We headed into Bryce Canyon National Park again today in the hope of missing out on some of the weekend crowds. There did not seem to be much of a difference between last Saturday and today; the park was still packed. Bryce Point, one of the premier viewpoints where the NPS has decided to close the parking lot for construction, can only be accessed by the park shuttle which does not run the whole length of the facility. If you want to see the whole park, you must both drive and ride the shuttle. Near the park entrance, where you board the shuttle, parking is at a premium and not always available.
We drove all the way to the far end of the park near Rainbow Point so Peggy could take me on a high-altitude death march to a place called Yovimpa Point. The view was pretty spectacular and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon can be seen as a silhouette on the horizon. I think the North Rim is about 100 miles south as the crow flies. The trip up and back to Yovimpa Point is actually quite short but I was gasping for air in the 9100′ elevation. It could also be because I am old, fat and out of shape.
After the death march, we started back through the park stopping at selected viewpoints to peer into the canyon’s kaleidoscope of fantastic colors and assortment of marvelous shapes. We also spotted some wildlife; birds, chipmunks and a few pronghorn. As we approached the fee station at the park entrance, parking at popular viewpoints was not possible due to the crowds and the construction at Bryce Point.
We stopped by the Bryce visitor center and picked up some postcards we like that are only sold in the parks. We bring the postcards back to the trailer and decorate our very ugly OEM window valences with the painted-looking cards. After we see about 15 more parks, we will have to put the cards up elsewhere because we will be out of valence room.
We were both tired after our excursion through this magnificent place so we exited the park, took a 20 mile drive on a back road and then headed back to the Barbarian Invader.
We got a few pictures along the way which you can see by clicking here