UTAH, Hiking Bryce Canyon National Park with Kids – The Navajo Loop trail is short, vertical, and offers some gorgeous hiking with changing vistas within Bryce Canyon. With the rim elevation varying between 8,000 and 9,000 feet and intense summer sun, we planned to take it slow and easy with the kids.
To our surprise, they did great on the hike and we didn’t even have to carry the 4-year-old out (not very far anyway…). Starting out at Sunset Point, near the Visitor Center, and near the historic Lodge at Bryce Canyon, the Navajo Loop is a good bet for many families visiting Bryce Canyon National Park with kids.
Follow along on our journey in photos!
Shortly after breakfast, before the temperature rises too high, we begin our quest to find the bottom of Bryce Canyon.
Just a short distance into our hike, the Navajo Loop trail leads us right through a kid-size tunnel.
More layers of switchbacks weave in and out of increasingly precious shade as we descend farther into Bryce Canyon.
Looking up as we descend into the canyon, only fellow hikers on the Navajo loop can make sense of the tremendous scale of things here.
Looking up at the crags and hoodoos against the sky becomes even more spectacular than viewing Bryce Canyon from above.
At last we reach the canyon floor, or so it seems. The shade is sumptuous.
When you think it can’t get any narrower, the sky nearly disappears for a stretch.
While we stop for a water break, the kids discover the rocks will crumble with ease into a pinkish powder. Assuming this is what was worn as prehistoric sunscreen, they rub the powder all over their legs before continuing the hike.
Trees stretch high through the canyon slot, absorbing what light they can.
Just as it begins to feel like the walls are closing in, an enormous doorway opens before us.
As the canyon opens up, more trees appear along our pathway.
At last, we reach the bottom of the Navajo Loop trail. The kids explore the parched riverbed before beginning the slow work of our ascent.
4 comments
I once experienced a sudden March snowfall at daybreak on Sunrise Point in Bryce National Park. It was absolutely mystical. At that time I couldn’t hike into the canyon. Thanks for the inspiration to go back and do it! Your pictures are gorgeous.
Wow! That sounds amazing! I’d love to get photos of THAT. 😉
Thank you! It was hard to choose the photos, but in the end, it felt like these definitely told the story. 😉
Love this – SO gorgeous!!!
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