sanctuary

last week kyle and i went to zion's. to camp, to hike, to connect with nature, to get a tan, some exercise, see the sights before we move, and to realize how much we'll miss when we leave utah.

zion's was great. we learned from the very informative bus speakers that zion (in some language that i can't remember) means sanctuary, and that's how the park got its name. we also learned that isaac behunin, one of the first mormon (and white) settlers of zion's is our bishop's (wendell behunin) great great grandfather. so that was pretty neat.

we also that learned that it gets very very hot there. 107 during the day was our average temperature that week. combined with the high altitude and burning sun, we got heat sick every day we were there. no matter how much water we tried to drink, or how much shade we tried to seek. we also both got sick to our stomachs at one point, i got car sick from the twisty roads in zions, i got badly sunburned on my back, and we both got pretty sore from hiking. so it was a little rough, but overall it was a good trip!

we camped at zion's ponderosa ranch, it was nice because there was a pool, restaurant, and real bathrooms that we could use. it was not so nice sharing the camp with 2 boys camps, one youth conference, and 2 girls camps who kept us up at night with their songs about sipping cider with cute boys.

our first hike was observation point. the views were awesome, and the hike was so fun! but the 8 miles, much of it steep steep steep! completely destroyed my out-of-shape legs. after recovering at the pool the next day, the third day we hiked the narrows. i'd hiked it before when i was 11, and it was just as fun as i remembered!

oh also we bought a new camera, so we have pictures! lots of pictures!

hike to emerald pools

our campsite

camper kyle

the view from observation point

our pano shot

the steep steep trail, that turned my legs to jello

we had fun playing with some of the features on our new camera

it was just such a cool trail through the canyons

relaxing at the pool

the narrows!

that cold water felt so good...

this is actually the boulder i jumped off of into the water when i was eleven and hit an underwater  rock, which is how i got the scars on my shins. while taking this picture several hikers told me to jump into the water, uh yah no thanks guys!

awwwww