Living the Dream...: Tuesday, October 9, 2012 (Red Canyon RV Park, Panguitch, Utah)

We were on our way to Bryce Canyon National Park shortly after 9:00 this morning. It was another sunny, beautiful day...however, the forecast deteriorates as the week progresses.

We stopped at Red Canyon to take pictures...

...then drove through the tunnels...

When we arrived at the park entrance, we were waved right through the payment booth...sweet! We later found out that it was a “free” day. We stopped at the visitor’s centre and watched a short video on the park, then spoke to a ranger about the trails. She told us the most popular one was a combination Queens Garden Trail and Navaho Trail...about 3 miles/5 kms...and usually takes 2 to 3 hours...sounds good to us. After checking out the centre a bit more, we headed back to the truck to drive the short distance to the trailhead at Sunrise Point.

We parked and headed to the trail...the canyon is absolutely stunning...this is the trail we will be taking...down, down, down...

We were amazed at the number of people at the park...

It wasn't long before the jackets came off...

Finally at the bottom of the canyon...

We stopped for a rest and a bite to eat...

and were joined by this little fellow...

Time to start our trek up...

There were a bunch of school kids coming down...

That's quite a climb...

Ahhh...we made it!

It took us about 2 hours to complete the two trail loops. The trail ended at Sunset Point, about a half mile from Sunrise Point, so we walked the trail between the two points and stopped to eat the rest of our lunch along the way.

After dropping off the backpack at the truck, we walked to Bryce Canyon Lodge. I have wanted to go on a horseback ride for a long time, so we thought we would check out the rides here in the park...and ended up booking a half day ride tomorrow afternoon. I am so excited!

I couldn't help taking a picture of this building right next door to the lodge...I worked in Human Resourses for 35 years...this looks like a neat place to work...

Very tired...and with sore feet, we were glad to finally sit down in the truck. The rest of our sightseeing would be primarily done from the truck. We drove the 15 miles to the end of the park and then stopped at the viewpoints on the way back. But before we did that, we drove through the campground. We’re glad we decided to stay back at Red Canyon...even if it is a private campground. There were few sites in the campground here that we would be able to fit into and most were set on the side of a slight hill making them very unlevel.