Sunday, May 30th, Bryce Canyon NP
As usual, we began our day with a stop at the Visitor's Center, talking with a Ranger to be sure to see the "must-see" spots and watching an introductory film. Although we were allowed to drive our own car, taking the shuttle bus was encouraged, so we did that. Bryce is more spread out than Zion and the crowds were much lighter, so we felt more relaxed as we went from point to point.
We had heard about a Ranger program at 2PM and, without our really planning for it, we happened upon her talk just at the right time. She told about why there are different layers of rock color. The lowest layer was under the sea millions of years ago, so is darker. There were lakes after the seas disappeared so the color lightens, and the top layer is limestone which is lighter still. Bryce is technically not a canyon because it has no river. The Ranger said that the proper name should be "The eroding side of the Paunsaugunt Plateau", but that's rather a mouthful. Trails have had to be moved back due to this erosion over the years.
The many faults running East/West and North/South have caused fissures which water gets into, freezing and thawing and causing the strange shapes shown in the photos. The last photo shows "hoodoos" standing tall. They are all over Bryce and are continually being formed while others fall down because the softer sandstone underneath erodes faster and they fall under their own weight. We liked Bryce better than Zion because of all the different shapes.
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