As hoped, Lee and I hiked the Navajo Loop Trail yesterday, and it was magnificent, stunning, and incredible. Truly worthwhile. I took many, many photos, and please forgive me for the great number that I will include in this post. I am hoping to give readers an idea of what it was like to hike the trail.
It is important to note that it was not a long hike, just a little over a mile. But it was 1/3 almost straight down at the beginning, and 1/3 almost straight up at the end. How was this done? Through innumerable switchbacks, as you will see. So it was excellent exercise, despite the short length.
OK, here we go. Take a deep breathe as we start down. Do you see all those switchbacks below? And this is only the beginning!
Here's the view looking straight out, rather than down:
It's starting to look like it goes farther down than we thought??
We found a window that looks across the hoodoos that capture the setting sun:
We are descending...
We are starting to look UP at formations:
Down, again:
An arch!
More switchbacks? Really? How will we get back up??
Are we nearing the bottom??
Looking up at how far we have come:
The trail narrows as we get close to the bottom. I love how this place glows!
A tree, with light around the corner:
Towering Ponderosa pines, reaching for the light:
We are almost out:
We break out into the open, finally:
I love the flow of the formations:
We now view the formations from the bottom up:
There is a surprising diversity of plant life:
As the canyon widens, we see a riverbed that fills during thunderstorms and snow melts. I wouldn't want to be here during a flash flood! I can just imagine the power of the water, bringing rocks, silt, and trees with it.
The vista opens:
See the small red rocks in the photo below? Those were once large hoodoos which are slowly dissolving and are nearing their ends. Meanwhile, new hoodoos are being formed on the edges of the canyon, and the canyon slowly widens over thousands of years.
The white caps tend to be the stronger rock at Bryce, and the last to erode. They protect the softer red rock underneath.
A pipe-organ?
At this point, we start a gradual ascent:
We stop to gaze up frequently as the canyon narrows. How do these trees manage to grow here?
Looking down from whence we came:
Looking up at what comes next:
Oh oh. Here come the inevitable switchbacks up:
Climbing higher:
We made it through the switchbacks!
The rock formation in the top center is known as "Thor's Hammer". Good name!
Almost at the top!
We made it back, and it felt good, physically and spiritually! A magnificent and truly incredible place.
