Bryce Canyon National Park

Bryce Canyon National Park lies within the Colorado Plateau geographic province of North America and straddles the southeastern edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau west of the Paunsaugunt Faults (Paunsaugunt is Paiute for "home of the beaver").[4] Park visitors arrive from the plateau part of the park and look over the plateau's edge toward a valley containing the fault and the Paria River just beyond it (Paria is Paiute for "muddy or elk water"). The edge of the Kaiparowits Plateau bounds the opposite side of the valley.

Bryce Canyon was not formed from erosion initiated from a central stream, meaning it technically is not a canyon. Instead headward erosion has excavated large amphitheater-shaped features in the Cenozoic-aged rocks of the Paunsaugunt Plateau.[4] This erosion resulted in delicate and colorful pinnacles called hoodoos that are up to 200 feet (60 m) high. A series of amphitheaters extends more than 20 miles (30 km) north-to-south within the park.[4] The largest is Bryce Amphitheater, which is 12 miles (19 km) long, 3 miles (5 km) wide and 800 feet (240 m) deep.[4] A nearby example of amphitheaters with hoodoos in the same formation but at a higher elevation is in Cedar Breaks National Monument, which is 25 miles (40 km) to the west on the Markagunt Plateau.[5]

Rainbow Point, the highest part of the park at 9,105 feet (2,775 m),[6] is at the end of the 18-mile (29 km) scenic drive.[4] From there, Aquarius Plateau, Bryce Amphitheater, the Henry Mountains, the Vermilion Cliffs and the White Cliffs can be seen. Yellow Creek, where it exits the park in the northeast section, is the lowest part of the park at 6,620 feet (2,020 m).[7]

Bryce Amphitheater from Sunrise Point

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Bryce Canyon National Park has a continental climate with warm, dry summers (Dsb). Dsb climates are defined by their coldest month having an average mean temperature below 32 °F (0 °C), all months with an average mean temperature below 71.6 °F (22 °C), at least four months with an average mean temperature above 50 °F (10 °C), and three times as much precipitation in the wettest winter month compared to the driest summer month. The plant hardiness zone at the visitor center is 5b with an average annual extreme minimum air temperature of −10.0 °F (−23.3 °C).[8]

The national park is located in southwestern Utah about 50 miles (80 km) northeast of and 1,000 feet (300 m) higher than Zion National Park.[9][5] The weather in Bryce Canyon is, therefore, cooler, and the park receives more precipitation: a total of 15 to 18 inches (380 to 460 mm) per year.[10][7] Yearly temperatures vary from an average minimum of 9 °F (−13 °C) in January to an average maximum of 83 °F (28 °C) in July, but extreme temperatures can range from −30 to 97 °F (−34 to 36 °C).[7] The record high temperature in the park was 98 °F (37 °C) on July 14, 2002. The record low temperature was −26 °F (−32 °C) on February 6, 1989, and January 13, 1963.

Erosion of sedimentary rocks has created natural arches.

The Bryce Canyon area shows a record of deposition that spans from the last part of the Cretaceous period and the first half of the Cenozoic era. The ancient depositional environment of the region around what is now the park varied. The Dakota Sandstone and the Tropic Shale were deposited in the warm, shallow waters of the advancing and retreating Cretaceous Seaway (outcrops of these rocks are found just outside park borders).[22] The colorful Claron Formation, from which the park's delicate hoodoos are carved, was laid down as sediments in a system of cool streams and lakes that existed from 63 to about 40 million years ago (from the Paleocene to the Eocene epochs). Different sediment types were laid down as the lakes deepened and became shallow and as the shoreline and river deltas migrated.

Several other formations were also created but were mostly eroded away following two major periods of uplift. The Laramide orogeny affected the entire western part of what would become North America starting about 70 million to 50 million years ago.[17] This event helped to build the Rocky Mountains and in the process closed the Cretaceous Seaway. The Straight Cliffs, Wahweap, and Kaiparowits formations were victims of this uplift. The Colorado Plateaus were uplifted 16 million years ago and were segmented into different plateaus, each separated from its neighbors by faults and each having its own uplift rate.[6] The Boat Mesa Conglomerate and the Sevier River Formation were removed by erosion following this uplift.

Thor's Hammer

This uplift created vertical joints, which over time were preferentially eroded. The soft Pink Cliffs of the Claron Formation were eroded to form freestanding pinnacles in badlands called hoodoos, while the more resistant White Cliffs formed monoliths.[4] The brown, pink, and red colors are from hematite (iron oxide; Fe₂O₃); the yellows from limonite (FeO(OH)·nH₂O); and the purples are from pyrolusite (MnO₂).[23] Also created were arches, natural bridges, walls, and windows. Hoodoos are composed of soft sedimentary rock and are topped by a piece of harder, less easily eroded stone that protects the column from the elements. Bryce Canyon has one of the highest concentrations of hoodoos of any place on Earth.

The formations exposed in the area of the park are part of the Grand Staircase. The oldest members of this supersequence of rock units are exposed in the Grand Canyon, the intermediate ones in Zion National Park, and its youngest parts are laid bare in the Bryce Canyon area. A small amount of overlap occurs in and around each park.

Bryce Canyon has extensive fir forests.

More than 400 native plant species live in the park. There are three life zones in the park based on elevation:[16] The lowest areas of the park are dominated by dwarf forests of pinyon pine and juniper with manzanita, serviceberry, and antelope bitterbrush in between. Aspen, cottonwood, water birch, and willow grow along streams. Ponderosa pine forests cover the mid-elevations with blue spruce and Douglas fir in water-rich areas and manzanita and bitterbrush as underbrush. Douglas fir and white fir, along with aspen and Engelmann spruce, make up the forests on the Paunsaugunt Plateau. The harshest areas have limber pine and ancient Great Basin bristlecone pine, some more than 1,600 years old, holding on.[15]

The forests and meadows of Bryce Canyon provide the habitat to support diverse animal life including foxes, badgers, porcupines, elk, skunks, black bears, bobcats, and woodpeckers.[15] Mule deer are the most common large mammals in the park.[15] Elk and pronghorn, which have been reintroduced nearby, sometimes venture into the park.[15]

A mule deer fawn

Bryce Canyon National Park forms part of the habitat of three wildlife species that are listed under the Endangered Species Act: the Utah prairie dog, the California condor, and the southwestern willow flycatcher.[24] The Utah prairie dog is a threatened species that was reintroduced to the park for conservation, and the largest protected population is found within the park's boundaries.[25]

About 170 species of birds visit the park each year, including swifts and swallows.[7] Most species migrate to warmer regions in winter, although jays, ravens, nuthatches, eagles, and owls stay.[15] In winter, the mule deer, cougars, and coyotes migrate to lower elevations.[15] Ground squirrels and marmots pass the winter in hibernation.[15]

Eleven species of reptiles and four species of amphibians have been found in the park.[26] Reptiles include the Great Basin rattlesnake, short-horned lizard, side-blotched lizard, striped whipsnake, and amphibians include the tiger salamander.[26]

Also in the park are the black, lumpy, very slow-growing colonies of cryptobiotic soil, which are a mix of lichens, algae, fungi, and cyanobacteria. Together these organisms slow erosion, add nitrogen to the soil, and help it to retain moisture.

Snowshoes are required for winter hiking.

Most park visitors sightsee using the scenic drive, which provides access to 13 viewpoints over the amphitheaters. Bryce Canyon has eight marked and maintained hiking trails that can be hiked in less than a day. The following list includes round trip time and trailhead for each in parentheses:[27]

Easy to moderate hikes

1. Mossy Cave (one hour, State Route 12 northwest of Tropic)
2. Rim Trail (5–6 hours, anywhere on the rim)
3. Bristlecone Loop (one hour, Rainbow Point), and Queens Garden (1–2 hours, Sunrise Point)

Moderate hikes

1. Navajo Loop (1–2 hours, Sunset Point)
2. Tower Bridge (2–3 hours, north of Sunrise Point)

Strenuous hikes

1. Fairyland Loop (4–5 hours, Fairyland Point)
2. Peekaboo Loop (3–4 hours, Bryce Point)

Several of the above trails intersect, allowing hikers to combine routes for more challenging hikes.

The park also has two trails designated for overnight hiking: the 9-mile (14 km) Riggs Spring Loop Trail and the 23-mile (37 km) Under-the-Rim Trail.[27] Both require a backcountry camping permit. In total, 50 miles (80 km) of trails in the park.

Horseback riders in the park

More than 10 miles (16 km) of marked but ungroomed skiing trails are available off of Fairyland, Paria, and Rim trails in the park. Twenty miles (32 km) of connecting groomed ski trails are in nearby Dixie National Forest and Ruby's Inn.

The air in the area is so clear that on most days from Yovimpa and Rainbow points, Navajo Mountain and the Kaibab Plateau can be seen 90 miles (140 km) away in Arizona.[28] On extremely clear days, the Black Mesas of eastern Arizona and western New Mexico can be seen some 160 miles (260 km) away.[28]

The park also has a 7.4 magnitude night sky, making it one of the darkest in North America.[7] Stargazers can, therefore, see 7,500 stars with the naked eye, while in most places fewer than 2,000 can be seen due to light pollution, and in many large cities only a few dozen can be seen. Park rangers host public stargazing events and evening programs on astronomy, nocturnal animals, and night sky protection. The Bryce Canyon Astronomy Festival, typically held in June, attracts thousands of visitors. In honor of this astronomy festival, Asteroid 49272 was named after the national park.[29]

There are two campgrounds in the park: North Campground and Sunset Campground.[30] Loop A in North Campground is open year-round. Additional loops and Sunset Campground are open from late spring to early autumn. The 114-room Bryce Canyon Lodge is another way to stay overnight in the park.[31]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bryce Canyon National Park.

• List of national parks of the United States

• Geographic data related to Bryce Canyon National Park at OpenStreetMap
• Bryce Canyon National Park Service information / U.S. Department of the Interior.
• Bryce Canyon National Park: Hoodoos Cast Their Spell, a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan
• Maps
• Bryce Canyon National Park — slideshow by Life magazine
• Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. UT-71, "Bryce Canyon National Park Rim Road, State Highway 63 to Rainbow Point, Tropic, Garfield County, UT", 22 photos, 3 color transparencies, 25 data pages, 3 photo caption pages