Utah 2020

 Bryce Canyon National Park is the smallest of Utah’s national parks—and interestingly, it’s not actually a canyon. Technically, canyons are carved by rivers, while Bryce is a series of eroding cliffs along the eastern rim of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. These cliffs have formed vibrant rock amphitheaters filled with otherworldly ridges, fins, and hoodoos. It's also the highest elevation national park in Utah. Bryce was first designated a National Monument in 1923 by President Warren G. Harding and became a National Park in 1928 by act of Congress.

If you only have one day in Bryce, as we did, the Queen’s Garden Trail is a must. It’s not a loop, so plan ahead: choose your starting point and take the park shuttle back to your car.

Cedar Breaks is a stunning natural amphitheater stretching nearly three miles across and plunging more than 2,000 feet deep. Perched at over 10,000 feet above sea level, the rim offers breathtaking views of vividly colored rock formations shaped by wind, water, and time. It was designated a National Monument in 1933 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. 

 Arches National Park is home to over 2,400 natural stone arches—the highest concentration of natural arches in the world. These incredible formations, along with other unique landforms, originated from a massive underground salt bed deposited around 300 million years ago, when an ancient sea covered the region and later evaporated. Over time, layers of sediment from floods, wind, and ocean activity compressed into rock, sometimes up to a mile thick, which shifted and cracked, allowing erosion to sculpt the arches we see today.

But standing there as a visitor, it doesn’t just feel geological—it feels almost mythical. As a layperson, it looks like the work of gods or aliens, with massive sculptures that seem to tell stories or depict ancient lives.

President Herbert Hoover designated Arches as a National Monument in 1929, and in 1971, Congress elevated it to National Park status.

We spent one day at Arches, and it definitely wasn’t enough. There’s so much to see and countless hikes to choose from. I hiked to Landscape Arch via the Devil’s Garden Trail—many of my photos are from that hike, while the rest are from scenic pullouts due to time constraints.

This park is extremely popular and gets very crowded in summer, so it’s important to arrive early. And as you can probably tell from the photos, there’s very little shade—so bring plenty of water, wear sunscreen, and don’t forget a hat!

 On our way to Canyonlands, we considered driving through Arches a second time—but ultimately decided not to (regretfully!).

Canyonlands is Utah’s largest and least-visited national park. It was designated a National Park in 1964 by President Lyndon B. Johnson and remains one of the last relatively undisturbed areas of the Colorado Plateau. With few paved roads and vast stretches of remote wilderness, Canyonlands is truly wild and untamed.

The park is divided into four distinct districts, each with its own character: Island in the Sky, The Needles, The Maze, and the rivers themselves. We visited the Island in the Sky District, the most accessible of the four. It’s important to note that no roads or bridges connect the districts, so visiting more than one requires careful planning and multiple days in this rugged landscape.

Water is scarce here—there’s very little piped-in water anywhere in the park—so if you're exploring, bring plenty of it. This is high desert country. I did a short hike on the White Rim Trail in the early morning, and many of the photos I’ve included are from that peaceful, scenic trek.

 Capitol Reef was established as a National Monument in 1937 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and redesignated as a National Park by Congress in 1971. The park was created to preserve the dramatic desert landscape surrounding the Waterpocket Fold—a nearly 100-mile-long wrinkle in the Earth’s crust.

Capitol Reef is truly a hidden gem—a hiker’s park rather than a series of shuttle stops. You don’t have to walk far along any trail to uncover a stunning array of arches, natural bridges, domes, canyons, and cliffs, all sculpted by the relentless forces of wind, water, time, and the extremes of the desert climate.

The park also honors the human history of the region. In the 1880s, Mormon pioneers settled the fertile Fremont River valley and founded the community of Fruita, known for its orchards that still flourish today.

Since the park isn’t very crowded, we took full advantage of the peace and space—traveling the scenic drive three separate times and stopping often to explore. I also did an early morning hike on the Hickman Bridge Trail, which you can see in the photos.

Zion is Utah's most heavily visited National Park.  It's glowing sandstone cliffs, towering cathedrals, and lush fern-clad sanctuaries offer visitors a stunningly beautiful setting.  With  dozens of wet dry slot canyons, more big wall climbing routes than Yosemite and hundreds of miles of hiking trails.  The centerpiece of the park is Zion Canyon, a 15 mile long and up to half mile deep slice through Navajo Sandstone cut by the North Fork of Virgin River.  From the canyon floor to the summit of Horse Ranch Mountain, there is more than 5000 feet of elevation.  Zion is Utah's oldest national park.  It was established in 1909 as Mukuntuweap National Monument by President William Howard Taft President Woodrow Wilson changed the name to Zion National Monument and Congress in 191 Changed it to Zion National Park the 12th national park.  The name was changed because the National Park Service observed that the name was too hard to pronounce and remember.

 Three majestic natural bridges  Declared a National Monument in 1908,   Utah's first National Monument By President Theodore Roosevelt. the bridges are named "Kachina," "Owachomo" and "Sipapu" in honor of the ancestral Puebloans who once made this place their home.  This amazing place is out of the way but worth the trip.