I can hear the sunrise
gentle stirrings as she wakes
eyes fluttering open
after the long cold nightI can hear the sunrise
an explosion of color
full of passion and fury
and promiseI can hear the sunrise
boiling in the clouds
shimmering off
the wavesannouncing
the new day-Michael Traveler
Here immersed in these extravagant wonders formed over millennia, are cathedrals of stone so immense they cover an expanse as far as the eye can see. Within these grand cathedrals, in every nook, are small chapels of amazement. Every glance a testament, a long look a revelation. An acknowledgement.
“A weird, lovely, fantastic object out of nature like Delicate Arch has the curious ability to remind us—like rock and sunlight and wind and wilderness—that out there is a different world, older and greater and deeper by far than ours, a world which surrounds and sustains the little world of men as sea and sky surround and sustain a ship. The shock of the real. For a little while we are again able to see, as the child sees, a world of marvels. For a few moments we discover that nothing can be taken for granted, for if this ring of stone is marvelous then all which shaped it is marvelous, and our journey here on earth, able to see and touch and hear in the midst of tangible and mysterious things-in-themselves, is the most strange and daring of all adventures.”
-Edward Abbey
The ranger at the entrance station for Bryce National Park provides a brochure that explains the science behind the majestic spires, cathedrals, layers of colors, sculptures… but the facts can’t prepare you for the wonder of it all. The scale, the quiet, the sacred feeling that pervades – all are immense. Travelers talk in whispers. We glance at each other with a sort of shrug that says, “How can we take in all this?” It is sacred, it is all encompassing, it is peace.
“If a man knew enough he could write a whole book about the juniper tree. Not juniper trees in general but that one particular juniper tree that grows from a ledge of naked sandstone near the old entrance to Arches National Monument.”
-Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire, A Season in the Wilderness
Click onto any image to see a full size version – then use right/left arrows to see all photos full size.
From Nile Guide, for travelers by locals website (Bryce Canyon Travel Blog):
1. Interesting fact: Water, ice, and gravity are the natural forces that formed the geological “hoodoos” that make Bryce Canyon unique.
2. Fun fact: This park is named after Ebenezer Bryce, who started ranching the area in 1875. Upon showing the canyons to visitors, he is said to have remarked, “It’s a hell of a place to lose a cow.”
3. Cool fact: Prairie dogs were wiped out from the area in the 1950s. In the 1970s, they were reintroduced.
4. Bryce Canyon’s rocks are among the youngest of those on the Colorado Plateau, dating back a mere 65 million years ago to the Cretaceous period.
5. Interesting fact: Paiute Indian history says the colorful, wildly-shaped hoodoos were “Legend People” who were turned into stone by the trickster god Coyote.
6. Fun fact: On a clear day, visibility from Bryce Canyon can exceed 100 miles.
7. Cool fact: Most rural parts of the U.S. have 2500 stars visible on any given clear night. At Bryce Canyon, that number jumps to a whopping 7500. Currently, these essential remaining dark night skies are being threatened by mining in the nearby community of Alton. The mining will potentially adversely affect the clear skies. It is a hugely contentious situation.
8. There are 400 hardy plant species in this high desert environment.
9. Cool fact: Lions and foxes and bears, oh my! Foxes, mountain lions, and black bears inhabit Bryce Canyon, although they are rarely seen.
10. Bryce Canyon is situated along the southeastern rim of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. The word paunsaugunt comes from the Paiute Indian language. It means place or home of the beavers.
11. Geological fact: Bryce Canyon isn’t actually a canyon. It’s actually a natural amphitheater.
12. Weird fact: Marmots, a high-elevation mammal found here, are often called “rockchucks” by the local population.
