Thursday, May 7, 2020

Box Canyon (week 2)

We got back late from Topaz Mountain and tried to look up different hikes we could do the next day, Saturday.  We had briefly considered driving to Goblin Valley or Bryce for a long day trip but after having been in the car for so long on Friday and getting home late we didn't really want to do another long trip the next day.  It was too cold to do a hike around our house so we decided to drive about an hour to Fountain Green for a slot canyon hike.  As we were packing up I asked Jeremy if we needed coats and he said we would be good with just some light jackets.  Spoiler alert...he was very wrong and I should have grabbed the coats anyway.  As we drove up the road to the hike it was COVERED in snow.  I looked back at the kids and thought of the lightweight jackets they each had and just started laughing.  Why did we think it was too cold to hike near our house but that we could drive an hour and it would be short sleeve weather.  We weren't sure the cars would make it, but they did and so we bundled up with everything we could find (luckily we still had gloves and hats in the car from the day before) and started another adventure.

When we first got into the slot canyon it was beautiful and not much snow on the ground at all.  I was looking around thinking how even though it was a little cold I was so glad that we had come.  Everyone was jumping around and loving being outside.




These frozen waterfalls coming down the sides were gorgeous.

As we ventured in further the hiking became tricker.  We had to climb up a rock using a rope and another place we need to crawl under a huge boulder (not easily done while carrying a 5 month old).  And then, just as luck would have it, it started to rain, then snow.  And not just a little, a lot.  

Since we are almost to the end we decided to finish but it was really coming down and we still had to hike all the way back.


We'll just say, the hike back was rough.  Our kids could have really used some coats, as they were all freezing, and at one point I think everyone was crying/screaming simultaneously.  However, we were so proud of Liza and Max and how good they were to just keep going.  They were cold and hungry and wanted to stop but they didn't.  We kept telling them the only way we would get warm was to get back to the car and the only way to get back to the car was to keep hiking.  So they kept going and we made it to the car and turned on the heater full blast.  We've have rarely praised the kids so much for their great effort.  The picnic lunch we brought ended up being a car lunch.  Oh, and our tire kept losing air so we had to stop at a gas station and fill it up.

By the time we finally got home everyone took showers and then we finished the night by watching a movie.  I don't know how we keep getting ourselves in the questionable adventures but sure fun to have good friends to do them with.

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