Bryce Canyon Road Trip

 Did you know that other than Alaska (which is basically a block forest) and California (which is the size of two Utahs), Utah has the most national parks of any other state in the union?  It's true, a proud Utahn and the internet told me so.  Well, Dale and I are well on our way to having accomplished all of them. 

For your viewing pleasure, I present my husband, my brother-in-law, and my brother-in-law's girlfriend on the floor of a natural marvel.

This is what that natural marvel looks like from up above.  "WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?" you may be asking yourself.  That is one of the many eroded valleys of Bryce Canyon in southern Utah.

Bryce Canyon is a geological marvel.  See those spires in that canyon?  That's what's left after the rain, thunderstorms, and wind have eroded the loose earth off of the land that you're standing on.  The first must-do activity is to see all of the outlooks on the totally great public transportation they have at this park, and then hike down in the canyons, among the spires.  That's what you see in the first picture.  All of the orange and red rock is so lovely.  I highly suggest it.

Next must-do: camping.  We chose to do so in a tipi.  No kidding.  We rented a campsite with one already set up for us.  This was our first Dale and I hosted camping trip and I got to use our new dutch oven.  Dale had to work hard to build fires and light coal.  I felt totally back-woodsy!  The accommodations there are pretty amazing.  All of it--hotels, camp sites, tipis, RV areas--are part of the same business.  The great part of that is, if you sign on to use the camp sites, you get access to all of the amenities of the ritzy hotel.  We slept in the tipi and ate at the tipi, but all of our other non-park time was spent in hot tubs, pools, comfy game rooms, and luxurious showers.

Last must-do, but DEFINATELY not least.  Go to the stargazing activity put on by the park lodge after sunset.  It starts with one of the park rangers telling campfire stories of how the local people explained constellations and used the sky to teach their children.  The park ranger has been doing this for a decade and is exceptionally good.  Then, after about an hour or so, you follow the group out after sunset, walk back to where there are 6 high powered telescopes.  You tell them the type of marvel you want to see and they show it to you.  I saw several globular clusters, a supernovaed star that was turning into a black hole, a galaxy, craters on the moon, mars, and --best of all-- Saturn, it's rings, and 5 of it's moons!  It was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.  I would go back JUST for this experience.  We want to find our local astronomical society to get access to more high powered telescopes again.

We managed to "do" Bryce Canyon in one three-day weekend.  And I would happily do it again.