Take a short one mile journey with me.
Your boots move and kick up light dust from the simplistic packed dirt path under foot. The trail moves with subtle rises and dips providing minimal elevation gain. Warm air encompasses your skin from the shining sun overhead. Your surroundings from the trail provide vibrant shades of red and orange that make up the famous Bryce Canyon hoodoo formations. Lush greenery of pinyon pines, juniper, manzanita, gambel oak, and the occasional cactus and yucca provide dramatic contrast against the red stones and dirt of the dessert landscape.
Now add in the fact that the trail runs above a flowing stream and passes over bridges that cross over the water and provide views that overlook a small waterfall about 15 feet high upstream.
This is the magic that is found at Mossy Cave Trail.
Once crossing the stream the trail provides two short options. Veering to the left leads up a minimal climb to the trail’s namesake; Mossy Cave, while the path to the right takes you to overlook the waterfall and along the banks of the stream.
Formed from the constant dripping of underground springs, Mossy Cave is not so much a cave as it is a small, cool shaded grotto but it’s still a beautiful sight. This grotto is formed by water slowly dissolving the calcite that bonds the silts and muds of the Claron Formation. During the warmer spring and summer seasons this grotto creates a cool and moist environment thus becoming the perfect climate for vibrant mosses to grow along the stone surfaces. In the winter, water continues to seep through the rock and forms icicles that have been known to last as late as June.
The stream itself was artificially created by pioneers during the late 19th century who were in need of a source of water in the semi-arid valley. The waterway that forms is known as the Tropic Ditch, and like most man-made contributions it changed the geology of the area over time. As opposed to Bryce Canyon’s formations, the Tropic Ditch eroded the landscape and created the canyon and continues to reshape the geology of the lower canyon today. This waterway has flowed continuously for over a century, (with the exception of the severe drought in 2002) and still impacts the lives of those living in and around the town of Tropic.
When preparing for this trip I knew Mossy Cave was one stop I wanted to make. Photos hinted that the stream and waterfall was a selling point for this trail but as a dessert dweller I’m use to the promise of water typically meaning that its presence is very conditional depending on the time of year. Thus, with it being mid-June, I didn’t anticipate that we would actually have to opportunity to see the oasis in its full glory and was pleasantly surprised when it was in fact as beautiful as the photos promised.
Here’s to experiencing another hidden gem found within a National Park and unforgettable views.
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