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Bryce Canyon National Park

Updated 2 years ago
  •  
Jul 15, 2021

I visited Bryce Canyon National Park for a day in June 2021 with a few friends. The main thing to note about Bryce Canyon is that it is known for it's 'hoodoos' - tall, pillar-like rock/sandstone structures formed from million of years of weathering and freezing/thawing.


Bryce Canyon houses the largest collection of hoodoos in the world, with the main group of them in the Amphitheater. There is a rim trail at the top of the Amphitheater that lets you walk along relatively flat-ground to get a panoramic view of the hoodoos.


Queens Garden Trail + Najavo Loop Trail:

1) Queens Garden Trail (descent):

We hiked the Queens Garden Trail which starts at Sunrise Point (on the rim trail looking down at the Amphitheater) and snakes down to the bottom of the Amphitheater. As you gradually descend, you will see countless hoodoos and other bright red rock formations.

  • Distance: 1.8 miles
  • Elevation Change: Descend 320 feet


2) Navajo Loop Trail (ascent):

At the end of the Queens Garden Trail, it connects with the intersection of the Navajo Loop Trail. The Navajo Loop Trail starts at Sunset Point and descends into the Amphitheater, then loops back up to Sunset Point. The Queens Garden Trail ends at the mid-section of the Navajo Loop Trail, at the bottom of the Amphitheater.


Reaching this point, you can ascend the Navajo Loop Trail to Sunrise Point in two paths: (1) along Wall Street or (2) passing Two Bridges/Thor's Hammer. We ended up taking the Wall Street route which was a steep incline with stories high rocks on both sides.

  • Distance: 0.7 miles
  • Elevation Change: Ascend 515 feet


Hiking the entire Queens Garden Trail plus the Wall Street side of Navajo Loop Trail took around 3 hours total. This route gave us sweeping view of Bryce Canyon National Park while seeing some of the most iconic landmarks and hoodoos the park has to offer. If I were to visit Bryce Canyon again in the future, I would hike the Navajo Loop Trail down Wall Street, then back up Two Bridges/Thor's Hammer to get a different perspective.