Bryce Canyon, a forest of petrified totems

Imagine you walking through the ruins of a colossal amphitheater carved into the rock, surrounded by columns of warm colors pointing to the sky up to 200 feet (60 meters). Bryce Canyon is one of the most awe-inspiring natural landscapes in the United States, located in Utah, not far from the famous Grand Canyon.

The native Americans believed that these gigantic obelisks known as hoodoos, were a legendary people petrified as punishment or as a result of an evil spell.

But in AoW we have the recipe to cast the spell to create hoodoos.

Ingredients: Sediments eroded from mountains, water, wind and time. A lot of time.
Instructions: Deposit some sediments at the bottom of a lake. Let the dough stand and turn into stone for some centuries.
Remove the water and leave it in the open.
Let the rain water turn to ice and polish your rocks into rough but chic pillars, by breaking the stone (when the water becomes ice it expands to 110% its original volume). The rain will help you as well later on, removing the debris, revealing bit by bit your hoodoos.
Leave it to simmer this way for another zillions of years. Dress it up with some wind and you are set!

Overview of the army of hoodoos. At your left hand side, Thor's Hammer.
Image by Pet R

The main feature of a hoodoo, compared to any other natural pillar, is that the top is thicker and harder to erode, protecting the whole column for longer. Image by Werkmens

This image looks like a castle with its walls, turrets and a temple at the top. It seems as if the totems of American Indians have found their inspiration here.
Image by Werkmens

Compare the massive size of this landscape with the tiny hikers walking on the path.
Image by Tony Cyphert

Unhurried, new pinnacles are emerging from the hillside, but as new fairy chimneys are springing up, the oldest disintegrate into sand. Image by Werkmens

Now we add an extra color: deep white for the snowed version.
Image by Rob Lee

Where was filmed Empire Of The Sun Alive

By the way, the Empire Of The Sun video for the song Alive was filmed here.
Image by Dchousegrooves

According to the Scottish immigrant Ebenezer Bryce who first settled here, he described the canyon as a "helluva place to lose a cow". Image by Dchousegrooves

There are many chances to take nice pics.
Image by Andrew Mace

Image by Benjamin Dumas

These windows are the previous stage on the process of making the hoodoos of tomorrow.
Image by Popartichoke

It's much bigger than it appears. Look at the tree at the right hand side.
Image by Andrew Mace

Despite its name, Bryce Canyon is not a canyon but a series of giant natural amphitheaters.
It's as if the Romans had built here one of its most imposing arenas, which is now in ruins. Image by Tony Cyphert