Home to a wonderland of rust-tinted pinnacles, striated fins of rock, and those iconic squat hoodoos, Bryce Canyon National Park is a standout park in Southern Utah’s vast expanse of sandstone. Apart from its must-see Southern Scenic Drive, it’s also phenomenal for hikers of all skill levels, with family-friendly jaunts to iconic viewpoints, as well as all-day romps that will make even hardcore hikers’ calves tremble.
In 2023, the park is also celebrating its centennial, with special events—historic photo exhibits, geology festivals, and Native American heritage days—taking place all year long. Consider it the perfect reason to visit this year.
Whether you’re hoping for a mellow morning stroll with an epic view of thousands of hoodoos or a get-your-sweat-on workout, there’s no wrong way to explore Bryce Canyon and discover why its namesake pioneer, Ebenezer Bryce, once claimed “it’s a hell of a place to lose a cow.”
Read on for our favorite Bryce Canyon hikes, organized from shortest to longest—plus, essential steps to take before you even reach the trailhead.
Before you go
As with any journey into the wilderness, there are a few tips and tricks that’ll make your days hiking in Bryce Canyon safer and more enjoyable. For starters, the main section of the park sits at a high elevation ranging from 7,894 feet at the visitor center to a lofty 9,115 feet at Rainbow Point. As such, travelers coming from sea level might want to plan for an extra acclimatization day at the start of their trip, and factor in additional hiking time on trails with notable elevation gain.
Due to Bryce’s high altitude, it’s a much colder landscape than the rest of Utah’s national parks, the “Mighty Five,” with many feet of snow in the winter and summertime temperatures that rarely crest above 80 degrees (even when Zion is scorching in the 100s). Plan for ice and bring tire chains if you’re dead set on nabbing that perfect, snow-capped red rock photo come winter.
Lastly, with national parks becoming more popular every year, it’s crucial to practice Leave No Trace principles when recreating in nature. Only hike and walk on durable surfaces (no cutting switchbacks), respect wildlife, and pack out all your trash (yes, even that used toilet paper).
Shorter hikes
1. Mossy Cave
Distance: 0.8 miles
Elevation change: 150 feet
Following a wide irrigation ditch dug by hearty Mormon settlers in the 1890s, the trail to Mossy Cave is the northernmost (and one of the lowest elevation) hikes in the park. Though it might not seem like much at first glance, the presence of manmade waterways here is unique in the area, and early morning hikers are sometimes rewarded with wildlife sightings you won't have elsewhere in the park, plus uncommon flora like the Watson bog orchid and mountain death camas. At the end of this short trail, hikers come face-to-face with a small grotto filled with spiky icicles or fluffy green moss, depending on the season. The park service recommends starting this trip early or late in your day, as overcrowding in the afternoon can lead to parking shortages.
2. Sunset to Sunrise
Distance: 1 mile
Elevation change: 40 feet
When most travelers first arrive at Bryce Canyon, they make a beeline for Sunrise or Sunset Point, and with good reason. These striking vistas are two of the most iconic in the park, allowing visitors to gaze out at innumerable red rock hoodoos and the limb-like roots of scrubby limber pines spanning for miles across the canyon’s main amphitheater. Not only is the short path between them one of the most beautiful wheelchair-accessible trails in the country, it’s also one of only two hikes in Bryce that’s dog-friendly.
3. Bristlecone Loop
Distance: 1 mile
Elevation change: 200 feet
At the end of the Southern Scenic Drive sits one of the most vibrant (and high altitude) views in the whole of Bryce Canyon–the aptly named Rainbow Point. From here, you’ll encounter a layer cake-style view of the park’s toothy rock formations from a lofty elevation of 9,115 feet, which is where the one-mile Bristlecone Loop begins. Meander through a mixed spruce-fir forest past trees nearly two thousand years old before snapping a selfie in front of views that stretch into the vast Four Corners Region.
Moderate hikes
4. Navajo Loop
Distance: 1.3 miles
Elevation change: 515 feet
Offering up some of the best views of Thor’s Hammer (the most famous hoodoo in the park), the Navajo Loop begins and ends at Sunset Point. Yes, the trail dips below the amphitheater’s rim, and yes, it wanders through loads of Bryce Canyon’s apricot pinnacles of rock, like many hikes on our list, but perhaps the most memorable feature of this route is its postcard-worthy series of tight switchbacks, framed by huge orange cliffs, on the Wall Street side of the loop.
5. Queen’s Garden
Distance: 1.8 miles
Elevation change: 450 feet
As the least difficult trail that will take you below Bryce Canyon’s rim, Queen’s Garden is a must-hike if you’ve only got one afternoon in the park. Beginning at Sunrise Point, the well-worn pathway meanders between striated sepia and coral-tinted fins of sandstone and through an NPS-carved tunnel, ending in a brilliant red alcove of quirkily-named formations. Gaze up at towering rock mushrooms and tangerine-hued giant’s fingers, and, if you tilt your head just so, one of them might even resemble Queen Victoria.
6. Tower Bridge
Distance: 3 miles
Elevation change: 950 feet
If you’ve come to Utah to witness humongous natural sandstone bridges, this is the hike for you. Beginning at striking Sunrise Point, the trail drops a staggering 950 feet in a short distance, passing verdant green pops of pine trees tucked against the latte-hued cliffs of Chinese Wall. The turnaround point for this out-and-back trek is Tower Bridge, a pair of enormous stone columns with a large arch between them, resembling London’s most famous overpass.
Challenging hikes
7. Peekaboo Loop
Distance: 5.5 miles
Elevation change: 1,560 feet
Many of Bryce Canyon’s longer treks simply link together shorter crisscrossing trails to create day-long itineraries that drop into the craggy maze of the main amphitheater, and the Peekaboo Loop connects to the best of the bunch. Beginning and ending at Bryce Point, the path quickly descends into the main canyon and passes creatively named rock features like Fairy Castle and Hindu Temple. Due to the trail’s popularity, travelers here are required to hike clockwise as they stare up at Liberty Castle and Wall of Windows, a series of naturally-formed holes in a sky-high escarpment of rock. For an even longer journey, tack on Queen’s Garden and the Navajo Loop for a 6.4-mile sandstone extravaganza.
8. Fairyland Loop
Distance: 8 miles
Elevation change: 1,900 feet
The Fairyland Loop is situated on the northern end of the main park road, and can start and finish at either Sunrise Point or Fairyland Point. Circumnavigating Boat Mesa, an impressive bronze butte freckled with conifers, the hike tramps along steep ridgelines, past white-capped pinnacles, and through narrow sandstone ravines carved by water and time. Marvel at up-close views of Tower Bridge and Chinese Wall before circling back to your vehicle.
