Bryce Canyon is actually many canyons. Or they can be more accurately described as natural amphitheaters. This is a view of Black Birch Canyon.
Another view of Black Birch Canyon. The many natural amphitheaters can be viewed by driving an 18-mile long road through the national park, and stopping at viewpoints. There are also several hiking trails.
Hoodoo dolls are a wicked fantasy. It’s a dark dream we all share at some time or another, to make those who’ve caused us suffering feel the same pain we feel. Throughout our lives we’ve been dealt a host of harms, both real and imagined, from a bunch of assholes. And sometimes we sure would love to pay them back.
A view from Bristlecone Trail. The Bristlecone Trail is over 9,000 feet up, at the very end of the road. Most of the park is over 8,000 feet in elevation. (That’s 2,400 meters, for you Canucks.)
Wouldn’t it be nice to raise your abusive parents, and make them suffer at your mercy? Or how about blasting your loud, rap-music neighbors with 150 decibels of Slim Whitman hits? Or what if you could force TSA agents to work barefoot and without belts?
View from the Bristlecone Trail. The Paiute Indians thought the hoodoos were the Legend People who, according to mythology, were turned to stone by the mythological character Coyote. Now there’s some ancient revenge for you. The Paiute term for hoodoos was Anka-ku-was-a-wits, which means “red painted faces.” This rhymes with Manischewitz, which is a sweet red beverage that can also get you stoned.
Revenge has a sweet taste. But Gandhi said that if we practice an eye-for-an-eye, the whole world will go blind. Darn you Gandhi for spoiling all the fun, with your great wisdom! If I could only come up with some wise retort for you, you’d know how I feel right now.
Yet another view from the Bristlecone Trail. I managed to hike this one-mile path. The extreme altitude left me almost as breathless as the views.
Empathy is what peaceniks recommend over things like hoodoo dolls. It ain’t easy to practice, and it ain’t always pretty, but the sad truth is that it does redound in better long-term results. For instance, feeling the pain that drives the assholes of our lives to harm us, helps us to understand our enemies. And as a smart strategist once recommended, “Know your enemy.”
This natural bridge reminds us of the connections we can form with our enemies when we stop relying on hoodoo magic.
The Buddha spoke of the Simile of the Saw. He taught that if some mean dudes are holding you down while sawing off your limbs, it is best not to think ill of them. Instead, wish them to be well, peaceful, and happy.
Bryce Canyon is named after the Mormon settler, Ebenezer Bryce, who briefly homesteaded here. He tried to raise cattle, but the livestock kept getting lost amongst the hoodoos. After this and other difficulties, he moved away in 1880. I would have stayed and found a new vocation.
Well, peaceful, and happy?! Bullshit, right? Instead, you might rather flip them off, if only you had fingers left to do so. But just think, if these droogs were peaceful they wouldn’t be sawing your limbs off in the first place. And then you wouldn’t mind if they were well and happy.
View from Rainbow Point, at 9,105 feet.
The hoodoos of Bryce are beautiful to admire. But be careful of their allure. Avoid the steep cliffs at their base. Revenge is a treacherous precipice, with ineluctable gravity. It only pulls you down.
Another stunning vista from Rainbow Point.
So we gave the hoodoos a wide berth, and observed them from a distance. We avoided the edge and kept our feet on solid ground. And the temptations of the hoodoos were supervened by this one wish:
View from Yovimpa Point. Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument can be seen in the distance, below.
That all living beings would be well, peaceful, and happy.
Categories: Travel
Chasing Unicorns 
Beautiful photos — and the sentiment in the end is just right.
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Thanks. It’s a sentiment I try to keep in mind whenever people piss me off. Can’t claim to always be successful, but I do try.
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Do they have little fake plastic hoo-doo dolls in the gift shops there? Hee hee. Gorgeous photos, btw. Almost makes me want to hop in the RV and go see this place. 🙂
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Thanks. I don’t know about the gift shops. I avoid those places. About the only thing I take from tourist destinations is photos. They’re inexpensive and occupy no physical space at home.
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Quite the trip and awesome photography as always.
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Thanks. It’s hard not to take a good picture of scenery like that.
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true
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How has your health been? Any progress?
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It’s been rough. Today (Sat.) is the first day I’ve been able to go out without using crutches in over two weeks. The pain has been bad. I haven’t seen any improvement from the meds yet. I’m scheduled for a ct scan but it’s not until Aug. 19th. That doesn’t help me much now..lol I really hope I see improvement sooner than later. At least we had a fun day today. For that I’m grateful. Thanks for asking.
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Must be a real bummer, having all that pain. But I’m glad you were able to have a fun day, in spite of it all. Sounds like a long wait for a CT scan. I wish our country could adopt your country’s healthcare system. On the other hand, I’m wondering if one of the downsides is having to wait a long time for medical tests.
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Thanks Tippy. Well it feels like a long time when you can’t walk but waiting some other tests or to see specialists can be up to or over a year. Our medical system is not good but I guess having the coverage is a good thing.
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Too bad. Our medical system is screwed up, too. I wonder if there are any good medical systems anywhere in the world. Maybe sometimes we just have to be our own doctors.
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We totally have to be our own docs here. I told the docs I saw for two years what I believed was wrong. It turned out I was right..lol
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Great photos and loved the commentary that went with it 😀
With scenery like that, I’d be stopping every few feet for a photo pretending it wasn’t because I needed to catch my breath from hiking in altitude 😉
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I like how you use a camera. You get a chance to rest without anyone knowing you’re tired. Very clever.
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It’s a finely honed skill 😉
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i’ve hiked that
colorful, rugged place!
a perfect place
for letting go 🙂
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it’s easy to forget
the cares of the world
when dazzled
by all that orange
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i’ve also been dazzled
by Utah’s summer heat 🙂
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