Look up when hiking Zion, down when hiking Bryce

The footfalls of hikers making their way through Zion and Bryce Canyon national parks are as different as the trails they take. Some are silent; some echo. Some squish through calf-deep water. Others are dusty and tired.

But each park has dozens of trails to try, from easy, short hauls and relatively flat, mile-long loops, to hikes that go on for miles and hours, with elevation verticals approaching 2,200 feet.

Both parks were formed millions of years ago when the Earth’s crust violently heaved, leaving behind stunning, unique arrays of rock formations. But the resulting landscapes are very different. In Zion, massive sandstone slabs shoot skyward from the ground, thousands of feet in the air. In Bryce, the limestone has eroded over eons, leaving magical sculptures behind in reds, orange, brown, and pink.

As a veteran hiker with dust-caked boots and a deep tan told me: “You have to look straight up at Zion, and straight down at Bryce Canyon.”

If you only have time for the highlights, each park has a marquee trail: Riverside Walk to The Narrows in Zion, and the Figure 8 Loop at Bryce.

A guided tour of Riverside Walk with a National Park Service ranger begins at a shuttle bus drop-off point at a formation called the Temple of Sinawava. The ranger explains Zion’s unique ecosystem and the role water played in forming the landscape as the tour meanders a mile to the Virgin River.

Here most tourists dip toes in the icy water and turn back. Those who continue must wade for several hours, stepping on slippery, perfectly round rocks in the riverbed that are impossible to see. Serious hikers bring Neoprene booties, hiking poles and waterproof gear for their belongings. (You can rent gear at Zion Adventure Company in Springdale, Utah, just outside the south park entrance.)

After a few hundred yards slogging through the water, the depth inches up to mid-calf and even hip-deep, and the pretenders are left behind.

Few hikers make the full two-hour trip to a point in the river called Wall Street, but that’s where you see how The Narrows got its name. The riverbed starts out 40 yards wide between steep 1,500- to 2,500-foot cliffs, but here it narrows to a claustrophobic 25 feet.

For even more adventurous treks, there are two choices. The complete Narrows Bottom-Up hike takes four to 10 hours, depending on your speed and how long you stop for pictures, with turnaround points at Big Springs or Veiled Falls to return you to the Riverside Walk starting point. The other option is The Narrows Thru hike, a one-way 10- to 12-hour hike, which can mean overnight camping, requiring a National Park permit. It starts at Chamberlain’s Ranch and finishes at the Temple of Sinawava.

Other hikes worth considering at Zion include Emerald Pools, a three-mile, two-hour round-trip to three sets of pools; a strenuous eight-mile, six-hour round-trip hike called Observation Point with a summit overlook; and the park’s most popular backpacking route, West Rim Trail, which includes Angels Landing, Walters Wiggles, and Scout Lookout. From the West Rim, it’s 14.4 miles one-way; from Telephone Canyon, 13 miles one-way. Shuttle service is available. The 3,302-foot elevation loss makes this the most dramatic trek in either park; it takes six to nine hours.

You can only drive in Zion if you’re staying at the park lodge, but the free shuttle bus service is convenient. Bryce Canyon, 85 miles away, is more driver-friendly, with parking areas at various overlooks (though they can fill up at midday).

For early risers at Bryce, rewards include not only empty parking lots and trails, but also the morning light, great for photographs as the sunrise brings the canyon to life, illuminating the brilliant red and orange hues of the hoodoo towers. You can experience this magical daily rebirth from several spots along the canyon’s top rim.