
National Park
Bryce Canyon National Park
Hoodoos (irregular columns of rock) exist on every continent, but here is the largest concentration found anywhere on Earth. Situated along a high plateau at the top of the Grand Staircase, the park's high elevations include numerous life communities, fantastic dark skies, and geological wonders that defy description.
Official NPS pageCaution: Campfires, charcoal fires, or other open fires are not allowed
Bryce Canyon is in Stage 2 Fire Restrictions. No setting, building, maintaining, attending, or using of open fires of any kind in the park. This includes campfires, charcoal fires, and propane fire pits in park campgrounds. Stoves fueled by petroleum or liquid propane gas are allowed. Smoking is not permitted, except inside an enclosed vehicle. Fireworks are never permitted at Bryce Canyon National Park.
Park Closure: Trail Closures due to recent weather event
Wall Street and the Bryce Connector Trail (to Peekaboo Loop) are closed until further notice.
Hours
Bryce Canyon National Park is open 365 days a year, 24 hours a day.
Entrance fees
Entrance - Private Vehicle: $35.00 · Entrance - Motorcycle: $30.00 · Entrance - Per Person: $20.00
Getting there
From the North: Take I-15 south to UT-20 (exit 95). Travel east on UT-20 to US-89. Follow US-89 south to UT-12. Travel east on UT-12 to UT-63. Take UT-63 south to Bryce Canyon NP. From the South through Zion National Park: Take I-15 north to UT-9 (exit 16). Follow UT-9 east through Zion National Park to US-89. Travel north on US-89 to UT-12. Go east on UT-12 to UT-63. Take UT-63 south to Bryce Canyon NP. From the East Travel west on UT-12 to UT-63. Take UT-63 south to Bryce Canyon NP.
Camping in this park
Sunset Campground
Located west of Sunset Point, approximately 1.5 miles south of the Bryce Canyon Visitor Center, and is comprised of 99 sites in 3 loops; Loop A is primarily for RVs; Loops B & C are tent-only. There are no sewer, water or electrical hook-ups available. A dump station is available in summer months near North Campground; use is included with campsite fee. Potable water is available near the dump sta
North Campground
Located across the road from the Visitor Center and is comprised of 100 sites in 4 loops; A, B, C, D. Loops A & B are for RV campers. Loops C & D are for tent campers and closed in freezing temperatures. There are no sewer, water or electrical hook-ups available. A dump station is available in summer months near North Campground; use is included with campsite fee. Potable water is available near t
Things to do

Full Moon Hike
Typically offered year-round at sunset as weather permits. Those planning to join a ranger-led full moon hike at Bryce Canyon National Park can make reservations online via Recreation.gov. Tickets for each month’s hike are released in two phases, 14 and 5 days in advance.

Get a Passport Stamp
Are you a "Passport to Your National Parks" cancellation collector? Bryce Canyon has a cancellation stamp to commemorate your visit in your passport book.

Navajo/Peekaboo Combination Loop
Combine two of our most iconic trails, the Navajo and Peekaboo Loop trails, into a a mini Figure-8 combination loop. Start the hike at Sunset Point, descend down either side of the Navajo Loop (Two Bridges in winter), connect to the Peekaboo Loop (we recommend hiking it in a clockwise direction), and ascend Navajo back to Sunset Point.

Bryce Canyon Evening Program
Evening programs, typically offered from Memorial Day through Labor Day, offer topics that go beyond the rim! Check the calendar for daily times and locations. This is a Ranger’s Choice program offering an exploration into compelling stories, interesting themes, and unique resources that make Bryce Canyon special.

Navajo Loop Trail
The iconic Navajo Loop Trail begins and ends at Sunset Point. Its switchbacks wind between narrow walls of colorful limestone with views of towering Douglas-fir trees and the park's most famous hoodoo: Thor's hammer. The loop has two sides: Two Bridges and Wall Street. The Two Bridges side is open year-round, however, the Wall Street side is closed during the winter months. During this time Two-Bridges can be hiked as an out-and-back trail or combined with other trails.

Swamp Canyon Loop
Swamp Canyon appears relatively small and sheltered from the overlook, allowing the viewer to develop a more intimate connection with the landscape than some of the grander viewpoints in the park. The Swamp Canyon Loop, which starts at the viewpoint, is more rugged than the Bryce Amphitheater trails, taking hikers into a more forested backcountry hike. There is less signage on this hike and hikers are encouraged to carry a map.

Figure-8 Combination
The Figure-8 Combination combines three amphitheater hikes, Queen's Garden, Navajo Loop, and the Peekaboo Loop, into one ultimate hike! We recommend a clockwise direction descending Queen's Garden, connecting to the Peekaboo Loop (we recommend hiking it in a clockwise direction), and ascending either side of the Navajo Loop (Two Bridges in winter). From there you can complete the trail by hiking back to Sunrise Point along the Rim Trail.

Bryce Amphitheater Traverse
The Bryce Amphitheater Traverse is a one-way hike combining the Peekaboo Loop with the Queen's Garden trail. Hikers descend from Bryce Point, turning left (clockwise) on Peekaboo Loop and then connecting to the Queen's Garden trail to ascend to Sunrise Point.

Queen's/Navajo Combination Loop
Our most popular hike in the park and the one we most recommend to first-time visitors. The Queen's/Navajo Combination Loop combines the open views and unique hoodoos of the Queen's Garden Trail with the iconic switchbacks and towering canyon walls of the Navajo Loop Trail. Descend Queen's Garden at Sunrise Point, ascend the Navajo Loop to Sunset Point, and then complete the loop back to Sunrise Point via the Rim Trail, enjoying views into the Bryce Canyon Amphitheater below.

Queen's Garden Trail
The Queen's Garden Trail is the least difficult of the trails descending from the rim into the Bryce Canyon Amphitheater. Hike this out-and-back trail to the Queen Victoria hoodoo at the end of a short spur trail and experience the splendor of hiking amongst the hoodoos. This trail is commonly combined with the Navajo Loop to create a 2.9 mile round trip trail where you can descend at Sunrise Point and ascend at Sunset Point.

Riggs Spring Loop
The Riggs Spring Loop is a backcountry trail that begins and ends at Yovimpa Point. This trail travels through spruce, fir, and bristlecone forests offering beautiful views of distant cliffs. The western section of the trail is steeper and more heavily forested. Permits are not required to hike this trail, but all overnight stays require a permit.

Rim Walk with a Ranger
Typically offered Memorial Day through Labor Day at Sunset Point at 2:00 p.m. Join a Ranger and experience the enchantment of the hoodoos, the history of the people who have passed through the amphitheaters for thousands of years, and the many ways the animals and plants have adapted to the unique ecosystems of Bryce Canyon National Park.
Places to see

A Lasting Legacy wayside
In 1933, during the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) providing employment for young, unmarried men. From 1934–41, at Bryce Canyon National Park the CCC planted trees and shrubs, built and improved roads and trails, developed campgrounds, paved parking lots, and provided insect control. At Rainbow Point, they built the overlook structure and the Under-the-Rim Trail. Their hard work created many improvements—a lasting legacy—enjoyed by visitors today.

Piracy Point
Piracy Point has been said to take its name from the buttes that might resemble pirate ships sailing alongside the rim, but it's more likely that the name refers to a geomorphological process that is soon to take place here. This point overlooks Swamp Canyon and the Sheep Creek drainage system to the north and the Willis Creek drainage system that collects run-off south from here. The broad, sloping valley to the north of you currently drains to Sheep Creek, but on the other side of the cliffs right of it, tributaries of Willis Creek are steadily encroaching. Someday soon, the Willis Creek drainage will begin to divert water through a process called "stream piracy". This is when a river drainage system or watershed is diverted from its own bed, and flows instead down the bed of a neighboring stream. Swamp Canyon is also one of the only places in the park where water flowing on top of the plateau is diverted over the rim to the east (rather than travelling west as part of the Sevier River). This is also the transitional zone between Ponderosa Pine Forests and the Spruce-Fir forest. Watch for representatives of both plant and animal communities. Here you might find flowers such as Showy Goldeneye and Shrubby Cinquefoil. Also watch for Osprey. If you are surprised to find fish eaters like Osprey living in a desert-like environment you're not the only one. Not too far from here nest a pair of Osprey that catch and carry fish from Tropic Reservoir - a distance of two air miles! Trails A very short and flat but unpaved trail leads south back to Farview Point.

Additional Parking Lot
This additional parking lot is located just southeast of the Visitor Center and is reached by taking the first left turn past the entrance Fee Booths. Parking at the Visitor Center is limited to 1 hour and trailers and RVs over 23 feet (7 meters) in length are restricted from parking in the Bryce Amphitheater area during shuttle hours. This parking lot provides a location for all-day parking and an ideal location to park if one intends to ride the park shuttle (mid-April to mid-October). A crushed stone path at its northwest corner leads to the northbound Visitor Center shuttle stop and a crosswalk leading to the Visitor Center. To the southeast, the parking lot links to the Shared-Use Path adjacent to the kiosk for North Campground.

Agua Canyon
At Agua Canyon two prominent hoodoos command attention. On the left, is the taller of the two towers, "The Hunter." To the right is a hoodoo commonly referred to as the "Rabbit" or alternatively the "Backpacker." In the early years of Bryce Canyon National Park a great effort was made to name many of the more prominent hoodoos. Over the years many of these have fallen or partially fallen so that they look nothing like the things they were originally named for. As a result hoodoos are no longer being named and many of the more obscure names are being dropped from newer publications. The good news is that you, the park visitor, now have the liberty to exercise your own creativity. Is the rabbit a backpacker or maybe even a thumb? It's up to you to decide. Let your imagination run! Trails No trails depart from this area. The Agua Connecting Trail in indefinitely closed due to rockslides and extremely unstable conditions. Under-the-Rim Trail in this area is best accessed from Rainbow Point or Whiteman Connecting Trail. Landscape Features To the Southeast Navajo Mountain still looms on the distant horizon over 80 miles (129 km) away near Page, Arizona. Called a laccolith, Navajo Mountain can be thought of as a volcano that never quite happened. As the Colorado Plateau was uplifted over the last 20 million years, a plume of molten rock moved upward from deep inside the Earth causing a swelling much like a large blister. Unlike a volcano, Navajo Mountain never blew its top and so the plume cooled slowly, creating the hard core of the mountain that still exists today. By following the eastern horizon you may be able to see the southern tip of the Kaiparowits plateau, which is separated from Navajo Mountain by the Colorado River within Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. To the East Tall, charismatic hoodoos are visible nearly at eye level from this view. These are created from the iron-rich mudstones and limestones of the park's Claron formation through repeated freeze/thaw cycles. Note the presence of limber pines (Pinus flexilis) atop the hoodoo known as "the Hunter", likely cached there as seeds by a Clark's nutcracker (Nucifraga columbiana). The Paria Valley and the upper steps of the Grand Staircase exposed within it present most of the view beyond. Across the valley, the Table Cliff plateau stands at 10,000 feet (3048 m) and is composed of the same Claron formation (or "Pink Cliffs") as Bryce Canyon's hoodoos. This difference in elevation is due to the presence of the Paunsaugunt fault--a major normal fault that runs northeast to southwest along the park's eastern boundary. Uplift of the Colorado Plateau over the last 20 million years is responsible for the nearly 2,000 feet (607 m) of elevation difference expressed by this fault. Below these Pink Cliffs, observe the shale-rich badlands of the Grey Cliffs slowly transform to the sometimes iron-rich sandstones of the upper White Cliffs. Kodachrome State Park is located in this transition zone. Almost the same distance to Navajo Mountain in the southeast, the Henry Mountains can be seen on days with good air quality, 86 miles (138 km) away beyond the eastern horizon. Like Navajo Mountain, these too are laccoliths--or plumes of molten rock that warped the rocks above them, but never broke through as a volcano would. As with the terrain of Capitol Reef National Park, which lies just in front of these peaks, millions of years of erosion have now occurred, and at the Henry Mountains it has removed the overlying rock and exposed the hard igneous cores within these mountains. To the North Observe the eroded edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau, punctuated by bowl-shaped amphitheaters. To the West The rolling ponderosa forest of the Paunsaugunt plateau is deeply incised here by water travelling north to the Tropic Reservoir. The direction of flow is decided by the plateau's upward tilt to the south and has created a rain divide between the Great Basin of Nevada and the Colorado River that follows the edge of this plateau.

Air Quality wayside
Bryce Canyon is known for its stunning views and vistas. On a clear day from this point you can see Navajo Mountain, 80 miles (129 km) away, and the San Francisco Peaks, 150 miles (241 km) south. Good air quality, one of the park’s most precious resources, makes these views possible. It is also essential for visitor and employee health and the well-being of the natural environment.

Queens Garden Trailhead
Queen's Garden Trail Difficulty: Moderate Total Distance: 1.8 miles (3.0 km) Elevation change: 320 feet (98 m) Average time: 1-2 hours One of the park's most popular trails, the Queen's Garden trail descends and bends 0.9 miles (1.4 km) along a ridgeline down to a unique hoodoo said to resemble Queen Victoria (be sure to travel down the spur trail at the bottom of the trail to see this hoodoo). The varied and colorful rock formations that surround this hoodoo, are described as many sculptures and other ornaments within the Queen's "Garden". Of the six trails that descend into the Bryce Amphitheater, the Queen's Garden Trail is considered the least strenuous; though due to the park's high elevation and steep grades in some areas, it is still categorized as a moderately strenuous hike (other Bryce Amphitheater trails include the Tower Bridge Trail, Navajo Loop Trail, Fairyland Loop Trail, Tower Bridge Trail, and Peekaboo Loop Trail). The trail also provides views of a grove of bristlecone pines near the Horse Trail junction. More about the trail Combination Loops This trail can be combined with the Navajo Loop to form the 2.9 mile (4.6 km) Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop and the Peekaboo Loop to form the 6.4 mile (10.2 km) Figure-8 Combination Loop. Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop Difficulty: Moderate Total Distance: 2.9 miles (4.6 km) Elevation change: 600 feet (138 m) Average time: 2-3 hours Perhaps the park's most popular and iconic trail, the Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop can begin at either Sunrise or Sunset Point but is recommended in a clockwise direction; this is done by descending on the Queen's Garden Trail and ascending the Navajo Loop Trail (Two Bridges side recommended for year-round use and iconic views of Thor's Hammer; Wall Street side is only open in summer). Whether one begins at Sunset or Sunrise Point, these two viewpoints are connected by a flat, 0.5 mile (0.8 km) section of the Rim Trail that completes the loop. If one begins at Sunset Point, they should begin by hiking this section of the Rim Trail to Sunrise Point. More about the trail Figure-8 Combination Loop Difficulty: Strenuous Total Distance: 6.4 miles (10.2 km) Elevation change: 320 feet (98 m) Average time: 4-5 hours The Figure-8 Combination combines the Peekaboo Loop Trail with the Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop to create a 6.4 mile (10.2 km) combination of two loops. Like the Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop, the Peekaboo Loop should be hiked in a clockwise direction. One can begin at either Sunset or Sunrise Point. From Sunset Point, one would begin by first hiking the 0.5 mile (0.8 km) section of the Rim Trail that leads north to Sunrise Point, then descend the Queen's Garden Trail to its intersection with the Navajo Loop. A short connecting trail leads from here across Bryce Creek to the Peekaboo Loop Trail. Keeping left will take hikers in a clockwise direction around the strenuous Peekaboo Loop and return them to the intersection of Navajo and Queen's Garden Trails. From here hikers ascend back up to Sunset Point (Two Bridges side recommended for year-round use; Wall Street only open in summer). Nature Bristlecone Pines Note that bristlecone pines share dolomitic limestones with some of the park's most delicate plants. Stay on the trail and help us to protect them. Though Bryce Canyon is well known for its geology, the park also contains a fantastic diversity of trees. Among the most impressive of these is the Great Basin bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva). These trees are known for thriving where few other plants can, and for far longer too. Look for bristlecone pines on exposures of dolomitic limestone. These areas of white to grey stone are found in the park's hoodoo-forming Claron formation as low as the Queen's Garden and Fairyland Loop trails. Dolomitic limestone is high in calcium and magnesium, and low in phosphorus. This chemistry is difficult for other plants to tolerate, giving the bristlecone pine plenty of room to grow as slowly as it likes. You'll also typically find higher-elevation bristlecones growing at the edges of cliffs, where competition is even further reduced. Free to take its time, bristlecones pines can grow as slowly as an inch (2.5 cm) per century if conditions are challenging. This gives these trees incredibly dense heartwood, which is capable of providing structural support to the tree long after a section of limb or trunk has lost its life-protecting bark. The oldest tree at Bryce Canyon was estimated to be 1,600 years old, though trees across its range into Nevada and California have been dated at over 5,000 years old, giving Pinus longaeva the honor of being the longest living non-clonal species on Earth. You can identify a Bristlecone pine by its densely bundled needles of five (making it a white pine). Unlike many other pines that shed their needles every few years, bristlecone pines can retain needles for up to forty years. Their 1.5 in (1.2 cm) long needles remain vibrant and green for typically a full 12 inches (30 cm) along the branch. This appearance is often compared to that of a bottlebrush or pipe cleaner. Like the limber pine (another white pine found at Bryce Canyon) seeds of the bristlecone pine may be harvested and dispersed to unlikely places by Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana). The seeds of their bristle-tipped cones are often among the first to colonize recently burnt areas.

Sunrise Point
Sunrise Point is the northernmost of the four major viewpoints that overlook the iconic Bryce Amphitheater. Though this point along with Sunset Point was named to entice early Lodge visitors to easily accessible points along the rim at both times of day, this view is equally spectacular at daybreak and day's end. At an elevation of 8,100 feet (2,469 m), Sunrise Point is just slightly higher than the Rim Trail and the ponderosa forest to the west. This provides one with a 360 degree view, making it a great choice for stargazers, and those hoping to see the sun's final light along the western horizon. The view of the rock formations (hoodoos) within the Bryce Amphitheater is exceptional as well. Here one can clearly see the full process of hoodoo formation as the plateau rim erodes back exposing walls or fins of layered rock, which are then broken by frost-wedging with windows (arches) that expand to eventually form the isolated columns of stone known as hoodoos. Further east, the eye traces to see these hoodoos' final state: colorful badlands of sediment spotted with vegetation, including bristlecone pines. The popular Queen's Garden trail provides an unforgettable journey down a ridgeline that provides views of every stage of this process. Trails The 5.5 mile (8.9 km) Rim Trail connects this view to Sunrise and Fairyland Points further north and Inspiration and Bryce Points further south. The most popular section is the 0.5 mile (0.8 km) section between here and Sunrise Point. This section is paved (and therefore permits leashed pets) and has minimal elevation changes. The Queen's Garden Trail also descends from this viewpoint area. Landscape Features To the Northeast See the flat-topped feature of Boat Mesa and the angled slope of Sinking Ship set against the stark Pink Cliffs of the Table Cliff Plateau 17.5 miles (28 km) distant. The roughly 30 degree slope of Sinking Ship is evidence of the Paunsaugunt fault line, which travels north-south roughly along the eastern edge of the park. This fault, along with large fields of volcanic rock north of the park, were created as part of the tectonic events that elevated the Colorado Plateau region to its present day elevations and later produced the Basin and Range region to the west. The fault is a normal fault, which means that it was formed by extension--the ground you're standing upon moving down and away from the opposite side of the valley. This movement accounts for the 2,000 foot (610 m) difference in elevation between the Bryce Amphitheater and the Table Cliff plateau, despite these being formed of the same rock layer. Sinking Ship is slightly caught upon this fault, explaining its tilted appearance. Though once a site of intense movement, little activity has been recorded along the fault in the last 9 million years. To the East The large crown-shaped feature in the middle of the Bryce Amphitheater is known as Bristlecone Point. If you have some binoculars, you may be able to see their scraggly forms upon the white layers of the Claron formation capping Bristlecone Point. You can see that between here and Bristlecone Point is a series of colorful badlands that continue to the north, but steeply drop off into more forested areas to the south. One can see this as a north/south dividing line within the Bryce Amphitheater, where areas south have been eroded more deeply and undercut cliffs to the south (a trend that increases the further south in the park you travel), while erosion has been gentler and less dramatic further north. Beyond Bristlecone Point is the broad Paria Valley, which has been formed over the last 6 million years by the Paria River. The Paria River ultimately joins the Colorado River not too far from Navajo Mountain, visible on the southeastern horizon. To the South To the south, one can also see Sunset, Inspiration, and Bryce Points along the forested rim of the Paunsagunt Plateau. If you have an especially good eye (and know what you're looking for) you can spot Thor's Hammer along the Two Bridges side of the Navajo Loop below Sunset Point. Nature The Limber Pine at Sunrise Point (known as "Stilts"), roots exposed by erosion of the rim, serves as a reminder of the resilience and ability of life to adapt to adverse conditions, and also of the rapidity with which the scene before us is disappearing. Geologists have calculated that the rim of the canyon is eroding at a rate of one to four feet every century and that in approximately three million years, Bryce Canyon will be gone forever. The hoodoos of Bryce Canyon's main amphitheater appear as a snapshot in the rapid process of erosion on the Paunsaugunt Plateau. This rapidly eroding land creates a harsh environment for any living thing, and like this limber pine, all creatures which live here, from people to animals to plants, must adapt to the conditions in order to survive.

Ranger Program Meeting Point
A wooden routed sign hanging from a fence just south of Sunset Point designates the meeting point for both Geology Talks and Rim Walks. More about Ranger Programs

A Forest Reborn wayside
On June 14, 2009, a lightning strike started the Bridge Fire that burned 3,947 acres in Bryce Canyon National Park and Dixie National Forest. Years of fire suppression had created a crowded, diseased, and less diverse forest. As the fire, a natural agent in the ecosystem, moved through this area, the forest was reborn. After the fire, nutrients were recycled back into the soil, sunlight reached the ground, and a variety of species returned. It may look like destruction, but a closer look reveals new growth. Fire plays an essential role in forest health and regeneration.

An Ever-changing Landscape wayside
Colorful Layers Pure limestone is white, but here, iron deposits have oxidized, or rusted, producing the yellows, oranges, reds, and browns. Oxidized manganese creates the pale blue and purple hues. Changing weather and light also affect the canyon’s colors. Bryce Canyon is ever-changing. About 50 million years ago (mya), a large freshwater lake began filling the low basin of southern Utah. Over millions of years, rivers and streams gradually filled this lake with clays, silts, and sands. Calcium carbonate cemented these sediments together, forming Bryce Canyon’s colorful, sedimentary rock layers. Meanwhile, tectonic forces deep within the Earth, were moving, cracking, and lifting, transforming the surface.

Architectural Artistry wayside
Gilbert Stanley Underwood, the master architect hired by Union Pacific Railroad, helped pioneer the National Park Service rustic style. Here at Bryce and at many other western national parks, his artistry, vision, and utilization of local timber and stone created structures that nestled harmoniously into the natural landscape. The lodge’s roof is notable. Its green color was chosen to blend in with the Ponderosa pines, and the shingle pattern creates a wave-like movement, mimicking pine boughs blowing in the wind. This is the last remaining original “Grand Circle Tour” lodge.

Black Birch Canyon
The park has its share of misnomers (Mossy Cave isn't a cave, the canyon isn't really a canyon...) and Black Birch Canyon would be another. Since black birch (Betula lenta) only occurs in the east, it's likely quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) were mistaken for these. Birch are famous for having bark that peels back like paper; aspen bark does not peel. Whereas aspen leaves are perfectly flat, birch leaves are slightly "V" shaped and more elongated than Quaking Aspen leaves. Trails No trails depart from this area. Landscape Features To the South See the hoodoos eroded from the edge of the Paunsaugunt plateau contained within a bowl-shaped amphitheater shared with Rainbow Point. A forest floor of pine and fir lies 1,000 feet (305 m) below. To the Southeast Navajo Mountain looms on the distant horizon over 80 miles (129 km) away near Page, Arizona. Called a laccolith, Navajo Mountain can be thought of as a volcano that never quite happened. As the Colorado Plateau was uplifted over the last 20 million years, a plume of molten rock moved upward from deep inside the Earth causing a swelling much like a large blister. Unlike a volcano, Navajo Mountain never blew its top and so the plume cooled slowly, creating the hard core of the mountain that still exists today. To the East The Paria Valley and the upper steps of the Grand Staircase exposed within it present most of the view. Across the valley, the Table Cliff plateau stands at 10,000 feet (3048 m) and is composed of the same Claron formation (or "Pink Cliffs") as Bryce Canyon's hoodoos. This difference in elevation is due to the presence of the Paunsaugunt fault--a major normal fault that runs northeast to southwest along the park's eastern boundary. Uplift of the Colorado Plateau over the last 20 million years is responsible for the nearly 2,000 feet (607 m) of elevation difference expressed by this fault. Below these Pink Cliffs, observe the shale-rich badlands of the Grey Cliffs slowly transform to the sometimes iron-rich sandstones of the upper White Cliffs. Kodachrome State Park is located in this transition zone. Almost the same distance to Navajo Mountain in the southeast, the Henry Mountains can be seen on days with good air quality, 86 miles (138 km) away beyond the eastern horizon. Like Navajo Mountain, these too are laccoliths--or plumes of molten rock that warped the rocks above them, but never broke through as a volcano would. As with the terrain of Capitol Reef National Park, which lies just in front of these peaks, millions of years of erosion have now occurred, and at the Henry Mountains it has removed the overlying rock and exposed the hard igneous cores within these mountains. To the North Observe the eroded edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau, punctuated by bowl-shaped amphitheaters. Atop the Markagunt plateau to the northwest and the Paunsaugunt plateau in the north, the Tushar Mountains and Sevier plateau (or Black Mountains) can be seen. These were created through volcanic activity associated with the uplift of the Colorado Plateau. To the West The rolling ponderosa forest of the Paunsaugunt plateau is deeply incised here by water travelling north to the Tropic Reservoir. The direction of flow is decided by the plateau's upward tilt to the south and has created a rain divide between the Great Basin of Nevada and the Colorado River that follows the edge of this plateau.
Visitor centers
Park stories
NPS Geodiversity Atlas—Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
50 Nifty Finds #35: On the Same Track
How the NPS is protecting groundwater for people and ecosystems
Intern Spotlight: Estrella Sainburg
Trends in Water Quality at Bryce Canyon National Park, Water Years 2006–2021
One Hundred Years of Bryce Canyon–Over Fifty Million Years of Fossils
Pauline Mead
Ponderosa Canyon Viewpoint Repair
The Road to Rainbow: Snow Removal at Bryce Canyon National Park
We Don’t Know What Will Happen to Bryce Canyon’s Hoodoos
The Sounds of Spring
Rainbow Point Fuels Reduction Project at Bryce Canyon National Park
Webcams
Park information courtesy of the National Park Service Data API.

