I flipped my Scenic Wonders of America wall calendar to November, this morning, to see that this month's scenic wonder is one of my favorite American Scenic Wonders.
Bryce Canyon National Park.
I have only been to Bryce Canyon twice, with the most recent time being Easter weekend of 2096.
Unlike Grand Canyon, and other canyon, Bryce Canyon is not actually a canyon. Why the canyon word is in its name, I do not know.
What I do know is Bryce Canyon is quite similar to Grand Canyon in one aspect, that being that one begins those canyon hikes from the "canyon" rim, hiking far below the "canyon" rim.
Going down is easy. The hike back to start is not so easy, what with the high elevation of both hiking venues making oxygen more scarce than what one is used to.
I remember the Grand Canyon hike to the Colorado River, via the Bright Angel Trail as being so easy, heading down, and so brutal heading back up, with the final hiking hour in the dark.
I remember the names of the Bryce Canyon trails I hiked, the Peekaboo Trail and Navajo Loop Trail. I recollect going down a long series of switchbacks to get to the trails. Going down those switchbacks was easy, hiking back up those switchbacks required a lot of heavy-duty breathing, trying to get oxygen.
I wonder how well, at my current elderly age, I would handle hiking into Bryce or Grand Canyon? It is highly unlikely I will ever find out...
