Hoodoo Voodoo

Bryce Canyon, Utah 30 June 2007
Click on the above image for the entire panorama of Bryce Amphitheatre

Bell and I have this sad tradition of playing songs that mention the moniker of places we are going. Like playing "Viva Las Vegas" by Elvis when we saw the Las Vegas skyline, "Hearts and Bones" by Paul Simon when we went to the Great Sand Dunes (he mentions the Sangre de Cristos) and "Sasquatch" by Tenacious D when we were searching for the Sasquatch Provincial Park in British Columbia. Okay, so maybe this is my tradition and Bell just takes it. Oh, think of the sweet torture Lucy will have to endure in the upcoming years, and pray for her.

So "Hoodoo Voodoo" by Woody Guthrie and masterfully remade by Wilco has absolutely nothing to do with Bryce Canyon, honestly, I haven't a clue what it is about, but Bryce is full of these beautiful towering sandstone rock formations called "hoodoos".



Bryce Canyon is actually a misnomer since it was not carved out by a river. Therefore it is not technically a canyon. Formed due to erosion, it is more of a natural amphitheater or bowl. It should have been called Bryce Bowl (this is Bell's blurb). It was settled by Ebenezer Bryce, a Mormon rancher who only lived there for five years. When asked to describe the canyon he said, "It is one hell of a place to lose a cow." What a pity it is named after him. Another misnomer is the Natural Bridge.



It should be called an arch because it was not carved by water. I'm not trying to debunk the hard work of past geologists. This is actually what is said on the signs. Wouldn't it be better to make a name correction instead of adding the fine-print onto the signs that are glorifying what they are not? Makes you wonder about those Mormons. If you would like to know more about the geology of the area go here.

Enough with the semantics. Bryce Canyon is beautiful. It is a small National Park but it sure packs a wallop. It rests high on the Colorado Plateau at 9300ft so the temperature remained in the mid-80's. It was also a good park for Lucy because all of the scenic points were accessible via a shuttle or a short hike.



You can hike into the canyon but with the babe it is a lot more difficult. We did do a portion of the Navajo Loop which takes you down into Wall Street.




Inexplicably, there is a small grove of Douglas Fir growing in the slot. The Loop was closed off due to a rock slide so the climb back up appeared to be daunting.



But the task was not a problem for our Rocky Mountain lungs.

The campground was a little crowded but we got there quite early and was able to procure a prime spot. A deer walked through our site which was very cool and you can also get cell service which our teenage neighbors very audibly demonstrated which was not cool. But at the end of the day it was a great time. I think Lucy is really enjoying camping and the outdoors, as she demonstrates by scarfing down a camping staple.



And since this is a National Park, Mormon laws do not apply and beer and wine are sold at the General Store, and also real coffee--none of that Nescafe junk.

You can view more photos in the album.

Bryce Canyon National Park

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P.S. Utah's state highway signs


How can you not call it the boob state?