High Plateaus Institute

The High Plateaus Institute is a compact historic log-and-stone building near Sunrise Point, just south of the General Store. Built as Bryce Canyon’s first administrative center, it’s a worthwhile short stop if you like seeing how the park’s early buildings were made. Plan on an exterior look: routine public hours and interior access aren’t documented.

The nearby General Store is a separate facility with grab-and-go pizza, soup, sandwiches and ice cream, plus restrooms. These aren’t Institute amenities, but they make the area an easy place to pause.

The distinctive “chopper-cut” ends taper into points on two or more sides, and the log lengths are staggered along the walls. The building sits on a stone foundation. A corner view shows the log work better than a flat view of the wall.

The building was constructed in 1932 during Bryce Canyon’s 1929–1932 Rapid Construction Phase. In 1934, an additional room was set perpendicular to the original structure to separate office work from the park museum.

Park staff began moving to the new center, at today’s Visitor Center site, on June 1, 1959. The old building was restored in 1978 and partly rehabilitated in 1992 before its 1995 National Register listing.