After the obligatory sign photo we took a ten+ mile ride up to Rainbow Point. There were a few short trails up here (Bristlecone being one of them) that mostly went through pine forests and took us around a rim for incredible views. While here we saw some dumb girl sitting at the edge of some crumbly looking ledge posing for Instagram pictures. Hopefully she and her friend made it out ok.
Bryce was so different from the areas we left a few hours ago. Lots of pine trees, snow on the ground in a few spots, and gorgeous views into the valley below. Now add into that the hoodoos - stone formations eroded over time - and you have something very unique.
After a short hike we backtracked stopping at each pullout along the way. They were all on the right side so it makes sense to go up first without stopping, then hit them on the way back.
Take your photo with three of these signs and you get a sticker from the visitor center.
This crow was walking on the rail letting folks get too close to it.
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We headed back to Bryce City trying to figure out how to spend the night. We decided to skip the country music dinner show at Ebenezer’s and the rodeo was cancelled. There were no bars to hang out in at any of the hotels. We didn’t want a sit down dinner and unfortunately ended up splitting a gas station pizza from the quick serve in our room watching tv. Definitely a lodging low point. On the plus side there were some good local beers to choose from in the general store.
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Up early the next morning, per theme of this trip. A breakfast buffet was included with our stay so we headed down to eat with approximately 800 people. This is the only place to eat in the area so all the buses stop here. As busy as it was they ran things pretty efficiently.
Today we were venturing down into the canyon on the Queen's trail. There were alot of short cutbacks that made for a nice downhill trip, but of course we had to come back up the same way. This trail was worth it to get eye-level with the hoodoos we've been looking down on for the last day. The weather was finally getting pleasant - we weren't freezing anymore. The lighting cooperated for photos. We could not take the Navajo Trail back since it was closed due to a rockslide. After coming back up the trail we found a convenience store near the park lodge to grab a beer at a picnic table.
Our next trek was along the Rim Trail, which is an extension of some of the area we visited the night before. In many places you had no choice but to be close to the edge. Holly wasn't enjoying this much but she took it in-stride and actually stopped for a photo.
Our final bit of sightseeing was at the north end of the park which was inaccessible from inside the park. A short drive on 12 brought us to the Mossy Cave Trail. Here you can take a short hike and climb up some stairs to see an area that’s carved out of the rocks by water and covered with moss. It’s not a cave as much as it is a sheltered area. There’s also a river trail to walk around complete with waterfall and a few interesting rock formations.
On the way back we found a bar. At the corner of 63 and 12 is the Bryce Canyon Resort with the Cowboy Ranch House restaurant. We found a pleasant enough bar with 12 taps (most local) and a few signature cocktails. We stuck around long enough to watch some tourists come-and-go and left before the dinner crowd arrived. We dined at our hotel’s main restaurant, which was a mistake. Thankfully the next day we’d be off for Zion and staying in a real town.
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