wio5010 – Will’s Passion Blog

Erie County

Dusk at the Presque Isle Marina
(Image from Author)

Hello everyone and welcome back for the final blog post of the semester! Throughout the course of this site, we have seen many of the greatest natural wonders America has to offer. From Bryce Canyon, Utah, to the Smokey Mountains in Tennessee, there really is a lot to see in these United States we call home. However, as I prepare to go home for the Holiday Season, I find myself increasingly reflecting on the amazing sights found in and around my home town of Erie, Pennsylvania. Due to its isolation from the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia areas, as well as its comparably small population, the Erie area is often overlooked when most Pennsylvanians think of our state. Despite this, the area I grew up in has its fair share of attractions and unique views, which, in slight contrast with the rest of this blog, I will discuss today.

Winter storm on Christmas in 2017 brought roughly 7 feet of snow by New Years Eve
(Image from https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/12/26/573576150/many-parts-of-the-u-s-got-a-white-christmas-erie-got-more)

For those of you who don’t know, Erie is located in the Northwestern corner of the state along the shores of Lake Erie (imagine that). Geographically speaking, it is roughly equal distances from the cities of Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Buffalo, and serves as Pennsylvania’s only “coastal” city. For the inhabitants there, the lake serves as both a curse and a blessing, with the insane snowfall rendering the area uninhabitable to anyone not familiar with the area for approximately four to six months out of the year. However, if you survive the seemingly apocalyptic winters (accompanied by as much as 198 inches of snow), the summer months are well worth it.

View over Lake Erie from Presque Isle (Image from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/233342824413091292/?lp=true)

The first thing that comes to mind when thinking about summertime back home for me is Presque Isle, a four mile long peninsula that curves out into Lake Erie, creating Presque Isle Bay. This piece of land and the bay it encompasses are home to the area’s best beaches, and some of the more notable tourist attractions in Erie. Additionally, the beaches offer an unobstructed view west over Lake Erie, making for some beautiful sunsets. Presque Isle alone sees over 4 million visitors annually, making it a staple of the natural sights in the area.

View from the top of Wintergreen Gorge (Image from Author)

Another attraction often visited in the summer is Wintergreen Gorge, a 250 foot deep ravine that runs along Fourmile Creek. While not quite as impressive as some of the canyons mentioned previously in this blog, Wintergreen Gorge is still a beautiful and popular attraction for hiking and swimming. Due to its location directly behind Penn State’s Erie branch campus (and also my house), it is a convenient and fun place to visit.

Presque Isle Bay at dawn (Image from Author)

Overall, I could continue this post with many more local attractions, but it would just be too long. Erie has no shortage of local forms of beauty, and with them comes plenty of things to do and talk about. I hope these posts have provided you guys with some insight and much deserved appreciation for the natural wonders of this country, both local and national. Happy Holidays and I will see you all next year!

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

While not quite as extreme as the Rocky Mountains in the West, Pennsylvania does boast its own impressive stretch of mountains, with the central part of this state being notorious for its stretch of the Appalachians. For instance, here in Happy Valley, most Penn State students live within view of Mount Nittany, a staple of the local terrain and a testament to the geological formations of the Eastern United States. Throughout the course of this blog, the vast majority of attractions covered have been found in the Western parts of the country, with the region itself containing most of the well-known and large parks in the United States. To counter this, the subject of this week’s post is found much closer to home (relatively), and shows that there is just as much to see in the East as there is in America’s former frontier.

The “Smoky” Mountains
(Image from https://www.visitmysmokies.com/blog/smoky-mountains/what-makes-the-smoky-mountains-smoky/)

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee may not be the largest park to visit, but it is most certainly the most popular. In 2018, the National Park Service reported that over 11.4 million people visited the Smoky Mountains, nearly doubling the runner up, the Grand Canyon, which boasted just under 6.4 million visitors. This is probably due to the fact that it is one of the largest and centrally located parks in the Eastern United States, as well as because of its beautiful views.

The view from Clingman’s Dome
(Image from https://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/clingmansdome.htm)

The park contains, as its name suggests, the Smoky Mountain Range, a sub-range of the Appalachians, the same range that runs north through Pennsylvania. The peaks of these mountains easily rise above 6,000 feet, with Clingman’s Dome boasting a height of 6,643 feet, the highest in the park and the third highest peak east of the Mississippi River overall. This impressive and beautiful area is also known for its seemingly constant mist and fog coverage, inspiring the range’s name due to its smoke-like appearance.

Black Bear (Image from https://www.visitmysmokies.com/blog/gatlinburg/black-bear-in-gatlinburg-restaurant/)

In addition to the mountains, the park is home to many different varieties of wildlife. Most of the more notable animals of the Eastern United States can be found in the park, as well as several reintroduced species that had been previously hunted to extinction, such as elk. Possibly the most notable resident of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the American Black Bear, which is found in great numbers throughout the region. As someone who has personally visited the park, I can attest to this fact after seeing five bears up close in a little under a week.

While the Appalachian Mountains may not be as large as their western counterparts, the Smoky Mountains show that they can be just as impressive. With a diverse assortment of wildlife and sights to see, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a must-visit for anyone in the region. Although the park itself is much smaller than most of the others covered in this blog, it deserves all of the recognition it gets.

Yosemite National Park

Hello everyone and welcome back to my weekly National Park blog! Here at Penn State, it seems I am always preparing for an exam. As I write this, my second round of midterms are in full swing, and with it, a seemingly endless amount of work and studying. Even though Thanksgiving Break and the end of my first semester are gradually drawing nearer, I really could not be more ready to get away from the noise. In the spirit of this, my choice for the October’s last National Park is a place far removed from the bustling megacities found elsewhere in its state, and offers some solitude to those who, like myself, long simply for a chance to get away.

Yosemite National Park in Eastern California certainly serves as a staunch contrast to what many may picture when they think of the area. While much of the Golden State is indeed dry desert and sprawling metropolises, Yosemite is green and forested, with numerous rivers and streams providing the area with water. The park’s altitude also plays into its climate, with an elevation ranging roughly from 2,100 to 13,000 feet. Because of this hospitable environment, many species of plants and wildlife are able to call the park home.

Sequoia Trees in Yosemite
(Image from https://fineartamerica.com/featured/giant-sequoia-trees-of-tuolumne-grove-in-yosemite-national-park-jamie-pham.html?product=art-print)

The National Park Service lists a seemingly unending number of animals on their website as inhabitants of Yosemite, with some of the more notable species including mule deer, flying squirrels, gray wolves, black bears, and brown bears. While these animals alone make for interesting sights to see, some of the park’s more impressive wildlife comes in the form of its plants, with California’s signature sequoia trees being an instantly recognizable staple of the region. These massive trees grow throughout the park in three main locations, with Mariposa Grove being among the more popular and accessible places to visit.

Yosemite Falls (Image from https://www.thecrazytourist.com/15-amazing-waterfalls-in-yosemite/)

Aside from the wildlife, Yosemite has no shortage of beautiful views and amazing geological formations. For instance, El Capitan is one of many amazing glacier-carved rock structures in the park, characterized by its impressive 3,000 foot stone face that draws climbers and thrill seekers from all over the world. Yosemite also hosts Half Dome, another stunning mountain peak within view of most of Yosemite Valley. Visitors to the park throughout most of the year can also see the famous Yosemite Falls, one of the highest waterfalls in the world that flows from November through July.

El Capitan with Half-Dome pictured in the background
(Image from https://www.travelandleisure.com/trip-ideas/adventure-travel/alex-honnold-el-capitan-without-rope)

In addition to virtually all of the other parks listed on this site that I have yet to visit, Yosemite is definitely a bucket-list vacation for me. Although I have visited California previously, the state is a very large and diverse area of the country that warrants much more time than I have allotted it. From relatives I have talked to about their experience in the park, I can certainly say Yosemite is my top priority when exploring the National Parks in the future, and is a must-see for everyone living in the region or any other American capable of making the trip.

Death Valley National Park

Hello Everyone, and thank you for checking out this week’s National Park blog! Even with fall in full swing, having grown up in the region, it is easy to take advantage of the uniquely dense and colorful forests found in the Northeastern United States. Pennsylvania especially is home to some of the country’s most impressive timber, with the USDA reporting that trees cover roughly 58% of the the commonwealth’s total area (16.8 million acres). Despite this, people often seem to forget how unique this state’s wilderness really is, with natives to the area hardly able to comprehend living without trees. This is not the case with where we find this week’s national park, which is virtually void of forest cover, as well as most other types of plant life widely found locally.

View from Zabriskie Point
(Image from https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/news/zabriskie-point-reopens.htm)

In a stark contrast to the icy arctic climate of Auyuittuq in Canada, Death Valley National Park boasts being both the driest place on the continent, and the hottest place on Earth. Located mostly in the deserts of Eastern California and continuing into Western Nevada, Death Valley is truly an intense stretch of country. At over 5,200 square miles in size, the park is the largest in the contiguous United States, and the fifth largest overall. This impressive piece of land is home to a diverse array of mountains, desert sand dunes, and, despite its name, wildlife.

Moving Stones at Racetrack Playa
(Image from https://abcnews.go.com/US/mystery-death-valleys-sailing-stones-solved/story?id=25160155)

One of the more distinct attractions of the park are the Eureka sand dunes,which boast an impressive height of 680 feet. Despite being a defining feature of the park, these dunes only represent about 1% of its desert area, a surprisingly small portion considering how iconic Eureka and the other four dune locations are. Other attractions include the numerous volcanic craters scattered throughout the park, the Devil’s Hole cavern, numerous mountain ranges, salt flats, and the Racetrack Playa, famous for its large rocks that mysteriously move across the desert seemingly by themselves.

Damage from a flash flood in 2015
(Image from https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/news/flood-damage-worse-than-originally-realized-10-22-15.htm)

Even though Death Valley is the driest area in the country, it still experiences its fair share of extreme storms. Floods occasionally damage tourist sights and infrastructure, an ironic issue for park officials to have to deal with in my opinion. However, most of the park’s climate extremes come, predictably, in the form of extreme heat. Because of this, tourists are constantly reminded to drink plenty of water to cope with the temperature, and to avoid hiking or excessive physical exertion during the day, especially in the lowest, hottest areas of the park. Overall, if you plan to visit, expect the obvious when it comes to temperature in the world’s most infamous heat.

Eureka Sand Dunes
(Image from https://rove.me/to/death-valley/eureka-dunes)

Like Auyuittuq, I do want to someday visit this park, and experience America’s most extreme desert for myself. Although it differs from the Canadian Arctic in almost every single way imaginable, Death Valley really does have a similar adventurous feel to it, with both parks representing opposite ends of a wide spectrum of climates and regions to explore just on this continent alone. Even the state of California itself seems to depict a wide variety of ecosystems that help make it truly a unique place in this country, reminding everyone how large and diverse America really is.

Auyuittuq National Park, Nunavut

Hello everyone and welcome back to my National Park blog! While all of the previous parks discussed on this site are places that I, myself, have had the privilege of visiting, there are plenty of beautiful parks outside of the American West I feel are deserving of some recognition. Even though there are countless attractions to visit in America’s now settled frontier, some lesser known spectacular sites exist outside of both that region, and this country entirely. As a result, this week’s national park is a little different, with it being even farther from any sort of civilization or connection to the outside world than any of the previously mentioned parks.

Mount Thor (Image from https://www.trepaniershop.com/products/mount-thor)

Map of Canada with Baffin Island Highlighted (Image from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baffin_Island#/media/File:Baffin_Island,_Canada.svg)

Auyuittuq National Park, located on Baffin Island, Nunavut, is truly a unique destination for any sort of a vacation, especially when compared with some of the other previously mentioned parks. The park sits far into the Canadian North, resulting in relatively extreme weather conditions, especially for those not used to snow. In contrast with other locations mentioned in the United States, this park is much less accessible. In order to even get to the park, one must fly to the Baffin Island city of Iqaluit, fly north to one of several small towns listed on the park’s website, and from there, either boat or snowmobile as far as 22 miles to reach the park itself. This process can take a considerable amount of time and dedication, but the reward appears to be well worth it.

Auyuittuq is home to countless fjords, ice, and its impressive and sheer cliffs and ledges. The most famous of these is found on Mount Thor, one of the park’s star attractions, which boasts the world’s steepest and tallest cliff. This mountain is undoubtedly one of the world’s most impressive features, with Thor’s west face being an insane 4,100 foot vertical drop. Because of this, hikers and thrill-seekers from across the globe brave the areas’s frigid arctic conditions and remoteness to visit, or even climb the massive structure.

Mount Odin (Image from https://www.flickr.com/photos/adventureaddict/35314759)

However, Mount Thor is not the only Norse-Themed attraction found in the park, with Mount Odin and Mount Asgard being among the many similarly named structures Auyuittuq has to offer. Mount Asgard, despite not being quite as steep as Mount Thor, is still an impressive attraction, with its signature twin peaks making it a staple of the park. Likewise, Mount Odin, as the tallest point in the park and on Baffin Island, is a must see when visiting this stunning park.

Mount Asgard (Image from https://www.reddit.com/r/EarthPorn/comments/4ucr7i/mt_asgard_auyuittuq_national_park_baffin_island/)

Despite its harsh climate, remoteness, and overall lack of accessibility to casual visitors, Auquittuq National Park is certainly a bucket-list vacation spot for me. The sheer cliffs and jagged peaks make for a uniquely beautiful experience that cannot be mimicked in other parks. While it may mean some sort of training or at least hiking more seriously, this park seems to have some sort of draw to it that I personally need to see for myself.

Zion National Park

Welcome back everyone to my weekly national park blog! After doing these posts for the past few weeks, it seems like the American West has no shortage of sites to explore. Out of the states I have visited, few compare to the beautiful countryside and various exciting attractions found in Utah. Located in the southwestern United States, Utah is truly a unique and wonderful place, home to intense deserts, impressive mountains, and, among other things, Zion National Park, this weeks topic.

Zion is another example of a lesser-known yet wonderful destination for travelers to the region. Found in the southwestern part of the state, the park is relatively close to other attractions in the area, such as Glen Canyon, Bryce Canyon, and even the Grand Canyon. Unfortunately, not unlike some of the other parks mentioned in this blog, this close proximity to more popular tourist destinations often results in Zion being overlooked by travelers, who, in my opinion, are making a serious mistake.

The park is full of impressive natural structures, such as freestanding rock arches, and is home to Zion Canyon, a popular spot for hiking and sightseeing in Zion National Park. One specific spot is known as the Narrows, which, as the name suggests, is the narrowest part of the canyon, with walls easily topping a thousand feet. This was one of my personal favorite things to explore in the canyon due to the Virgin River, which runs through it, creating pools of water to swim in as I hiked up the canyon.

While the park may have some beautiful scenery, one aspect of Zion I was thoroughly impressed with was the road leading into the park. The Zion-Mount Carmel Highway at a glance may seem to be an odd thing to take away from the area, but in order to provide access to the park, the road had to be constructed to pass through the Navajo sandstone cliffs. This results in an impressive 1.1 mile tunnel that serves as both a testament to the dedication of the park planners and as reminder of the unique American ingenuity that motivated them to literally move mountains.

While I may not have spent as much time here as I have in other parks, I did overall have an exciting and positive experience. Zion National Park hosts some of the most beautiful scenery of any National Park I have visited, and as it was Utah’s first National Park, it certainly deserves the visit. I definitely plan to visit again to further explore everything the area has to offer.

Yellowstone National Park

Hello everyone and welcome back to another week of National Parks! While most of the parks previously covered in this series have been some of America’s lesser known attractions (with the exception of the Grand Canyon), this week’s topic is anything but obscure. When people everywhere think about American tourism, a few names stand out. As far as the National Parks are concerned, none are more recognizable than Yellowstone, a staple of America’s untamed west, and the topic of this week’s post.

Spanning an area roughly the size of Rhode Island and Delaware combined, Yellowstone finds itself in eighth place for largest National Park in the country, and second largest only to Death Valley National Park in California out of those found in the contiguous United States. The park itself is located in three different States, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming, although the bulk of the park is within the latter. Because of its size, the park has a seemingly endless list of attractions, ranging from geysers to impressive mountains and valleys.

View over Yellowstone Lake (Image from Author)

One of the most notable features of the park is Yellowstone Lake, the largest high elevation lake on the North American Continent. According to the National Park Service, it is one of many prominent bodies of water in the park, with others including Lewis Lake, Shoshone Lake, Heart Lake, the Yellowstone River, and the Snake River, which flows south into neighboring Grand Teton National Park. Although my time in the park prevented me from seeing all of these, what I did see of Yellowstone Lake and the Lewis River area was astounding.

Old Faithful Finally Erupting (Image from Author)

Another staple of Yellowstone National Park is, of course, Old Faithful. However, because the park sits on the continent’s largest supervolcano, the area is full of lesser-known geysers and hot springs. Personally, there were several volcanic sites in the park that I enjoyed more than Old Faithful, but it was still exciting to see it erupt, even after the almost two hours I waited for it. Nevertheless, it is a staple of Yellowstone, and is certainly worth the visit.

Grand Canyon of Yellowstone (Image from Author)

Out of all of the sites I visited in the park, however, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone was probably my favorite. The canyon is an absolutely breathtaking area of the park I did not even know existed until I saw it. The uniquely colored stone of the canyon, as well as its sheer depth, makes it one of the more interesting and pretty attractions in Yellowstone.

Simply because of the size of the park, it is nearly impossible to see all that Yellowstone has to offer in depth, especially in the short amount of time that I was there. Just to drive from one side to the other can take hours, not including stops at all of the different attractions, such as the ones mentioned in this blog. One could spend months just in this park alone and still not be able to experience all that it has to offer. Because of this, it is definitely important to plan ahead when visiting Yellowstone in order to take full advantage of your time in this beautiful area.

Volcanic site in Yellowstone (Image from Author)

Grand Canyon National Park

Happy Pitt Hate Week everyone, and welcome back to my blog page! While I may absolutely despise the subhumans that attend college in Pittsburgh, as someone who hails from western Pennsylvania, I do have a particular appreciation and admiration for the city. Located where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers meet to form the Ohio, Pittsburgh, in my opinion, happens to host some of the best views of any American city because of its geography. The legacy of these three rivers in the southwestern corner of the state can be seen in the beautiful valleys and canyons they have carved throughout the region, resulting in some of the most extreme terrain in the eastern United States. All of this pales in comparison, however, to this week’s national park, which has proven to not only be a geographical staple of America, but of the whole world.

The Grand Canyon, located in northwestern Arizona, is one of the most commonly known tourist destinations in the country, with roughly 6.2 million annual visitors. At roughly a mile deep and spanning 277 river miles, the Grand Canyon is both impressive and massive, earning it the title of being among the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. The National Park Service site states that the the area of the Grand Canyon itself encompasses over 1.2 million acres, which makes it larger than the state of Rhode Island and one of America’s largest national parks.

Grand Canyon at Dusk (Image from Author)

As if the canyon’s sheer size and depth did not already make it a sight to behold, the stunning layered rock found there adds another visually appealing aspect to the park. This rock, along with the canyon’s famous natural structures, were unveiled by millions of years of erosion, with the Colorado River being the primary contributor to the process. As a result of this, and the iron present in the rock, visitors are able to see and enjoy the vividly colored walls of the Grand Canyon that offer a one of a kind view.

Another aspect of the park that I personally encountered up close was the wildlife. Despite its arid climate, there are many different creatures that call the Grand Canyon home. During my visit two years ago, I saw a very wide variety of animals ranging from elk to coyotes. None of them made a greater impression on me, however, than the bighorn sheep, which decided to cross the trail in front of me as I hiked along a sheer cliff inside of the canyon. Overall though, my experience with the wildlife was positive, with the park giving me the opportunity to observe some fascinating species of animals that I had never previously seen, especially in the wild.

In my opinion, the Grand Canyon deserves all of the notoriety it gets. It is truly a beautiful place to visit, with no picture I have ever seen being able to truly do it justice. While it may not be as easy to explore for more casual hikers and visitors simply because of its sheer size, the park has a lot to offer in terms of sight seeing, which more than compensates for that. All in all, if you have the ability to visit the Grand Canyon at any point in your life, then I would 100% do it. It is a defining feature of this country, and is well worth a trip out into the Arizona desert.

Clouds over the Grand Canyon (Image from Author)

Grand Teton National Park

Greetings everyone and welcome back to week two of my blog series on America’s national parks! Each year, as summer comes to a close, I find myself personally ready for colder weather. These past couple of weeks in particular I have found myself longing for the return of colder weather from my top-floor dorm in toasty Snyder Halls, which, among other things, lacks the luxury of air conditioning. One thing that will be different for me this year, however, is that I will not experience the same dread as I have previously during the annual buildup to Erie, Pennsylvania’s infamous winters. While Erie’s annual snowfall is both terrifying and unheard of to most people from hospitable regions of the state, its reputation for being the most miserable place in the winter faces some fierce competition from this week’s national park.

View over Jenny Lake (Image from Author)

Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming is, for starters, is a very large hunk of land. While it is nowhere close to being the largest national park in the United States, it is still a massive area at roughly 310,000 acres, easily dwarfing Bryce Canyon, which sits at around 35,800 acres. Officially established by congress in 1929, the park encompasses the Grand Teton Mountain Range, the Jackson Hole Valley, the Snake River, and six pristine lakes. As a result, there is an extremely diverse assortment of things to see and do in the area, even outside of the mountains.

Bison in the Jackson Hole Valley
(Image from Author)

An additional aspect of the park that draws people from civilization to the mountains is the wildlife. The National Park Service lists that the Tetons and Jackson Hole Valley are home to a wide variety of wildlife, including elk, moose, grizzly and black bears, bison, and antelope to name a few. This adds an element of excitement to any trip to the park, with tourists having the potential to see these impressive beasts in the context of their natural habitats.

Storm clouds over the Teton Mountains (Image from Author)

Another characteristic of Grand Teton National Park is its, arguably, very comfortable summer climate. When I went in early July, one would need a sweatshirt well into the morning before the temperature would begin to drastically increase, something I personally enjoyed. Even in the afternoon when the daily highs could easily reach into the upper 70s or lower 80s, the lack of humidity made it bearable to say the least. Despite the seemingly passive weather of the area during the summer (with the exception of frequent afternoon thunderstorms), the winters, as it was previously implied, are considerably less forgiving.

In any one year, Grand Teton National Park can get an average of 14 feet (168 inches) of snow, an impressive amount even in comparison with my hometown, which sees an average of eight and a half feet (102 inches). As a result of this, the mountains are a popular skiing and snowmobiling destination, with many flocking to the park to exploit its many winter-time activities.

Grand Teton Mountains
(Image from Author)

Because of its spectacular views and my personal love for the mountains, the Grand Teton National Park is easily my favorite national park out of the many I have visited. The seclusion of the Wyoming wilderness found there is a very refreshing thing to experience, especially in the age of social media and constant human interaction. Additionally, the overall diversity of the park’s landscape, wildlife, and potential opportunities make it truly a one of a kind place. Unfortunately, despite its magnificent features, Grand Teton National Park, like Bryce Canyon, is often overshadowed due to its close proximity to a more popular destination in the region (Yellowstone). If anything, I hope this post brought some well deserved recognition to the park, and helped to showcase yet another example of this country’s stunning natural beauty.

Bryce Canyon

Hello everyone and welcome to my first blog post! Whenever anyone mentions the southwestern United States, most people think of hot, dry desert, and for the most part, they would be right. The State of Utah is no exception to this stereotype, with much of the landscape being much like neighboring Nevada or Arizona. Despite this, one of the state’s lesser known, yet spectacular, parks is found in the midst of a cool forest higher up in the much more bearable conditions of the mountains.

Bryce Canyon is a park that definitely deserves more credit than it gets. Unfortunately for Bryce, it is often overshadowed by other well-known attractions in the state, such as Salt Lake City and the northern portion of the Grand Canyon. Unlike the Grand Canyon, however, Bryce is much more accessible for the amateur hiker or explorer. Most people should have no problem walking down into the canyon and exploring the beautiful scenery around the area, whereas only the most prepared, veteran hikers could possibly trek across through the Grand Canyon.

According to the National Park Service, Bryce Canyon is not one single Canyon, but a series of “bowls” carved into a plateau, making for some stunning natural architecture. As a result of this phenomenon, there are many different locations to observe a variety of structures and the rock formations. The main locations recognized by the National Park Service, however, are Bryce Point, Inspiration Point, Sunset Point, and Sunrise Point. Additional information about these points and the park’s shuttling service can be found on the official website.

As mentioned earlier, Bryce Canyon is comparatively more accessible to novice explorers and tourists than its larger counterparts. This is possible due to the countless hiking trails throughout the park, providing visitors with the opportunity to see the park for themselves, rather than having to settle for looking at it from a distance. However, for those who prefer not to exert themselves with any sort of rigorous adventuring, there are plenty of spectacular areas that Bryce’s vehicle accessible roads are well within view of.

While the park may not be located in the harsh, arid conditions found in many other parts of southern Utah, it is not without its climate extremes. Because of its higher elevation, Bryce Canyon is often subjected to heavy rain or snow depending on the season. When I visited the park in 2017, it stormed every afternoon I stayed (even though the mornings and evenings were still beautiful). Lightning is also not uncommon, which is something to take into consideration if you were to plan a hike in the rain. Because of this, it is always important to heed to any potential warnings from park authorities, and to obviously check in with their website for any other useful safety tips.

All in all, Bryce Canyon undoubtedly has a lot to offer. From its exciting trails to comfortable road views, the park really has something for people of all capabilities or interests to enjoy. I would definitely take it into consideration if you or anyone you know is planning to visit the west, and I hope that this post gave it some of the recognition it well deserves.