We decided to travel back to Florida from California via the 5 Great National Parks. Bryce, Zion, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonland.

We found a great AirBnB between Bryce and Zion and after a comfortable night’s sleep we headed out to Bryce Canyon. What a treat! It was early morning, the sun rising slowly and in its full glory to light up the fiery orange of this magnificent canyon. The contrast of the turmeric orange against the sapphire blue sky was startling. The Hoodoos stood proudly like soldiers ready to march, some with large boulders perched precariously on their very tops and all of them unique shapes and sizes.  Sandy trails, some steep, some rocky and all with spectacular views beckoned us. We wanted to see it all, but the canyon is vast and at least 3 or 4 days would have been needed to really experience all it had to offer. We decided to incorporate 3 trails to get as much out of our hikes as possible. The Queen’s trail, The Navajo trail and the Peekaboo Loop, finally exiting the canyon via Wall Street. This totaled roughly 11 miles; we had several large drinking bottles of water, lunch and snacks, hiking boots, poles and cooling scarves, as well as masks for when we encountered other hikers on narrower parts of the trails.

It is hard to describe the vastness of the canyon, and we attempted to photograph something in the foreground to give the pictures perspective, but still the photos cannot convey the magnificence of this ancient place. The trees, that miraculously grew in the sandy soil, clung on to whatever they could to survive, their trunks twisted and turned into wonderful candy cane like stripes by the winds.

We especially enjoyed the Peekaboo Loop, aptly named because at every turn there was another amazing breathtaking spectacle. Arches carved by the rains and winds, hoodoos with layered strata of every shade of yellow, orange and white, and towering walls, perforated with holes…these ‘windows’ looked as fragile as delicate lace, and we realized that this terrain must change constantly due to the weather, and wondered, if we were to return a year later, would these rocks look the same? We suspect not.

The trails were not too busy this early, but as the day drew on more people appeared, equally amazed at their surroundings. We found a high spot under a shady tree for lunch and Marcel hung his wet T shirt out to dry… taking advantage of the cool wind!

The last part of our hike took us through Wall Street, where the canyon walls are awfully close to each other and a steep set of steps switched back through the gorge, through arches, and up to the rim. There were quite a few people here, taking advantage of the shade, and enjoying the thrilling decent into the canyon. The return journey would not be as exciting and although we had walked 10 miles, the last 1 was by far the hardest and we puffed and panted at the steep ascent. At the rim, we once again looked across the canyon at the mesas in the distance. We will be back… so much more to see.

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