Travel Log: Days 1, 2 & 3

Day 1: Our vacation started on Saturday, July 19. Our plan was to drive down the the Cedar City area and camp out for the night, but we didn't make it that far. We stopped at a motel in Salt Lake City.

Day 2: Sunday, July 20th. We drove down to Provo and walked around BYU campus. I would have liked to shop at the bookstore, but it was closed since it was Sunday. Not a big deal. I can shop on their website.We also drove around and showed the kids the Provo Temple, the MTC and Rock Canyon, where Nathan used to spend a great deal of time with his mountain bike. Even though it was Sunday, we had to buy food. I told Dylan to share his hash brown with Josie, and he gave her the whole thing. She devoured it, paper and all. Once she got it into her fat little hands, there was no taking it back. How can you say no to that happy little face?Then we drove south to Springdale, UT. It was evening, so instead of seeing any sights at Zion National Park, we went to the ghost town of Grafton and the Grafton Cemetery. (Grafton is where they filmed Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.) Several of the buildings have burned down since the filming, but the church/school and two homes remain. This is our family on the steps of the church.And here we are inside an old log cabin.

That night we met up with Janae & David (my sister married to Nathan's brother) and my mom and her husband, John.

Day 3: Monday, July 21. Zion National Park. To do the park justice, you should really spend more than a single day, but we were travelling with small children who weren't up for heavy hiking. We definitely want to go back when everyone is older so we can do more challenging trails. Here are the double cousins and Grandpa John getting ready to set out for the park.Our first stop was the hike to the Emerald Pools. There are three. This is Dylan at the lowest pool. Around the corner, the trail climbs up to the top of the cliff over his head. My gorgeous husband with gorgeous mountains in the background.Our family stops for a break on the Emerald Pool trail.
Second hike was to Weeping Rock. Water seeps through the sandstone all year long and creates hanging gardens. You can't tell in the picture, but water was dripping down on Nathan and Josie's heads. It was so hot, no one minded a little rain.All of us at Weeping Rock.One tired little hiker, and the day is only half over. We ate lunch at the Zion Park Lodge snack bar, which was very expensive. (Next time, remind me to pack sandwiches.) Then we were off again. The last stop for the day was the Temple of Simiamu, where the Narrows are located. It is about a half mile hike to where the trail dead ends at the river. This is the start of the narrows. John has hiked the Narrows several times before and said the water is usually clear. We had heavy rain the night before and the higher Narrows were closed due to flash flood warnings. As it was, the river ran red with mud, but Nathan, Janae, David and John were undaunted. They took the older kids up the muddy river to the Narrows, while my mom and I stayed back with the younger girls who didn't (or couldn't) make the hike. Spanning the canyon. From left to right: Dylan, Ethan, Nathan, Janae, David, John, Emily & Jessica. Rachael must have taken the picture.By then it was late afternoon. The kids were hot and tired and wanted to relax. So, they cooled off in the motel pool with a slide.

While the kids swam, Nathan and David hiked Angel's Landing. This is Nathan at the top. The trail ascends 1,500 feet over a distance of 2.5 miles to the slickrock summit, which is ringed on three sides by the Virgin River far below. (That description is from an informational blurb about the park.)
The ridge below, where Nathan is pointing, is the trail that leads to the summit. In places it is a 1200 foot drop on one side and a 800 foot drop on the other. There is only a chain for you to hold as you walk across the ridge. By nightfall we were exhausted, but that didn't stop me from hitting the awesome little shops in Springdale, which were all open until ten. We bought the boys shirts that were dyed in the red dirt. Nathan's says, "I survived Angel's Landing." After seeing the photos I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have made it up there. I bought a cool Zion shirt and saw a Life is Good sweatshirt that I absolutely loved, but they didn't have my size. We got hand dipped truffles, sea foam and chocolate dipped macadamia nuts from the candy store. Yum. It was very late by the time we got to bed, and the next day we were heading out early.