Queen's Garden Trail in Bryce

Queen's Garden 2

The Queen’s Garden Trail in Bryce Canyon is a beautiful walk through the main amphitheater at Bryce Canyon. Though this trail is fairly short, it climbs steeply down, and then steeply back up the canyon, like all trails into the ampitheater at Bryce. This trail starts at Sunrise Point and junctions with another trail later on.

This is looking down on the trail from Sunrise Point.

The best time to hike this trail is in early morning when it is still cool. There isn’t much shade on the hike, and it can be pretty warm in southern Utah, even though the elevation of Bryce Canyon is rather high at over 8,000 feet. The trail begins at Sunrise Point and hikes down rapidly to the canyon floor. The path itself is wide and well-traveled. After reaching the bottom, it winds among the hoodoos and has one short branch to view Queen Victoria, which does look remarkably like the queen.

You walk right down into the hoodoos when you hike the Queen's Garden Trail. — You walk right down into the hoodoos when you hike the Queen’s Garden Trail.

There are little windows along the way so keep your eyes open.

We loved walking though all the archways.

This is the hike on the way back up. It's amazing to be down amongst the hoodoos. — This is the hike on the way back up. It’s amazing to be down amongst the hoodoos.

This is part of the Queen's Garden. — This is part of the Queen’s Garden.

Here's a picture of Queen Victoria, well a statue of her. Also, see that gold medallion in the bottom? That is part of the Hike the Hoodoos challenge which you can read about on our Bryce Canyon post. — Here’s a picture of a statue of Queen Victoria from an interpretive sign on the trail. Compare it to the picture below. Also, see that gold medallion in the bottom? That is part of the Hike the Hoodoos challenge which you can read about on our Bryce Canyon post.

The rock looks like Queen Victoria right? Just like her!! — The rock looks like Queen Victoria right?

The trail is fun because you walk through archways and walk down among the amazing Hoodoos that you were admiring from up above. The hike goes in and out of the shade, but it is definitely a steep, hot climb back up.

Here we are climbing back up from the Queen's Garden. It was definitely a slog! Our boys were dragging. — Here we are climbing back up from the Queen’s Garden. It was definitely a slog! Our boys were dragging.

The hike has the best views of Bryce Canyon!

The trail runs for just under 2 miles, and at the end you have to climb back up out of the canyon. There are 2 ways this can be done. You can use the Navajo Trail to climb back to the rim at Sunset Point. From there, you either have to use the short half mile walk along the Rim Trail back to your Sunrise Point where you parked your car, or you can have someone shuttle you and move the car from Sunrise to Sunset Point to pick you up.

If you’d like to try a “big hike” for your young family in Bryce, do this as a loop which includes the Rim Trail, Queen’s Garden, and Wall Street. It takes around two hours and gives you the best of Bryce in one loop.

After you walk through this archway, you'll walk over to the Queen's Garden. Then you can come back here and pick which trail to take back to the top. — After you walk through this archway, you’ll walk over to the Queen’s Garden. Then you can come back here and pick which trail to take back to the top.

There is a little trail over to the Queen's Garden. Then you'll come back and start climbing up to Sunrise Point. — There is a little trail over to the Queen’s Garden. Then you’ll come back and start climbing up to Sunrise Point.

This is the way we hiked this hike. Start at Sunset Point, hike down the Navajo Trail through Wall Street which is the right branch of the trail, and then connect on to Queen’s Garden Trail which climbs back out to Sunrise Point. We would have had to walk the Rim Trail back to Sunset Point, but Dad dropped us off at Sunset Point to start the hike, then he parked at Sunrise Point and walked quickly to catch up with us, so we could cut a little distance off of the hike for our 3 year-old!