Bryce Canyon Camping

[Sirshredalot]

Hey -

I'm hauling the young family down to Bryce Canyon NP for a couple days of day hiking and car camping over the upcoming long weekend.

Does anyone know what the scoop is with the NPS campgrounds? Am I going to be shit out of luck rolling up at 9 AM on Saturday and getting a tent site? If so, what should my backup plan be? We are car camping with a large-footprint tent. Proximity to the park is good, potable water on site is better, the opportunity for a hot shower is best. There are two children in diapers, so I'm just trying to mitigate the suck and enjoy some mellow day hikes, not maximize the gnar.

Thanks.

[Alpinord]

IIRC Rt 12 before and after the Bryce turn has several options. The western stretch was interesting and maybe Red Canyon would be worth stopping at first.

[Sirshredalot]

IIRC Rt 12 before and after the Bryce turn has several options. The western stretch was interesting and maybe Red Canyon would be worth stopping at first.

Thanks. Looks like USFS has options at Red Canyon, though also on a first-come basis

[hutash]

I haven't been there in years, but there are some good hiking options 9especially with rugrats) from the bottom up in Bryce Cyn. Nearly everybody hikes top down and it can be a shit show. Can't remember if there are campgrounds there, or just picnic areas.

[neckdeep]

There is a hosted NFS campground on the west side of Tropic Reservoir, about 10 miles from the entrance to Bryce. It's called Kings Creek; it has water and flush toilet bathrooms, maybe showers. Its been ages since I used it but I remember it was nicely shaded with plentiful firewood and there were jeep roads and single track trails leading out of it that led to some zones similar to what Bryce has. There are a couple canyons leading down to the reservoir that have small versions of Bryce's rock formations but a big difference is they aren't in a park so you are free to hike and bike around in them. Don't have to stick to a mandatory trail and definitely no tourists around over there.