2021 Spring Tour of the Southwest, 3.31.21 - 4.14.21, Part 5 of 11, Bryce Canyon National Park
Bryce Canyon has been very high on my list of places to see for many years. Every time I saw photos of this park I was awed with how incredible the light is there. Our camp in Cannonville was chosen because it was halfway between Kodachrome Basin and Bryce Canyon. Our two night stay there allowed time for us to visit both places.
The national parks have been hit hard by Covid. So many people that were cooped up for too long have come out in droves and the national parks are seeing record numbers of visitors. I have been quite intimidated by what I have heard about attempting to visit a national park but there are reasons the parks are so popular. They are America’s finest idea and I’ve never seen a national park I didn’t like.
Sunrise photos of Bryce Canyon are on every nature photographer’s bucket list. Bryce Canyon is not really a canyon at all but a series of amphitheaters filled with rock spires and hoodoos. Anywhere along the rim of the amphitheater can be great for photos but Sunrise Point is considered to be the prime spot of them all. Another great spot and preferred by some is called Bryce Point because of its position facing more in a northerly direction across the amphitheater instead of Sunrise Point which faces into the rising sun. I struggled with where I should set up shop. I ended up deciding to go to Sunrise Point, partially because of its reputation and partially because I was worried that if I didn’t park there early enough I would never get a spot later. It was the right call but for a different reason which I will explain in a bit.
I had visions and had read that you could potentially have dozens or more photographers lined up tripod to tripod on any given morning waiting to get that golden moment when the sun breaks the horizon. Just like in the old concert ticket days, I wanted to be first in line to pick my spot. Sunrise on that day was at 7:06AM. I decided I wanted to be there by 4:30AM to be reasonably sure of getting my spot. I didn’t really even know exactly what “my spot” was other than on the lookout platform. It’s about a half hour drive to Bryce from our campground so we left at 3:45AM. Even with a map it wasn’t that easy to find the proper parking area in the dark. It’s also a short hike to get to the rim and then on to Sunrise Point so armed with two tripods, headlamps and enough clothes to make the Michelin Man look skinny we made our way to the viewing platform. Not a soul was there. I set up my tripod and with the Milky Way rising over the dark amphitheater, I took several shots before the moon rose and faded my opportunity.
Milky Way over Bryce Canyon with rising moon
Bridgit knew the action wouldn’t really start until just before sunrise so she hoofed it back to the car to get warm. I was planning to stick it out and stand my ground in case several hundred photographers suddenly appeared but no one came. Did I fail to mention that Sunrise Point sits at 8,100’ and that a slight cold front was moving through? The recorded temperature was 27 degrees with a biting wind and by the time I’d sat out there for over an hour I was colder than a brass toilet seat on the shady side of an iceberg. With no one around yet I packed up my gear and headed back to the car to get warm. I managed to stay in the car for about forty-five minutes. Around six thirty I saw a guy with a tripod head up the trail so I quickly grabbed my stuff and rushed back to Sunrise Point. Now it was just me and the other photographer. What is known as the blue hour had begun and I could now see the amphitheater below me. Rather than facing directly east into the rising sun, I set up aiming more to the south across the length of the amphitheater. Soon enough people started arriving to see the sunrise but they were all just tourists and even by sunrise we were the only ones up there with tripods.
After the blue hour but before sunrise is a phenomenon known as the golden hour. This can be a magical time when the soft pre-dawn light can make for some very special shots. I began shooting during this period and didn’t stop until the sun had risen and worked its way down the walls of the amphitheater. It was every bit as incredible as I had hoped it would be and more. Since it was only early April, snow still lingered on the north facing slopes and the white of the snow only accented the multi-colored rock of Bryce Canyon.
During the golden hour
Pre-dawn golden hour
A new day dawns at Bryce Canyon
Part 6 up next!