Bryce/Zion National Park
One Park or Two?
by Dan Austin
When you hear folks talk about the Southwest or you ask around a bit, you commonly hear about Bryce-Zion as if it were one place. The fact is these are two totally separate National Parks, both with their own personalities and opportunities. It’s just hard to get anyone to separate the two. Frankly, I doubt anyone would ever visit one without visiting the other (or at least they shouldn’t!).
While these two national gems don’t get the same press as their northern cousins, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, or Glacier, to name a few, in their own right they are every bit as spectacular. They are rich in history, geology, wildlife, flora, fauna, and more.
As one heads south into the area from Salt Lake or north from Las Vegas (split 270 miles either way), they come upon a scene comparable to a lunar landscape. Erosion has primarily shaped this region of colorful Claron limestones, sandstones, and mudstones, into thousands of spires, fins, pinnacles, and mazes. Frequently called "hoodoos," kids will see them as giant fudgecicles against the deep blue skies.
Bryce Canyon National Park consists of 37,277 acres of colorful rock formations and desert wonderland. It is named after pioneer Ebenezer Bryce, who came to the Paria Valley with his family, in 1875. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints sent him. He was a carpenter and his skills were useful in settling the area. Bryce built a road to the plateau top to retrieve firewood and timber and he also built an irrigation canal to water his crops and animals. Locals called the scenic canyon, near Ebenezer’s homestead, "Bryce's Canyon." When the Bryces moved to Arizona in 1880, the name remained.
Soon after southern Utah began to develop, Reuben and Minnie Syrett homesteaded just outside the present park boundaries and they brought their friends to see the interesting stone formations. By popular demand, they developed accommodations on the canyon rim. They called their "lodge," "Tourist's Rest." In 1923, the Union Pacific Railroad bought out the Syrett's interests and began to construct Bryce Canyon Lodge, intending to make the Bryce Canyon area part of their new "Loop Tour" of the southwest. The Syrett's then built "Ruby's Inn" on their own land just north of the park. Both still house and serve visitors to this day.
The Union Pacific took a keen interest in seeing the area grow and expand and continued to improve the local facilities. They greatly improved transportation into Cedar City and started a shuttle service from the train depot there to Bryce Canyon National Monument. In 1924, Bryce Canyon National Monument was declared Utah National Park. The Bryce Canyon Lodge was finished in the same year. In 1925, the Union Pacific continued to expand the Bryce Canyon Lodge, due to the overwhelming popularity of the area.
In 1928 an act of congress doubled the amount of protected land that was already part of the new national park. This addition of land was accompanied by another name change. Bryce Canyon National Park was officially designated on February 25, 1928.
Just 40 or so miles west and a little south of Bryce National Park is its sister park, Zion National Park. Zion is an ancient Hebrew word meaning a place of refuge or sanctuary. Protected within the park's 229 square miles (about 3 times the size of Bryce), is a dramatic landscape of sculptured canyons, soaring cliffs, and the world’s largest natural arch–Kolob Arch, at 310 feet. Zion National Park is located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert provinces. The unique geography, climate, and varied conditions, make Zion significant as a place of unusual plant and animal diversity.
Humans first inhabited the region about 7,000 years ago, when small family groups camped wherever they could collect plants, seeds, and also hunt for food. About 2000 years ago, groups began farming and growing corn and other crops. They built permanent villages called ''pueblos.'' While most Puebloan cultures migrated to other areas of the southwest, the Southern Paiute have remained to the present day. In the mid-19th century, "modern" settlers began establishing settlements in Zion Canyon.
The "western" historic period began in the late 1700s, with the exploration and settlement of southern Utah. Initial explorations by traders from New Mexico blazed the Old Spanish Trail, which followed the Virgin River. During the next century, American fur trappers and government surveyors added new overland travel routes across the region. In 1872, John Wesley Powell explored the areas around Zion Canyon, as part of western surveys conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey. The early pack trails soon became well-used wagon roads, connecting Santa Fe to the California markets.
In 1847, Brigham Young led members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormons) to Utah Territory, establishing settlements in the Great Salt Lake Valley. Within a decade, Mormon pioneers were sent to settle the southern part of the territory and grow cotton in Utah’s "Dixie." Towns like Shunesberg, Springdale, Grafton, Adventure, and Paradise sprang up along the upper Virgin River during the 1860s. In 1863, Isaac Behunin built the first log cabin in Zion Canyon, near the location of the Zion Lodge. Soon the canyon was dotted with many other homesteads.
By the early 20th century, the scenic qualities and unique landscapes of southern Utah, Bryce and Zion Canyon, in particular, had been recognized as a potential destination for tourism. In 1909, a Presidential Executive Order designated Zion National Monument, in Zion Canyon. The new monument was, however, virtually inaccessible to visitors, since the existing roads were in poor condition and the closest railhead was a hundred miles away. This same year the Utah State Road Commission began construction on a state highway system that would eventually improve access to the southern region. State officials also negotiated with the Union Pacific Railroad to develop rail and automobile links and tourism facilities in southern Utah. By the summer of 1917, touring cars could finally reach Wylie Camp, a tent camping resort that comprised the first visitor lodging in Zion Canyon. In 1919, a Congressional bill designating Zion National Park was signed into law.
Visitation to the new national park continued to increase during the 1920s, particularly after the Union Pacific extended a spur rail line to Cedar City. The Utah Parks Company, a subsidiary of the Union Pacific, acquired the Wylie Camp in Zion, and offered ten-day rail/bus tours to Zion, Bryce, Kaibab, and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Construction on the Zion Lodge complex began in the mid-1920s. In 1930, the newly completed Zion-Mt. Carmel highway allowed motorists to travel through Zion to Bryce and points east. This highway was one of the greatest engineering feats of modern times, requiring the construction of a 5,613-foot tunnel to negotiate the vertical sandstone cliffs of Zion.
Today’s visitors can still take a bus tour, or visit either or both parks by Winnebago. Whatever mode of transportation you may choose, you will find an area with abundant opportunity for adventure.
A visit to this area is sure to bring out the cowboy in all of us. It wasn’t that long ago that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid spent their time hiding in the box canyons. As you hike the trails, or better yet, take a mule ride "down" into the Canyon, you can just imagine John Wayne standing tall, six guns tied down, calling out to some shifty character to "come on out pilgrim and meet your maker."
Personally, I love to visit the area for the spectacular hiking. No two trails are alike and you could spend months hiking trails with alluring names like: The Ferry Land Loop, Narrows, Weeping Walls, and Navajo Loop. There is truly something for everyone. If you’re up to it, the most challenging and yet rewarding hike has to be the vertical climb to the top of Angels Landing in Zion for its spectacular views of the Colorado Plateau.
If you’re a biker, put the kids in a tag along and get ready for the ride of a lifetime. One of my favorites has to be the exhilarating downhill ride from Cedar Breaks National Monument through spectacular canyons, followed by solitude and open vistas. Or, there is a nice 18-mile ride to Bryce’s Rainbow Point.
For the younger set, be sure to participate in the Junior Ranger Programs at both parks. Become a Junior Ranger at Zion or Bryce National Park and learn more about the natural world all around. Children can earn "merit" badges for joining a Ranger led program, hear first hand about the early explorers or what a "hoodoo" is, or look for wildlife or identify some of the 900 species of plants that thrive in this region. Or, families can watch for mule deer, golden eagles, and the rarely seen mountain lion, because all are known to inhabit the area.
At 8,000 to 9,000 feet above sea level summer days are pleasant and nights cool. In this "high desert" the sun can burn easily in any season. Hats and sunscreen are advised all year around. Layered clothing is always a good step and will prepare you for the plateau's temperature extremes and frequent strong winds.
I am always impressed that our forefathers had the insight to set aside and to protect such beautiful and intriguing areas as Bryce and Zion National Parks. As with all of our National Parks, as Theodore Roosevelt so appropriately stated when opening Yellowstone National Park as our country’s first National Park, "For the benefit and enjoyment of the people." Now, all we have to do is get out and enjoy!
Dan Austin is an avid traveler, father, and adventurer.