I grew up on the Big Island of Hawaii. It is two islands south of Oahu, which most people know as the home to Honolulu, famed Waikiki Beach and Pearl Harbor. The Big Island is not nearly as populated as Oahu, but it is still home to one of the most visited national parks in the country—Volcanoes National Park.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is about a 40-minute drive from my childhood home. It was nice having a resource like this in close proximity, but to be honest we didn’t visit that often. We’d go maybe a few times a year. Interestingly, I hear the same story from other people who grew up near national parks—-you just don’t visit as often as you could.
I met a guy in college who grew up in southwestern Utah not far from two major national parks—-Zion and Bryce Canyon. He mentioned how his family would rarely frequent the parks, though they have a number of pictures of the whole gang at Cedar Breaks National Monument, which is nestled between Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks.
If you visit you may have difficulty differentiating between Cedar Breaks and Bryce Canyon because they share similar landscapes. Their amphitheaters look the same, but Cedar Breaks is twice as deep and twice as steep so it reveals the colors of the rocks a lot better.
Those famous colors (the reds, oranges, and yellows) that are prominently featured in many families’ photos are a byproduct of iron oxide. The white in the rocks signifies limestone and the purple is actually manganese oxide.
Cedar Breaks is not only famous for the colors of its rocks, but for their formations as well. The rock formations in Cedar Breaks are called “hoodoos.” Roughly translated they are something that charms or enchants or casts a spell. And if you are fortunate to visit when the sunlight is reflecting off the rocks the view does create an enchanting sight.
In addition to the colorful rock formations, Cedar Breaks also offers visitors a chance to get up close and personal with unique wildlife and other natural wonders. For example, the park is home to bristle cone pines that are more than 1,650 years old. Animal lovers usually spend most of their time meandering through the park’s forests and meadows observing the wildlife that dart in and out of their natural habitats.
If you live in southwestern Utah or are just driving through consider taking a tour of Cedar Banks National Park… you may end up coming back more than the locals.
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