Tower Bridge and Fairyland Loop Trailheads

The Tower Bridge Trail descends along Boat Mesa and passes by groves of bristlecone pines.

NPS Photo / Peter Densmore

Quick Facts

Location:

1/4 mile (.4 km) north of Sunrise Point along the Rim Trail

Significance:

Provides access to the Tower Bridge Trail and Fairyland Loop

Designation:

Added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Bryce Canyon National Park Scenic Trails Historic District in 1995

Amenities

1 listed

Trailhead

Tower Bridge Trail

Difficulty: Moderate
Total Distance: 3.0 miles (4.8 km)
Elevation change: 802 feet (245 m)
Average time: 2-3 hours
Similar in difficulty to the Queen's / Navajo Combination loop, but far less travelled, the Tower Bridge trail provides excellent views of Boat Mesa, Sinking Ship, and other distant features within and outside the Bryce Amphitheater area of the park. The trail begins 0.25 miles (0.4 km) north of Sunrise Point along the Rim Trail and is part of the larger 8 mile (12.9 km) Fairyland Loop. It descends steadily 1.5 miles (2.4 miles) into Campbell Canyon, reaching a 200 yard spur trail that leads to the Tower Bridge hoodoo. Hikers should then turn around and ascend back to the rim to complete the hike. Those looking for a strenuous hike can continue on along the Fairyland Loop.
More about the trail

Fairyland Loop Trail

Difficulty: Strenuous
Total Distance: 8.0 miles (12.9 km)
Elevation change: 1,716 feet (523 m)
Average time: 4-5 hours
Along the the Peekaboo Loop, the Fairyland Loop provides some of the best strenuous hiking in the park. It can be begun from either the Tower Bridge Trailhead or further notice at Fairyland Point (not accessible by vehicle in winter months). Spending 2.5 miles (4 km) along quiet ponderosa forests on the Rim Trail and the rest below surrounded by hoodoos within Fairyland and Campbell Canyons, it provides an excellent experience of the diversity above and below the rim. The trail can be hiked either clockwise or counter-clockwise, though many prefer the latter for the opportunity to descend rather than climb the Tower Bridge Trail section.
Generally the trail traces a large circle centered on Boat Mesa, the large flat-topped feature capped with the Conglomerate at Boat Mesa. This rock layer is one of the park's youngest, from a time after the freshwater lakes that would deposit the vibrant Claron Formation that forms the park's hoodoos had drained away, leaving large braided rivers that drained mountains to the north. 
More about the trail

Nature

Bristlecone Pines

Though Bryce Canyon is well known for its geology, the park also contains a fantastic diversity of trees. Among the most impressive of these is the Great Basin bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva). These trees are known for thriving where few other plants can, and for far longer too. Look for bristlecone pines on exposures of dolomitic limestone. These areas of white to grey stone are found in the park's hoodoo-forming Claron formation as low as the Queen's Garden and Fairyland Loop trails. Dolomitic limestone is high in calcium and magnesium, and low in phosphorus. This chemistry is difficult for other plants to tolerate, giving the bristlecone pine plenty of room to grow as slowly as it likes. You'll also typically find higher-elevation bristlecones growing at the edges of cliffs, where competition is even further reduced. Free to take its time, bristlecones pines can grow as slowly as an inch (2.5 cm) per century if conditions are challenging. This gives these trees incredibly dense heartwood, which is capable of providing structural support to the tree long after a section of limb or trunk has lost its life-protecting bark. The oldest tree at Bryce Canyon was estimated to be 1,600 years old, though trees across its range into Nevada and California have been dated at over 5,000 years old, giving Pinus longaeva the honor of being the longest living non-clonal species on Earth.
You can identify a Bristlecone pine by its densely bundled needles of five (making it a white pine). Unlike many other pines that shed their needles every few years, bristlecone pines can retain needles for up to forty years. Their 1.5 in (1.2 cm) long needles remain vibrant and green for typically a full 12 inches (30 cm) along the branch. This appearance is often compared to that of a bottlebrush or pipe cleaner.
Like the limber pine (another white pine found at Bryce Canyon) seeds of the bristlecone pine may be harvested and dispersed to unlikely places by Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana). The seeds of their bristle-tipped cones are often among the first to colonize recently burnt areas.
Note that bristlecone pines share dolomitic limestones with some of the park's most delicate plants. Stay on the trail and help us to protect them.

I Hiked the Hoodoos

Hiking is great exercise and Bryce Canyon's "I Hiked the Hoodoos!" program is not just hiking, it's also a scavenger hunt with a special reward!

1. Hike a minimum of 3 mi / 4.8 km, or find at least 3 benchmarks and complete steps 2 through 4 below.

2. Each individual must have either a pencil rubbing of the benchmark (see Jr. Ranger Book) or a"selfie"with the benchmark.

3. Only special "I Hiked the Hoodoos" benchmarks qualify for the reward.

4. Rewards are available at the Visitor Center!

See your park newspaper or Junior Ranger book for more information. Benchmarks are located on Mossy Cave, Rim Trail, Tower Bridge, Queen's Garden, Navajo Loop, Peekaboo Loop, Sheep Creek, and the Bristlecone Loop trails.