Sandstone hoodoos, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, United States

© Stephen Matera/TANDEM Stills + Motio

Hoodoo you do?. Sandstone hoodoos, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, United States

A breathtaking maze of sandstone formations and awe-inspiring views awaits you at Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. People have lived in this area for at least 10,000 years, including the Anasazi, Pueblo and Paiute Peoples. The hoodoos—tall, thin spires of rock formed by erosion—in the park inspired Paiute mythology: they believed them to be the Legend People turned to stone by the trickster Coyote.

The first European Americans arrived in the area in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and some eventually settled there in the 1850s. Bryce Canyon was named after Ebenezer Bryce, who had a homestead nearby. On this date in 1928, it was declared a national park. These days, the park is famous for its hoodoos. Every year, over 2 million visitors come to marvel at these geological formations. In fact, Bryce Canyon National Park has the highest concentration of hoodoos anywhere on Earth.