Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon is one of America's most famous and awe-inspiring natural attractions, and has been a road-tripping destination for generations. The North Rim and South Rim are accessed from opposite sides of the canyon, but most people visit the Grand Canyon National Park's South Rim. The North Rim is closed in winter, but the South Rim is open year-round and easily accessible from destinations like Las Vegas, Phoenix, Sedona, and Williams. The main access point for this section of the park is the South Entrance, where the main visitor center is located. It is also possible to enter via the east, at the Desert View Entrance, but for most people, this is a less convenient option.
To explore the park by road there are two options from the South Entrance Visitor Center. Hermit Road runs west, past the small resort area of Grand Canyon Village, more commonly known as the Village, to numerous overlooks. This road is open to private vehicles from December 1 to the end of February, but outside of these dates you must use the park shuttle buses. The other option, open to cars at any time of year, is the Desert View Drive, which heads east from the Visitor Center for 22 miles to the Desert View Watchtower. Both of these drives are fantastic and provide different perspectives of the canyon.
A variety of tours offer unique ways to experience the Grand Canyon, from helicopter rides to white water rafting. Some of these start right at the Grand Canyon, others depart from nearby cities, such as Las Vegas. There is some accommodation in the national park at the Village, which is operated by a concessioner of the park. Just outside the South Entrance is the small town of Tusayan, with a much larger variety of chain hotels, as well as restaurants and other services.The Bryce Canyon Lodge is not very big, but it is in a great location and has a nice restaurant. The drive along the rim is really easy and each viewpoint is no more than a few steps from the parking lot. If you do not want to do any hiking and see nature, this is the park for you. The problem, of course with this, is the crowds. Because of the easy access, you will have more than the usual crowding, even if you are getting out really early or staying out late.When we were there, it was very cold and wet, and it snowed one night and morning. Also being at over 8,000 feet caused a little bit of pain on the hikes up to Inspiration Point. As I always recommend, make a plan, be patient, and be flexible. Here are a few highlights.

Drive to all of the Lookout Points

Rainbow Point is at the end of the road along the rim. At the lookout you look Northwest back into Bryce Canyon.
On the way back North, stop and take a look at the Natural Bridge. Again, right on the road and easy to see, but not easy to photograph. Don’t tell anyone, but this angle is achieved by jumping the stone fence on the right side of the parking area and moving to your right as far as you feel safe. This is a much better angle than staying on the viewing platform.
Natural Bridge

There are many beautiful images to be made in Bryce. The iconic and most popular shot is taken at Bryce Point and its hard not to pick this as a favorite. Bryce faces almost dead East, so it is really a sunrise and early morning shot if you want to get the sweet light on the red hoodoos. However, you can also get some nice shots at sunset.Sunrise Point Snowstrom

Inspiration Point was my favorite sunset spot because you can get the Amphitheater in the foreground and have some very interesting light on the “Sinking Ship” and the Table Cliff Plateau. I recommend getting here at least an hour before sunset and just watch as the light changes as it sets behind you. You can watch it creep out of the canyon and move up the sinking ship until you get exact spot light you want.Nature's Spotlight on the Sinking Ship

Sunset Point and Sunrise Point are very popular, crowded, but also have good facilities, parking, and the lodge nearby. It is hard to make a bad photo here. My advice is to take a variety of compositions…sky in; sky out; go wide; use a telephoto to get some details. Pay attention to the quality of the light. Again, flatter indirect light in the afternoon will give the red stone a dark rich color,but watch out for dark shadows. In the morning, the red stone lights up bright orange and is of a completely different look. Both are beautiful, but in a slightly different way.
Morning at Sunrise Point
Fairyland Point and the Fairyland Loop Trail are in a small self-contained valley. This is not where you will get the big landscape vista shots like at Sunrise and Sunset Point. Think about close-ups of the hoodoos and making some natural abstracts here.
Hoodoo Close-up
Hike Inside the Amphitheater
There are several trails within the Ampitheater that provide good shooting and great scenery. Unfortunately, on this trip we did not do any hiking because of the weather. On previous trips we have hiked the Navajo Loop Trail and the Queens Garden Trail. These are the most popular, busy, but also most scenice. If you do not want to deal with the ups and downs of these trails, you can always hike the paved and relatively flat Rim Trail which will go all the way from the Fariyland Point to Bryce Point. Doing this will enable you yo see the Canyon from almost every angle.