Old Man Tree
Mile 2,039, Bryce Canyon National Park, UT
Near Yovimpa Point is a trail named after one of the oldest living things on Earth: The Bristlecone. They look dead, but they’re quite alive—and in some cases in Bryce, have been for over 1,600 years. (The oldest such tree is said to have lived for nearly 5,000 years.) Bristlecones aren’t restricted to Bryce, as we recall from 1997 when Michelle and I saw a number of them at Great Basin National Park in eastern Nevada, 120 miles away.