Wednesday, December 18, 2019

Our Utah Adventure: Day Three: Part IV: Bryce Canyon "Navajo Loop"

 This is a continuation of a travel series to Utah.  To start at the beginning, go  HERE.  The rest of the posts in chronological order are HERE,  HEREHEREHEREHEREHEREHERE, HERE, and HERE!

In last week's travel post we started our hike into the canyon on the "Queen's Garden Trail".  Now, you can go back up the same way you came down or you hook into the "Navajo Loop" to get back to the rim of the canyon.  We decided we didn't want to just turn around and go back, so we took the Navajo Loop Trail back.


I enclosed a map of the trails as my explanation can get complicated.  Because he Navajo Loop Trail is a loop,  if you hook into it from another trail like we did you are going to miss half of it.  We went back up to the rim via the south side of the trail because we really wanted to see "Wall Street" (An amazing trail and the best trail in the park in my opinion.   I will feature it after Christmas break).  But because we took that part of the loop back to our car, we missed "Two Bridges".  "Thor's Hammer" can be seen from Sunset Point because it is so large, so we didn't miss that.

So in other words, this post will only cover half of the Navajo Loop trail because that is all we saw.  You can always google "Two Bridges, Bryce Canyon" if you want to see what the other half of the trail is like.


Navajo Loop Trail is very different than Queen's Garden or the Rim Walk.  You are deep in the canyon, but it seems more forestry, and you can actually find a little bit of shade here and there.  I thought the contrast of the evergreens growing among the rock was breath-taking.  I also marveled how they could grow at all in such a dry, rocky, landscape.


The loop is 1.3 miles and is only open as a loop in summer because Wall Street is too dangerous to hike other times of the year.


My "boys" always like to have fun taking pictures like this.


I enjoyed crawling into this little hole, can you see me?  Boy was I covered in dust after I did this!


Here's a close up of me in the same hole.


We did see horseback riders in the distance.  Can you see them in the upper center of this picture?  I had no idea you could horseback in Bryce Canyon.  If I took this trip all over again, I would definitely do this.  It's pretty hard hiking for five days, it would have been a nice break. I believe it costs around $65 per person.






It's always nice when they put benches on a trail, and this trail had a few shady stone benches to enjoy.  My son and I spotted this one and sat down for a few minutes to rest and wait for my husband to catch up.  He usually always trails behind us as he is always stopping to take photos.  When he caught up to us he laughed and said "Uh, I don't know if that's the best place to sit.  You should see what is above you".  Unbeknownst to us, we were sitting under a gigantic rock formation that looked like it could tip over at any moment! 🤣.   You'll be able to see it in the picture after this one.





I will be taking a two week Christmas break starting next week Monday.  My Utah travel posts will resume after the New Year.

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!

24 comments:

  1. Woow! So beautiful place dear! I hope you had a great day! xx

    La ilusión de Nina - http://lailusiondenina.blogspot.com/

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  2. Such beautiful scenery again, this world is such an amazing place!
    Not sure I'd trust the horses to keep me safe on the trails, but I'm such a scaredycat LOL

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    1. Yes it is! You know, I wondered about that with the horses too. I'm sure I would have been really nervous especially in certain spots where it was very steep and high. I'd just have to close my eyes and HANG ON!

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  3. SO beautiful! I love loop trails and really do not like hiking back out the same way I came in since I like the changing scenery.

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    1. Yes, me too! But I'm sad we had to miss half of the Navajo Loop trail.

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  4. You've certainly covered a lot of territory in your visit to Utah Amy - stunning countryside and quite a challenge to conquer as much of it as you have.
    Thanks for linking up with us at MLSTL and I've shared on my SM 😊

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    1. Yes, it's a long drive so we crammed a lot in. It was not a relaxing vacation!

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  5. I live in Utah, Amy, and have not yet been to Bryce Canyon! It's almost a crime. :-) I love your photos and hiking Bryce and Zions is definitely on my list of must-dos. Enjoy your holidays! I look forward to seeing more from you in the new year.

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    1. Oh my, that is a crime! ha ha! Your state is so beautiful! There is so much to see.

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  6. Fabulous photos! We hope to go someday. It's a beautiful world!

    Merry Christmas!
    ❤️carmen

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  7. Beautiful photos! That looks like so much fun, I would love to go there someday! I really like that photo of you in that hole haha, it's very funny

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  8. What a great adventure! It seems funny to me too to see all those pine trees in the desert. It really makes it beautiful, along with the red rock formations. I love exploring holes, alcoves and caves. You never know what you might find!

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    1. It was. I thought so too about the trees. But I love the contrast.

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  9. I think this is the prettiest hike yet, Amy - I just love that those trees are so adapted to such a dry environment and I love the terracotta colors. It's just amazing! I'm not sure I'd want to ride a horse on some of those paths you've taken, but I guess they're more sure-footed than we are. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and enjoy your break! I'll look forward to seeing the rest of the pictures when you're back to work.

    Ruth
    www.VogueFauxReal.com

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    1. It was pretty. Yes, my husband wondered how comfortable I would feel on a horse on some of these trails. There are parts of the trail that are pretty scary and I can't even imagine the fear of being so much higher on a horse when your on a narrow, steep trail. Maybe it's for the best we never took a horseback ride.

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  10. haha yep I wouldn't have sat on that bench either! :) I like the green trees with the orange rocks, nature is so beautiful :) Looks like a lovely hike!

    Hope that you're having a great weekend :) We went to our last Christmas party for the season yesterday, it was a lot of fun!

    Away From Blue | Handbag Gift Guide

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    1. It was a lovely hike. Thanks for visiting and Merry Christmas!

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  11. So impressed by all your hikes! This looks amazing.

    Amy Ann
    Straight A Style

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  12. What a beautiful trail indeed. This looks really fun dear!

    Jessica | notjessfashion.com

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