Discovering Bryce Canyon National Park in One Day
As one of the Mighty 5 National Parks in Utah, Bryce Canyon can easily be explored in just one day if you’re in the area. It’s definitely not one of the bigger parks we’ve been to, but it is absolutely one of the most unique ones we’ve seen.
Sunrise Point
Starting our visit with a stop at Sunrise Point, which is only a short walk from the parking lot and provides a grand view of the canyon from the top. Sunrise Point is also a famous viewpoint of the park’s Rim Trail, which is built along the entire canyon from above.
The countless rock columns here, known as hoodoos, are exactly what made this park so unique and distinguishable from others. These hoodoos are somewhat similar in their appearances, many sharing same texture and layers in its group, but are also different in details and shapes, with no 2 hoodoos looking exactly the same, making the rock formations extraordinary.
Navajo Loop and Queens Garden Trail
Continuing our visit with a hike into the canyon, to us it felt like walking into a forest of rocks. It’s already impressive looking at the hoodoos from afar, but walking among them is another story!
Navajo Loop and Queens Garden Trail is a loop of around 3 miles, which starts right from Sunrise Point, and can easily be done in 2-3 hours with plenty of photo opportunities.
Unlike many of the hikes we’ve done, where you first go uphill then return downhill so second half of the hikes are generally less strenuous, hiking in Bryce Canyon is the complete opposite. Trails here mostly start with a downhill hike from the rim trail viewpoints (located at the very top), you’ll head down into the canyon, wander through those giant hoodoos, then head back up to the Rim Trail. So don’t be tricked by the easy first half of the hike, and reserve enough energy and water along the way, as the second half will make you sweat a lot more compare to your way down.
Sunset Point
The Queens Garden Trail starts from Sunrise Point, and will lead to Sunset Point on the Rim Trail before return to Sunrise Point (Sunrise Point to Sunset Point is a short 0.4 mile walk on the Rim Trail).
A famous hoodoo near Sunset Point is called Thor’s Hammer, where a giant rock column naturally formed into a hammer shape near its top and stands alone so it could be easily spotted.
From Sunset Point there are also additional trails if you’re up for more hiking, but just know that as stunning as the views, you’ll also be covered by orange dust even just after a short walk in the canyon, as you can probably tell from our photos. However if you don’t want to bring home the dust, at each of the vista points on the Rim Trail, the park has installed a shoe brush to kindly help you out with this.
Inspiration Point
As our last stop in the park, Inspiration Point provides us another look of the famous Bryce Canyon Amphitheater, the largest collection of hoodoos in the world.
Hotel recommendation: Best Western Plus Bryce Canyon Grand Hotel
Only a few minutes drive from the park entrance, the hotel impressed us with their Covid-19 related regulations and hot breakfasts (to-go only).
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