If unbelievable was the word of the day for yesterday then words for today must include breathtaking, heart pounding, exhilarating, and awestruck.
Today is without a doubt my favorite day of the trip thus far. Every day on this adventure has been unbelievable, eye opening, and thought provoking but today was a whole new level.
We woke up around 5:50 on the side of the van and quickly packed up our sleeping bags, mats, and pillows. We drove further into the park and parked our car at the shuttle parking area that would take us to the trails and events of the day. Zion has a great shuttle system that eliminates traffic, congestion, and crowds of cars near the trails. We all fell back asleep in our car for another few hours and began the day around 9:00am. After packing our bags and making sure we had everything we would need for the day we caught a shuttle to “Temple of Siniwava.” Our first event of the day was a 2 mile hike to what was titled “The Gateway to the Narrows.” This was a nice little hike down to the Virgin River that flows through the heart of Zion National Park. Once we got to the water we started a 2 hour trek through the river into the “Narrows” which is an unbelievable site. The river sits in between towering canyons on both sides and eventually narrows to create some unbelievable sites. The canyons are so large that we felt like ants marching through the river. You can get a good idea of what the narrows are like from the picture below.
Zion Narrows
After conquering one of Zion’s must see’s and making our way back to the shuttle we prepared for the next event of the day- Angel’s Landing. We had to change out of our soaking wet clothes and get our hiking shoes on for what would prove to be one of the toughest hikes any of us have ever faced. Angel’s Landing is a 3.9 round trip hike straight up a canyon the size of pride rock with a heart pounding climax that I’ll get to in a few minutes. The beginning of the hike started well as we set out a good clip up the mountain. We were about 20 minutes into the hike when we all had severely burning calves and winded lungs. Slowly but surely we made it to what seemed to be the top of the canyon. Again, our assumptions proved to be wrong. Turns out that once you get to the top of the main hike, you have to free climb another half mile to the peak of the hike. While they did have posted warnings about the hike stating that people afraid of heights should not go and that anyone out of shape should stay behind, more accurate warnings would have read- “May cause death” or “Seriously dangerous.” The Rockies adventure that hit the top of my unsafe list just 2 days ago has now been easily passed by Angel’s Landing. As always these pictures do not quite grasp but the beauty or severity of what was taking place. This experience was the most exhilarating, most breathtaking, and most fearfilled experience I have ever ventured into in my short 22 year life. Every step I feared for my well being while at the same time having no desire to turn back and being absolutely overwhelmed with God’s beauty and wondrous creation. Again, we survived to tell the story and carry with us the joy of having a chance to witness such a spectacular view. If you look closely in the pictures above you can see us two idiots climbing the mountain.
It should also be noted that the hot pot was put to quick use. We made western style rice and some form of mystery pasta from a bag in the Zion family bathroom. It was a rather smooth process really other than some random lady walking in on JD and I boiling water in a bathroom. Most would think that would create some awkward moments...we just laughed at her. She on the other hand walked away a little upset but I think she will recover quickly.
We are now headed to the Grand Canyon for a fun-filled day of hiking tomorrow. We plan to hike to the bottom of the canyon and back up before setting up camp atop the gargantuous hole. As always, we appreciate your support and prayers as we continue our journey through America. God has truly blessed us and we are reminded daily of his wondrous creation and magnificent beauty. It is my prayer that we may all be mindful daily of how great God is and seek to honor him in everything we do.
Later Days,
Brett
I told you the hot pot would be a big hit.
ReplyDeleteYou know you have a lot of family reading this who are automatically post worrying... they didn't know they should have been worrying about it at the time but now they are worrying in advance for all the things that might happen