posts in category Southern Utah • show all posts
2.2.20
Zion Sunsets
One more month until I have him back in the same country again.
And just in time for those perfect spring days.
26.1.20
Angels Landing
Three out of four of us made it up to the top of that insane rock. I remember being much more nervous going up last time. Maybe it was the traffic, in most places only one-way traffic was possible. So there was a lot of waiting, and a lot of slower people going up. You would even pass a person or two having a panic attack squatting in a corner. I'm all for facing your fears but sitting on the edge of a cliff cradling your legs should maybe be avoided.
Anyway, we made it up! And next time, I would maybe choose the 4 AM option to avoid the crowds and catch the sunset. Regardless of the number of people, those views are worth it.
25.1.20
West Rim
Zion seems to never really work out how you planned, but that is how you end up trying something new. We were going to do the big hike to Observation Point, but a mudslide that season took out the whole first section. The switchbacks at the beginning were entirely washed away. I was hoping we would wake up the next day, and they would have cleared out the problem. Then I saw the problem... I hope they even manage to make a new trail after that slide (and just checked the website, closed indefinitely).
So we went for the West Rim, I had never been further up the trail than Angels Landing, and of course, all I can say is it was worth it! Ahhh, I hate doing something outside surrounded by a mass of people or hiking in a line. That was Angels Landing that day. Once we passed the main fork, all of a sudden, the crowds cleared. We were finally on our own in that crazy canyon. Just the way I like it. We found a spot for lunch a few kilometers up and then made our way back to brave the masses and go for Angels Landing.
21.1.20
A Quick Stopover
At first, it wasn't even on our list, but I think if you are already so close, you shouldn't miss it. It became our little detour between Moab and Zion. We had lunch in the shade above the amphitheater and then made our way down. I always like to take the longer hike. Zig-zag all the trails in the amphitheater and get away from the crowds. Sometimes it looks like the park is entirely overcrowded, but most people don't go down too far. Then they would have to walk out again, and who wants that...
___
As we were leaving Bryce that afternoon, there was a pretty horrific accident causing a total standstill of all the traffic trying to head south. They blocked our main route towards Zion for HOURS. We later found out it was a tour bus crash that killed 4 Chinese tourists and injured dozens of others.
Hearing something like that while you are on the same trip they are on puts everything back in perspective. You left your country to see something new in the world, you saved up money for months to make it happen, and then you never made it back home.
Just another one of those moments to remember not to take anything for granted. Life is weird, and be happy you get to live it and see these beautiful places.
5.1.20
A Delicate Arch Sunset
Chasing prime spots for perfect sunsets.
I want more of that in 2020.
Cheers to beers with good people in amazing places.
22.12.19
Off Roading
We decided to go on a new adventure and rent a UTV. It was loud, it was dirty, and it was just what we needed. Once we started trusting the machine, we even went for the Fins and Things trail in Moab. If someone would have told me at the beginning of that day, what paths we would be following, I would have said NO WAY IN HELL.
Happy I have someone by my side that is willing to push the limits, even when I'm not
14.12.19
Blue Skies and Red Rocks
Procrastinator extreme today. Thinking about warmer days, pretty apartments, and future kittens. Scatterbrained, and the last thing I want to do is try to analyze the significance of the statistics that I just received. I guess I brought this on myself.
Jumping back to pictures of those warmer days and blue skies.
Southern Utah was that perfect mix of it all yet again.
Observation Point
Saved the best for last.
Zion National Park, the final stop on the Southern Utah road trip.
One of my favorite things about this place comes at you when you drive into the east entrance. The view that hits you once you get out of that second tunnel in those late afternoon hours is something you just have to experience for yourself.
...
The goal was to head up to the top, Angels Landing was closed due to the flash flooding but thankfully there is another even higher point.
I love hiking, and an eight-mile hike through this landscape is exactly my thing.
We raced up there and had lunch on a ledge overlooking it all. I'm over here bouncing in my chair just thinking about it.
Utah summer daydreaming all over again.
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