Queens Garden Trail

Queen's Garden Trail Difficulty: Moderate Total Distance: 1.8 miles (3.0 km) Elevation change: 320 feet (98 m) Average time: 1-2 hours One of the park's most popular trails, the Queen's Garden trail descends and bends 0.9 miles (1.4 km) along a ridgeline down to a unique hoodoo said to resemble Queen Victoria (be sure to travel down the spur trail at the bottom of the trail to see this hoodoo). The varied and colorful rock formations that surround this hoodoo, are described as many sculptures and other ornaments within the Queen's "Garden". Of the six trails that descend into the Bryce Amphitheater, the Queen's Garden Trail is considered the least strenuous; though due to the park's high elevation and steep grades in some areas, it is still categorized as a moderately strenuous hike (other Bryce Amphitheater trails include the Tower Bridge Trail, Navajo Loop Trail, Fairyland Loop Trail, Tower Bridge Trail, and Peekaboo Loop Trail). The trail also provides views of a grove of bristlecone pines near the Horse Trail junction. More about the trail Combination Loops This trail can be combined with the Navajo Loop to form the 2.9 mile (4.6 km) Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop and the Peekaboo Loop to form the 6.4 mile (10.2 km) Figure-8 Combination Loop . Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop Difficulty: Moderate Total Distance: 2.9 miles (4.6 km) Elevation change: 600 feet (138 m) Average time: 2-3 hours Perhaps the park's most popular and iconic trail, the Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop can begin at either Sunrise or Sunset Point but is recommended in a clockwise direction; this is done by descending on the Queen's Garden Trail and ascending the Navajo Loop Trail (Two Bridges side recommended for year-round use and iconic views of Thor's Hammer; Wall Street side is only open in summer). Whether one begins at Sunset or Sunrise Point, these two viewpoints are connected by a flat, 0.5 mile (0.8 km) section of the Rim Trail that completes the loop. If one begins at Sunset Point, they should begin by hiking this section of the Rim Trail to Sunrise Point. More about the trail Figure-8 Combination Loop Difficulty: Strenuous Total Distance: 6.4 miles (10.2 km) Elevation change: 320 feet (98 m) Average time: 4-5 hours The Figure-8 Combination combines the Peekaboo Loop Trail with the Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop to create a 6.4 mile (10.2 km) combination of two loops. Like the Queen's / Navajo Combination Loop, the Peekaboo Loop should be hiked in a clockwise direction. One can begin at either Sunset or Sunrise Point. From Sunset Point, one would begin by first hiking the 0.5 mile (0.8 km) section of the Rim Trail that leads north to Sunrise Point, then descend the Queen's Garden Trail to its intersection with the Navajo Loop. A short connecting trail leads from here across Bryce Creek to the Peekaboo Loop Trail. Keeping left will take hikers in a clockwise direction around the strenuous Peekaboo Loop and return them to the intersection of Navajo and Que