Video of Thor’s Hammer at Bryce Canyon

Thor's Hammer on Navajo Loop Trail.

Where does the superhero and Norse god Thor leaves his hammer when not fighting evil?

Some day hikers swear it’s to the northwest of the Navajo Loop Trail in Bryce Canyon National Park.

Topo map for Navajo Loop Trail. Map courtesy of NPS.

The 1.3-mile trail heads past several hoodoos as it descends from Sunset Point into Bryce Canyon. It often is done in conjunction with the Queens Garden Trail.

The totem pole-like hoodoos form at Bryce Canyon thanks to frost wedging –water first seeps into fissures of the sandstone rock, then when freezing expands, causing erosion. Bryce Canyon experiences about 200 freeze/thaw cycles annually.

Among the hoodoos visible on the Navajo Loop Trail is the aptly named Thor’s Hammer and the set of hoodoos known as the Amphitheater to the hammer’s east:

Though a short trail, the steep descent into the canyon means a steep walk back up – about 550 feet, in fact – and it’s at a high altitude at that. Be aware that rock slides also sometimes close sections of the trail.

Also see:
• Hike fantasyland in Utah's Bryce Canyon National Park
• Best day trails for seeing Bryce Canyon's wonders

Learn about other great national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Video of Bryce Canyon hoodoos

Day hikers can see fantastical rock spires on the Navajo Loop and Queens Garden trails at Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah.

Hoodoos are unusual landforms in which a hard caprock slows the erosion of the softer mineral beneath it. The result is a variety of fantastical shapes. Children will delight in the chimerical scenery encircling Bryce Canyon’s Queens Garden.

To reach the national park, taking State Route 63 into Bryce Canyon. Park at the nature center and general store north of the Lodge. The trailhead is southeast of the nature center heading toward Sunrise Point.

Here’s a brief video of the Queens Garden hoodoos:

Here's an article more fully describing the trail.

Learn about other great national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Exotic hoodoos, starry skies, ancient trees await Bryce Canyon National Park hikers

Balanced-rock hoodoos on the Under-the-Rim Trail.

Among the best ways to enjoy Bryce Canyon National Park’s major sights is via a day hike. Just three short trails will allow you to see each of the park’s highlights – fantastical hoodoos, dark skies, and ancient bristlecone pines.

Hoodoos
Tens of millions of years in the making, some of these pinnacles reach up to 200 feet high in a series of amphitheaters strung across the park. The 4-mile round trip Under-the-Rim Trail sends hikers into a stone forest featuring several balanced-rock hoodoos.

Dark skies
Boasting among the darkest skies in continental America, Bryce Canyon visitors can see up to 7,500 stars with the naked eye – nearly four times more than is typical in a rural area. The Piracy Point Trail, a half-mile round trip from Far View Point, leads to a primitive picnic area overlooking a cliff that is perfect for stargazing.

Bristlecone pines
The rare bristlecone pine can live for hundreds of years and often resides at stark, high elevations. At 2-miles round trip, The Bristlecone Loop heads past 1,800-year-old trees and to magnificent vistas at an elevation of 9,100-plus feet.

Learn about other great national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Photo, map album of Bryce Canyon N.P.’s Queens Garden-Navajo Loop day trails

Visitors to Bryce Canyon National Park can hike through a fantastical maze of totem pole-like rock formations called hoodoos.

A combination of the Queens Garden and Navajo Loop trails makes for a 2.2-mile round trip walk in which you get to see the most famous of the hoodoos. You can reach the Queens Garden by taking Utah Hwy. 63 into Bryce Canyon. Park at the nature center and general store north of the Lodge. The trailhead is southeast of the nature center heading toward Sunrise Point.

Hoodoos are unusual landforms in which a hard caprock slows the erosion of the softer mineral beneath it. The result is a variety of fanciful shapes:

Map for Queens Garden Navajo Loop Trails in Bryce Canyon:

Hoodoos consist of sandstone that was compressed ground above and then twisted as by the earth’s plates shifted. When cracks formed in the sandstone, the combined power of water, ice, and wind eroded away sand, leaving spires. A 3D picture of the hoodoos (courtesy USGS):

Another 3D picture of the hoodoos (courtesy USGS):

Colorful spires loom over the junction of the Queens Garden and Navajo Loop trails:

Thor’s Hammer is the highlight of the hike:

Because of the Queens Garden’s high altitude – some 8000 feet elevation – May to September marks the best time to visit. In the winter, expect snow, which can arrive in early fall and last through late spring:

Learn about other great national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.

Hiking fantasyland in Utah's Bryce Canyon

Navajo Loop and Queens Garden trails.
Photo courtesy Bryce Canyon NPS.

Scenic 2.2-mile loop heads
through hoodoo wonderland

Fairyland really does exist – it’s smack dab in southcentral in Utah, where a maze of totem pole-like rock formations called hoodoos grace Bryce Canyon National Park.

Hoodoos are unusual landforms in which a hard caprock slows the erosion of the softer mineral beneath it. The result is a variety of fantastical shapes. Children will delight in the chimerical scenery encircling Bryce Canyon’s Queens Garden.

Because of the Queens Garden’s high altitude – some 8000 feet elevation – May to September marks the best time to visit. In the winter, expect snow, which can arrive in early fall and last through late spring. Regardless of the season, you’ll need sunscreen, water, and probably a brimmed hat as the trail is fully exposed to the sun.

You can reach the Queens Garden by taking Utah Hwy. 63 into Bryce Canyon. Park at the nature center and general store north of the Lodge. The trailhead is southeast of the nature center heading toward Sunrise Point.

Queen Victoria
To ensure you see the most fanciful and dramatic scenery that Bryce Canyon offers, we’ll combine a couple of trails for a 2.2-mile scenic loop through the hoodoos. Be forewarned: As Queens Garden probably is the park’s most popular trail, don’t expect a quiet escape into the wilderness.

Though Queens Garden is the easiest of the park’s trails, it still is moderately difficult to traverse. The surface is a wide and sandy.

Begin by following the Rim Trail south, turning onto the intersecting Queens Garden Trail, which is marked with a sign. From there, you’ll make a steep descent into a fantasyland of hoodoos. If you hike it during the early morning, sunrise’s orange glow magically lights the trail’s contours.

You’ll soon arrive at the Queen’s Garden, an impressive forest of hoodoos that fires the imagination. These hoodoos consist of sandstone that was compressed then twisted as the earth’s plates shifted. When cracks formed in the sandstone, the combined power of water, ice and wind eroded away the edges, leaving these spires.

Following the garden is the Queen Victoria Hoodoo. It does indeed look like the 19th century monarch – the inspiration for Alice in Wonderland’s Queen of Hearts – sitting atop her throne.

The trail also crosses several man-made bridges and includes small tunnels cut through large hoodoos.

Thor's Hammer
Rocks aren't the only scenery to watch for. Ground squirrels, bobcats, ringtail cats, foxes, hawks and golden eagle also can be spotted. You may be lucky enough to see a Utah prairie dog peeking at you. The California condor and peregrine falcons also live here but are rare sights.

At the Navajo Loop Trail intersection, take it to the left so that you head west. The section passing Thor’s Hammer was closed due to a rock slides, as of this writing. Indeed, whenever at Bryce Canyon, be mindful of loose rocks that can roll onto the trail from cliffs above you.

The trail back up to the rim is a steady climb but offers great views of the hoodoo forest falling beneath you.

On the rim, you’ll walk beneath the Sunset Point viewing area. You can clamber up to it for some fantastic views of where you just walked. In the distance is the Aquarius Plateau, North America’s highest plateau, and The Sinking Ship rock formation.

From there, head back to the lodge and then the nature center where you parked.

Learn about other great national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.