Scenic Drive to Rainbow Point and Kodachrome State Park

Past the amphitheater in Bryce National Park is an 18 mile drive atop part of the Paunsaugunt Plateau. We headed for the point in hopes of walking the Bristlecone Trail where we hoped to see bristlecone pines, wildlife and fantastic views. As we entered the park, there was a light dusting of snow. The top of the plateau is 7,000 to 9,100 feet in elevation and there was more snow the higher we went. We arrived at our destination and the trail was snow covered with 27 degrees temperature and blowing wind. We did not have the gear for this, so we limited ourselves to taking photos from the observation points and froze doing it.

Later in the day, we visited Kodachrome Basin State Park. It is a colorful park about 20 miles southeast of Bryce Canyon National Park. It’s known for its red, orange, and cream-colored sandstone “chimneys” (sedimentary spires), with more than 60 rising from the basin floor. The park was named in 1949 by a National Geographic expedition who felt the vivid colors were worthy of Kodachrome film. The colors are most spectacular at sunrise and sunset and we were there mid-afternoon.