Framedlight

After the marmots and a talk by one of the park rangers, Anne needed to see the rest of Bryce. As I explained in an earlier blog, Bryce Canyon is not a true canyon but rather a cliff face which is being eroded back by the action of frost and water. As you drive the length of Bryce there are stopping points where there are scenic overviews. These are mainly amphitheatres where for some reason a bite has been taken out of the side of the cliff, and erosion has created the dramatic hoodoo formations. The road and the Canyon finish in the south at Yovimpa Point and this is where we started. I did not take a large number of pictures as I had already done that on my previous visit with Mike, so I will just show a few. We ended the day at Bryce Point, as the sun was setting. Bryce is not the best place for sunset as it faces east, but I gave it a go! The clouds became quite heavy as the sun set but cleared in the 'blue hour'. Yovimpa Point The Backpacker, Agua Canyon ...

We made a few more stops on the one road leading north around the rim of Bryce Canyon. The first was at Ponderosa Canyon. I was impressed by this little flower which I could not identify and the wonderful Limber Pine, its roots clasped around the rock. The next stop up the road was Agua Canyon where there are a couple of very prominent hoodoos. The National Park Service has stopped naming them as they tend to fall down as the canyon wall is eroded. The first hoodoo here is the Backpacker or Hunter and he is looking across to one known as the Rabbit. The light was just hitting the tops of the hoodoos. Bryce is mainly not good for sunsets as it faces east and is plunged into darkness in the evening. A short drive north brings you to Natural Bridge where a rather scruffy raven was posing for food. I did not have any but he was obliging none the less. I was so distracted by him that I did not take many pictures of the scenery here. ...

The Badwater Road is full of wonders. Coming back up north from the basin you come to a track leading to Natural Bridge, an arched structure over yet another small canyon. I was lucky that a girl in a black floaty dress decided to walk under the arch as I was photographing it. Neither of us would have qualified for a glamour shot at the time. Beautiful as Mairi is, shorts and a tee shirt does not qualify.  From here we moved back to Artists Palette again. We had a late lunch at the parking area (lunch was always late) and then took the track that leads through the coloured rocks. I used the polaroid filter on the camera to darken the skies and try to bring out the colours more.  Mairi did pose for me from the top of a rock.  We were amused when leaving on the unmetalled road that a large camper van was endeavouring to manoeuvre up it. Eventually, with about a 20 point turn it gave up. We felt vindicated in our choice of accommodation! ...