the column of grey rock rising from the red sandstone.
Very unique and beautiful little park.
At the bottom of Bryce Canyon there is a short hike to Mossy Canyon, Bryce"s version of a weeping rock. Great short, easy hike.
There is also a neat little waterfall near Mossy Cave. Beautiful in the desert like environment.
We really like Bryce Canyon National Park.
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