Road Log Geology

Road Log Geology of Bryce Canyon-Zion National Parks culminates the Escalante National Monument region of Utah with Bryce Canyon National Park positioned at the northeastern edge of the monument and Zion National Park positioned at the southwestern edge. Many of the same formations are exposed in both parks with the youngest formations covering Bryce Canyon National Park.

Bryce Canyon National Park is dominated by the Early Cenozoic Claron Formation hoodoo structures, pillars remaining from the erosion of plateaus into narrow fins which become windows (or arches) resulting in hoodoo pillars. Zion National Park offers an older formation sequence tied to the Grand Canyon and Grand Staircase portion of Escalante. Permian Kaibab Limestone serves as basement rock for Zion with mostly Triassic and Jurassic rocks overlying Kaibab formation rocks.

Chapter 1 begins with a discussion of the Bryce Canyon area geology. Chapter 2 continues with the geology of the national park. Chapter 3 provides a road log for Bryce Canyon dividing logs into north, central, and south sections of UT 63 through the park. Chapter 4 discusses the geology of the Zion Canyon area. Chapter 5 through Chapter 8 continues the Zion National Park discussion with the road logs of Kolob Canyons, the central Kolob Terrace Road, and the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive. Chapter 9 presents a hypothetical model of how the park formed using tectonic theory, erosion, and regional forces impacting the park throughout geologic time. A model was developed for estimating back thrusting rotational pulsing in the park.