Moab, How I Love Thee

Moab

Moab is like the back yard playground of Utah, but oddly enough many native Utahans have never been. I confess until about 3-4 years ago I had no idea what Moab was besides where that rock formation on our lovely Utah licenses plate is located. Boy did I feel ridiculous when I realized there is a whole park dedicated to that arch and thousands more like it.

Actually looking through my scrapbook that my overly talented and hobby junkie mother made me (I place all of my hobby jumping tendencies on her), I found out I had gone to Moab when I was 2 years old. To bad I wasn't old enough to remember it, so many years wasted not enjoying the rocky vacations that are found in Moab. *sigh*

That's little 2 year old me climbing up to my brother Dan.

 

Well it's labor day weekend, a 4 day weekend, which of course means VACATION! Lucky for me my friend Chops (Jason Robertson) had set up a Facebook event for Moab.

"Oh heck yes, you know I'm  joining that group."

Chops has been on almost every trip I've ever taken to Moab, minus 2 out of the 15+ times, so he's always a safe bet to go with. Back in the day when the 30th ward group still hung out (before marriages, missions, job offers, etc) it was all about jeeping. Of course we'd do other things like the small hike up to the cliff diving hole, and rent life jackets to float down the river on cheap water tubes, but sadly like every other group of friends, we all went our separate ways. With the group break up came the need to find new things to do in Moab. 

Enter Hiking (and other activities if friends with toys come along) 

The real treat this trip was that Dallas Erekson joined us. That boy has always been invited but never made the trip, finally he decided to take the journey down to play.

About time Dal!

We had a total of 19 people with us at Moab, but we all split up to do our separate things. Chops and I  joined Dallas for a scenic driving tour of the arches. We followed the instructions from his national park app. (located under the arches, things to do.) We stopped at the visiting center to use the restrooms, because come on that's just good planning. It was there that Dallas talked us into staying for the 15 minute movie documentary.  In case you haven't seen this discovery channel special, spare yourself!  I'll sum it up for you here. 

Water is amazing it created the canyon, destroyed it, and now is rare to find there.

 Also, did you know that the canyon is constantly changing? Some arches have already fallen; The only redeeming quality of the film was the clip of the landscape arch from 1991, when the a part of the arch fell. There was a small history about Butch Cassidy and the wild bunch and how they would run to these canyons to prevent being captured.

Handsome crew yes? :/

Moral of the story is go see it now before it's to late (the canyons, not the film). 

The end.

Save yourself 15 minutes of your life and pass on the visitor center movie. 

Here is a short clip of the arch falling. Thanks Dallas for finding that for me.

http://youtu.be/4iSWGd3w1nw?t=1m53s

The Scenic Drive (including mini hikes):

Our group for the day
(Chops, me, Dallas)

Gossips and me

1.  Park Avenue- It's about a 1 mile hike that takes you out to see the 3 gossips. It is a very short and easy, which makes it achievable for everyone and allows for good conversation. There are some cool things to see along the hike on the way to the Gossips, and you can have some random experiences. For example, we heard some kids who were singing in tribal chants... it was interesting but humorous. The Gossips are easily visible from the road, but you won't get the boulders and fun picture advantages like you do from the hike. I only have one photo with my phone, but chops got a lot more with his fancy camera.  This is the only hike of the 5 that wasn't busy at all! We only saw maybe 2 other groups out there with us.

2. Balanced Rock- Suppose to be a .4 mile hike around the loop that surrounds the rock. I feel hike is a strong word, it's more like a nature walk, but sure we can go with hike. Again the Rock is completely visible from the road but it's kind a cool to get up close to it and take some pictures. Chops, Dal and I were personally placing some bets on which way the arch would fall if an earth quake hit, or when it decides to crumble because of that evil water we learned about in the visiting center. If anyone is truly planning on placing bets on such an event I would HIGHLY recommend getting out and walking around the loop. It's very deceiving to look at from the road.

Our name: "Saggy Ass Crack Rock"

On a side note there is another rock formation right next to the balanced rock. We learned in the visiting center that most formations got there names with a "call it as you see it" method. So we came up with our own name for this beauty, what would you call it?   

Where is the
tree of the
forbidden fruit?
-Chops

3. Garden of Eden- Pretty much a Desert Playground. Lots of rocks to climb on, and places to explore, there wasn't only one single trail to follow, there were paths all over the place. There was one very popular path that leads to a small climb and at the top there are some fun places to take photos. It got extremely windy while we were here though. :s I don't have a lot to say about this stop, it's chill that's all.

holy cow it's windy

Dallas in a mini window

Probably the most popular
arch of the day

4. Double Arch- AWESOME! this is the longest of the "hikes" it's about 1/2 miles from the parking lot (according to the guide), and it is 100% worth the walk out to the arch. There is a ton of area to climb around and relax or lay down in the shade. The arch is so cool, pictures can't really give the arch the justice I think it deserves but I did my best. The walk out to the arch is pretty cool as well. There are A LOT of mini arches being formed in the framing walls, kinda fun to look at and gave the walk a bit of excitement.

OOO, I wanna climb up there!!

So I did.

5. Windows- I'll be honest, by this point we were pretty tired, hot, and feeling done with the arches. However, we decided to go see the arches anyways. I mean why not? We are already there, might as well finish it out. It was a short easy trail like the rest and the arches were cool, but as the wise old saying goes "If you've seen one, you've seen them all." Dallas actually said that during the hike, and we all felt the same way. Fun day, but it was time to be done!

North

South

Turret

Location: Arches National Park

Company: Dallas Erekson, Jason Robertson

Difficulty: Easy

Music: My Ipod was dead, so Dallas and I sang some lovable tunes from such movies as Grease 2, Pete's dragon, Singing in the Rain, and others (Chops probably loved every minute of it)

Date: Sept 1, 2012

Time: about 5 hours; including driving, photos, relaxing etc. 

Snacks: Honey Roasted Soy nuts and craisins

Put the Hike on hold; We be climbing

Planned on going on a hike today but Sierra invited me to join her and Kara for rock climbing instead. Hey, why not? My shoes and harness have been picking up dust in the corner of my room while they wait patiently for me to decide to pick up that hobby again.

I'm a spider! or felt like one at least

 I picked up climbing last winter in my efforts to stay out of the snow but still stay active. It became an obsession really, so I did the normal thing you do when you pick up a new hobby... Buy the gear! I only got shoes and a harness because it was all I needed for the indoor gym.

Then summer hit and I was outdoors again. SUN GLORIOUS SUN! Summer is so wonderful, it's got the long days, boating, road trips, and the many hobbies that are so easily picked up, and cheap.

Out door climbing was brand new to me this summer, but I was lucky enough to have Sierra West as a roommate who just so happens to love it. She also introduced me to some friends of hers who climb as well. Gotta say I feel kinda silly when I go out adventuring with them. Everyone is so advanced and experienced I feel like such an outcast. So while everyone else finds the best climbs to do and sets the gear up I just sit around awkwardly...

"oh Hey there; Yeah it's obvious I have no clue what I'm doing, it's cool....I'll just be sitting over here if you need me."

Well it's a great thing that these girls know what they are doing, because they decided we were going to start with a repel. Well that's something new for me. I had gotten somewhat use to the outdoor climbing on the mountain thing, but having to climb over the edge of a cliff is completely freaky! I was a totally baby about, and honestly there are usually enough people on these trips that I can weasel my way out of it.  I've been very successful at avoiding repels, until now.

I only had my right hand glove
it's a good look

Well it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, its just the initial climbing over that gets me spooked but after that it felt just like coming down from a climb, only I have control over the rope rather then my belayer. Now that my first repel is over I won't be so scared for the next time. (I hope, being a wuss was slightly embarrassing)

It was a pretty popular spot of climbing, but since we weren't getting there until the evening most people were packing up and getting ready to head home. We were all able to repel, and Sierra and I were able to get our climbs in before the sun went down. Again, its good these two girls come prepared; Kara was able to do the final climb in the sunset/dark with the help of her nifty head lamp. And there's me thinking to myself, "oh, flash light, yeah... that would be helpful to bring with me for when it's dark".

Sierra and Kara are so hard core
Climbing in the dark :)

The climb wasn't to difficult but gave me a bit of a challenge when I reached the over hang; I felt more accomplished finishing the climb because of that obstacle. Also the rock is deceiving, it looks like there are so many hand grips to choose from but a lot of them are really slick which eliminates some of the options. I'd recommend it for people who are just starting to get into the outdoors climbing. It is fun, not to easy, but still achievable. Just be sure to go with at least one person who is experienced for safety.

Location: DogWood Crag- Big Cottonwood Heights
Directions (Via rockclimbing.com) From parking lot, 1.11 mi up Big Cottonwood, go to east end of the lot follow the trail down towards the creek; stay to the left. The routes will be on your right side, and there's a walk-around up behind the wall, just follow the original trail to the right instead of the left.
We parked on the side of the road and followed the path down to the river. The water wasn't real high so we were able to hop rocks to get over.
More info about this site:
 http://www.rockclimbing.com/routes/North_America/United_States/Utah/Salt_Lake_-_Utah_Counties/Big_Cottonwood_Canyon/Dogwood_Crag/

Date: Sept 4, 2012

Company: Sierra West and Kara Downs

Snacks: Cheddar bunnies, provided by Sierra.

La-de-da
Sierra off in her own little world

We left while is was dark
The river was tricky crossing

Friends with fun hobbies are just providers to my hobby hopping addiction..... 

but hey I ain't complaining.

Dog Lake

Destination: Dog Lake; start from Mill Creek Canyon (where I started) or Big Cottonwood Canyon

Directions: From the Mill Creek fee station, it is 8.5 miles to the end of the road. Look for the Big Water Trail to start your hike. 

Difficulty: Easy/Moderate; could be a fun family hike

Company: Norman Bryner

Music: Enya

Date: August 28th, 2012

Length: About 6 miles round trip 

Snacks: Oreo Flavored Pop tarts, and My Little Pony Fruit Snacks (I was out of cliff bars)

Final destination

Kinda funny story about Dog Creek; I was buying a Utah hikes book from Barnes and Nobles and the cashier had this conversation with me.
               Cashier: "So you're into Hiking huh?"
               Me: "Yeah I've picked it up recently."
               Cashier: "Well if this book says anything about Dog Creek, forget it. It's a real Dog."
               Me: *awkward, what I hope looked like a smile* "oh, well thanks."

Not sure what exactly he was trying to say about the Hike, but if he was bashing on it I'd have to say I totally disagree. I loved this hike, the people there were awesome, it was beautiful at the top (hence the picture which was taken with my phone and wasn't enhanced at all), and it wasn't to difficult.


August 28th was the first day of school for fall semester; My last semester till graduation! Yes, yes, thank you all for the enthusiastic cheers, I am excited too. Well I was a little high strung and needed a break from all responsibility and pressure that school tends to bring on. So the obvious choice for time to commune with nature- HIKE;  I as really lucky that Norm was up for a hike and he just happened to not have plans so I had some great company.

The only way he'd smile is if he got to do something goofy.
*rolls eyes* :)

The drive up to the mill creek trail head was about 9 or so miles up which just so happens to be the very end of the road so easily found. It's a very pretty drive, only bummer is that it has a $3 fee to get into this canyon. LAME, I don't like the idea of having to pay to get to enjoy nature but whatever.

I didn't see many other hikers on the trail but we happened to be going on a Mountain bike day. So we had LOTS of mountain bikers up there with us. They were all very friendly, Norm and I just had to be on alert when we heard bikes coming so we could hop out of the way. I'm not big on the idea of being involved in a bike accident. I've heard bikers complain about hikers and hikers complain about bikers, but I do both so to me it just makes sense to be friendly and follow etiquette. That way we can all enjoy the great outdoors without the animosity towards others right? Here is a link to some hiking etiquette

http://www.dailyhiker.com/news/hiking-and-trail-etiquette/


So my company for this trip was Norm, who is AWESOME! He's actually a road biker and a REALLY good one. You could google Norman Bryner Cycling and the first site will bring up all his status with racing; Very impressive stuff. Well Norm is around bikes so much that he actually is a bike mechanic as well (has worked in bike shops for years). This became useful on our way back down the trail when a group of bikers were stopped due to one guys gears not shifting like they should. So being the nice guy Norm is he stopped to help, I don't know many people who would be carrying around tools to fix bikes but with Norm I wasn't surprised. If you are going to mountain bike on this trail, or any trail for that matter, always take a spare tire! While helping the first guy fix his bike another biker was walking his bike down due to a flat. Norm had a spare tire in his bag (surprise again) but it wasn't the right size for his tire. To bad, that's a long walk back down. The man made a comment about having a bike shop somewhere along the trail. Interesting I thought, why not just carry a spare? Silly man.

The boys obsessed.
NORMAN, THAT'S A TREE NOT A BIKE!

I chose to listen to Enya for this trail, real unique isn't it? I had good reason to make this choice though, I really needed to relax and calm down after the day I had. School didn't end well at all (lines, fees, parking, all that jazz) Driving home in rush hour traffic, and not having ate food.. I think we can see where this is heading. So yes I went with the nature inspired music of Enya. Something I didn't expect was how much it reminded me of my trip to Italy.

On my study abroad trip to Italy I would listen to Enya on the train rides, which we took a lot. It was so easy to day dream and kinda get lost in my own mind.

Christina caught me in a
day dreaming moment on the train

I expected that same thing to happen for the hike, day dreaming of random things and letting my mind just wonder. What I didn't expect was how much in reminded me of Italy.  I was day dreaming about Vineyards, Art work and Churches, Cobble stone walk ways, and missing my Italy group of friends. Funny how music does that, Listening to a song or an artist will bring back memories, feelings, and ideas that haven't entered my mind in such a long time. In the end I suppose my choice of music did what I wanted, It helped me relax and forget all my problems and wasn't so distracting that I could still hold a conversation with Norm.






All in all, the Dog Lake hike was really enjoyable, I would say it reins in the easy to moderate difficulty level. It felt easy for most of the trail, it wasn't until the last 0.3 mile that it got a little more steep and the altitude made it more difficult to keep my breath. Since we went up during a week day and a little bit later in the day the lake was pretty much empty of anybody else or dogs. It was nice to have the lake to ourselves because it was so quiet and really lovely, but It could have been fun to see some puppies playing around in the water. Can't complain though, it was definitely worth the trip. So don't let the cashier of Barnes and Nobles convince you otherwise.

Oh you know
Just relieving some stress...

 Mill Creek trail Map:

Why hike?

I'm what I like to call a hobby junkie. Rock climbing, mountain or road biking, camping, boating, playing instruments, traveling, crafts, you name it I'm probably on board to try it out; the problem is most hobbies cost money.                                                     

Spending money on hobbies just seems like a black hole.
It just never ends

When it comes to out doors activities such as the rock climbing, camping, and biking stuff it's necessary to buying your own gear which gets expensive or  rent it which can be even worse. If we love the hobby enough most of us are will slowly obtain the necessary equipment over time, or we just go with friends who own gear (let's be honest here this is more likely the case then buying our own stuff). That gets old fairly fast, always relying on other people or never having the money for activities; who among us hasn't had that friend that we aren't sure if they actually like us or just our toys? 

Well hey there Regina, Lets be friends

Well this is why I've decided to take up hiking. The only absolutely necessary thing you need for a hike is the ability to walk, all other gadgets and equipment are optional, but become more necessary for advanced hikes. Truly you could hike completely nude without even shoes.... However that is not recommended (you could step on something sharp, yikes!) 

Another glorious thing about hiking is that it doesn't take years or even months of practice, you could decide right now "hey i feel like going on a hike", hop online, find the closest hike to your location, and walk out the door. So it opens an endless list of possible candidates for joining a hiking party. Big groups, small groups, advanced, or first timers doesn't matter there are more hikes in this world then could possibly be counted. Just be sure to chose a hike that all members of the group can achieve. No one wants a pal to pass out on a trail because they aren't prepared for the difficulty level. 

Hikes can be enjoyed by everyone, but there are more extreme hikes which you would need to have more experience and that pesky gear (which I mentioned cost money)in order to hike safely. But no worries until that training and gear come along there are simple hikes which could be done in flip flops, bathing suit and carrying just a arrowhead water bottle if that's all you have.

There are a few things that I would recommend to have on every hike. Shoes, water, sunscreen, and a friend. Even if the only shoes you have are flip flops that will work. Honestly most of my hikes have been done in my Toms.... they Are looking pretty shabby these days.

Here is a picture of my Lovely Toms from a few months ago.
They are looking more damaged these days, but I love them.