Newspaper Rock and Moab Swimming Hole

Newspaper Rock and Moab Swimming Hole

6-28-16

DAY 10

After the via ferrata, we earned ourselves a chill day. We drove from Telluride, CO to Moab, UT. We were surprised that western CO looked so much like the UT desert. Driving into Utah felt like quite an accomplishment, so we stopped and took some pics. We even got Papa to jump, although James wasn't feeling into it until Papa joined the fun.

Near the eastern edge of Canyonlands, we got to see Wilson's Arch (a cool arch right along the highway). Then we went to check out Newspaper Rock. It is a rock where many people for over 2000 years have been "doodling." It was fascinating, and we got to see different petroglyphs featuring animals, footprints, and an assortment of people and symbols.

Then we headed for the ACT Campground in Moab, UT where we had a tent site reserved. However, when we arrived, there was a high wind and storm warning so my parents splurged and got a room with bunk beds. There is a nice shared kitchen and the shared bathrooms are well-presented with free showers. Good thing we got the room, because chairs were blowing away later in the winds, so our tent would have been long gone!

Next, we went to a swimming hole. It wasn't quite as nice as our swimming hole (lots of people), but it was a beautiful canyon and was refreshing after the 104 degree desert heat. Everyone jumped off, although James and I jumped more than everyone else. Since it was pretty hard to get up to the jumping rock, a guy stood up above the last slab and had to drag many jumpers up over the top. It was sometimes very funny to watch, especially when a tiny kid would scale the side and then an adult couldn't even attempt to make it up. Since it was fairly shallow, you had to be pretty careful when you jumped, bending your knees so you wouldn't hurt yourself by hitting the bottom. Papa could stand with the water up to his chin at the deepest part.

Via Ferrata Telluride

Extreme Adrenaline Rush - Via Ferrata Telluride

6-27-16

DAY 9

A few months ago, when we asked Papa what he wanted to do for his 40th birthday this year, he said “the via ferrata in Telluride.” We all agreed, not knowing what we had committed ourselves to doing. Little did we know, neither did he!

We got ready excitedly for our adventure on the via ferrata, putting our faith in Papa to make sure that we had all of the info for the “hike” and the correct gear. Our understanding was that it would be kind of like horizontal rock climbing where you are clipped into a cable for safety. After all the gear was sorted and packed, we left the campground for our “hike.” The approach was on a pretty dirt road full of switchbacks, wildflowers, birds, and a huge waterfall. Once we found the trail head, we got our harnesses and helmets on and headed out - this was the last time our heart rates would be normal.

The beginning of the hike was a little scary and we weren’t even sure we were on the right trail. It didn’t take long for us to realize that we would not be clipped into a safety cable for large chunks of the exposed hike along a sheer cliff. Frequently, the footing was on loose rocks - one wrong step and catastrophe could strike. Luckily, there was a cable to clip into on some of the more dangerous sections, but it would have been much less stressful if there had been more cables. There was only one freak-out moment by Maya, but Papa got her through. There was a trail log half way through and it was really funny to read the comments of other hikers. The pictures don't quite do this experience justice, but it can give you an idea of what it was like.

Afterwards, Mama and Papa both agreed that it probably wasn't the safest option, and if they'd known more about the unclipped sections we probably wouldn't have done it.

That evening, we took the FREE gondola ride to the Mountain Village to see Mama’s friend, Katja from her gymnastics days. She was awesome and so were the well-earned 6 personal s'mores that we got for dessert!  

Blue Lakes and Snowball Fights

6-26-16

DAY 8

We had to rise and shine (and pack up camp) early today so that we could reserve a spot at the Telluride Town Park and then hit the trail for a big hike. We rolled into Telluride and ended up getting site #37 which was the best site in the campground. Hooray! There was space to put up our hammocks and tents and play in the mountain stream.

Next, we drove to the trail head for Blue Lakes. We were told that it was an 8.6 mile hike, but it ended up being 11 miles. Things were looking bleak in the beginning - Maya was out of steam from the beginning, but she was able to rally. Since we knew it was going to be a big hike, I thought we should all wear the super hero shirts that my mom made us for when we would need to summon super hero strength. We counted the number of comments we got about them and James and I won the guessing game - we got 10. Watching James and Papa have snowball fights in the summer was definitely a highlight.

The hike was tough - lots of elevation gain, frigid stream crossings (Papa was really funny when we was crossing the streams - he doesn't like cold water), and snow field crossings. However, the reward of getting to see the turquoise blue lakes in the high peaks of the Rockies was so worth it! We weren't sure if we were going to go to the 2nd and 3rd lakes because Maya and James were out of gas, but they decided to go for it. It was a steep climb to the next lakes, but Mama had brought some emergency Gu for just an occasion like this. We made it to the 3rd lake at about 12,000 ft, took some self-timer super hero photos, then turned around and headed back down, chatting with lots of nice folks along the way. I loved this hike! It was so beautiful (from the mountains to the trees to the wildflowers) - I took about a bazillion pictures.