Wild Adventures

Ok, so one reason me and Lindsay created this blog was so that we could show off some of the fun things that we have been doing. The next couple of posts are probably going to be going back to about a month ago, just so that we can catch up on some of the fun things we did before the blog got started. 

 

First off, Lindsay graduated. That was one of the coolest things ever. She has been diligently working towards her RN for the past several years, so it was great to see her reach such a huge milestone in her life.  I'm really impressed by her. But what made it even more amazing was that at the very same time, two other Pennock girls graduated too! Way to go Kristin and Jesica!

 

   It was great celebrating with everyone and it was a hoot having Jesica and Dad in town for the whole thing. And any time Tucanos is involved, it's going to be great.

But why stop celebrating just because family leaves town? There is no rest for the Bradley family. Lindsay does great at coming up with fun things to do that are going to be keeping us plenty busy. And so, just a few days after graduating, Lindsay insisted on us packing up and going camping for the weekend. But before any of the packing got started, we needed to buy camping gear to pack! Using what was left on our Walmart giftcards, we got everything that you could possibly need for camping: a tent, sleeping bags, a little one burner stove, etc. Then it was off to...

!!ZION NATIONAL PARK!!

I had been when I was a lot younger, but I didn't really remember anything about it and Lindsay had never been before. We decided we had better start checking out some of the local attractions before we ended up leaving Utah and why not start with one of the most beautiful National Parks that I have ever seen? Best part of the trip was that by coincidence, we decided to go during National Park Week and got into the park for FREE. Awesome, unexpected, and the best way to start the trip. We set up camp in one of the last available campsites in the park and just had to laugh. All the stuff we got at WalMart was junior size! Our tent looked tiny in that huge campsite!

 

Our foil dinners were superb, serious high cuisine. We forgot forks so we just had to stab at the meat and potatoes with our knives. We eventually gave up and just resorted to the proven method of using your fingers. The fire kept us warm all night long. We laid out under the stars for a while, and we could see these dark shadows flying low over out tent. It took me a while to realize that they were bats. It was pretty cool. Luckily, none of them flew in to the tent, even though it looked like there was no way they would miss it.

The next morning we got up ready for hiking. and there is no way you can visit Zion without hiking Angel's Landing

Yep, that's the one. It's just this giant sandstone monolith sticking up in the middle of the canyon. Some crazy person saw it and said "I'm going to hike that thing." A few years down the road an even crazier person said "I'm going to pave a path so that everyone can make it to the top." And now thousands of crazy people make the hike up the side of the canyon and across a narrow saddle with one thousand foot drops a few feet away on either side every single year. That morning the crazy people were me and Lindsay. It was the most amazing hike ever and is a must do for anyone who is not afraid of really, really high places. The views from the top were amazing and the trip over the saddle was a lot of fun. 

 There was a guide chain the entire way, so at least there was something to hold on to and it certainly gave me a much better sense of security than if I were just walking across myself. 

The chain gets bumped around a lot and you can see where it has left marks in the sandstone.

It was definitely one of the funnest hikes I have ever done and I recommend it to everyone. There were a lot of cool things along the trail too:

Walter's Wiggles

A star hole in a rock

And a tree that looks like a raccoon?

We were pretty beat after the hike and decided to just take it easy and go see a scenic overlook of the canyon. We had to go through this long, pitch-black tunnel to get there and we met a fun ranger from Michigan. But coolest thing were the wildlife encounters.

We saw some mountain goats

and a ton of little lizards running around.

There were eagles and bats too, but I didn't get any pictures of those. After that we just headed back to Provo, content on the adventure we had.

It really gave me an appreciation for the beauty there is all around us. Having grown up in Colorado I have always appreciated how pretty the outdoors can be. I think Colorado is the most amazing place in the world. It was hard to leave it to come to Utah, and I would always joke when we crossed the state line. There is a big sign that says "Now Leaving Colorful Colorado." I always said they should put another sign up that says "Welcome to Ugly Utah." The more I've lived here though, the more it's growing on me. It's all about keeping our eyes open to the beauty there is everywhere, whether it's the desert or the mountains or the beach or anywhere! I've added an item on my "Things to do list" because of this trip. I want to visit all of the National Parks in the US sometime in my life. Luckily for me, Utah houses five of them. I guess it really is a great place to be. So keep on checking back. The next wild adventure might happen sooner than you think...