Welcome to the Park of the Week Newsletter for December 28, 2023. This week’s park is perched at over 10,000 feet.
Cedar Breaks National Monument
Location
Southern Utah, United States
Claim to fame
Cedar Breaks National Monument perches at over 10,000 ft (3,000 m) over a geologic amphitheater a half-mile deep. The park features the red rocks, hoodoos, and other geologic wonders similar to nearby Bryce Canyon. The summer wildflowers are a big draw here, as some species like the Panguitch Buckwheat, are only found in this part of Utah.
Although not one of the “Mighty Five”–the five biggest attractions of southern Utah’s national park sites–Cedar Breaks National Monument attracts several hundred thousand visitors a year. Even with all those guests, it’s still smaller, quieter, and less crowded than Zion or Bryce in summer, making it the perfect place to get away from the crowds and take a quiet stroll.
Reason to visit
The drives to Cedar Breaks–from Cedar City to the west or Bryce Canyon to the east–are scenic and offer several overlooks of nearby parks and lakes. Cedar Breaks itself has spectacular views, including via a hiking trail along the amphitheater rim and a scenic drive, which in summer weaves visitors through meadows packed with subalpine wildflowers. In winter, the park is cloaked in snow and most park facilities and roads are closed, although rangers still offer snowshoe hikes and dark sky tours.
Winter weather at such high elevations can be harsh, and the park can receive snow even in the summer months. If you’re looking to get away from the brutal summer heat of nearby lower-elevation parks, this is the place to visit. Temperatures here average 10 to 20 degrees cooler than in other southern Utah parks.
Wild Fact
Cedar Breaks is home to the Great Basin Bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva), a tree that can live for thousands of years. These rare pines grow weathered and warped at high altitudes, where harsh conditions mean they have little competition from other plants.
The oldest Bristlecone pines at Cedar Breaks are over a thousand years old. These ancient trees are only found in Utah, Nevada, and California. The oldest living Bristlecone pine is Methuselah in the Inyo National Forest in California, estimated to be around 4,855 years old.
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