Hiking trip!

Hiking trip time! It doesn't really count as training for a run, but it will definitely get the legs into good shape.

After focusing on international trips for a while (Germany, Costa Rica, all of which were amazing), we decided to keep it domestic and see what the US has to offer. This trend was sparked by two short visits to San Francisco, both of which consisted of the city serving as a homebase for a Yosemite trip and a Mount Tamalpais day hike. Oregon and Washington State are on the list, as is Maine (Acadia!), but both of those destinations are somewhat unpleasant for March weather. This timing for the southwest, on the other hand, is perfect: right when the campgrounds and lodges open and right before the mandatory shuttle buses start, so we can drive to trailheads and experience hikes with the minimum amount of foot traffic.

Some highlights:

Grand Canyon, obviously.

We are hiking from the rim down to the floor and back up again. This concept is already very backwards in my head, because every hike I've been on either consists of walking up and then back down a mountain or along a trail that goes up and down in elevation through a range. I wonder how my legs will do with the uphill coming later in the day... may even be better, since downhill definitely hurts the feet more.

Bryce Canyon:

The whole point of this place is to feel like you're a bee in a honeycomb. Looks totally crazy, and there are real warnings to not go onto (or into?) certain trails without a park guide because you will get lost. Technically it's not a canyon but an ampitheater. Those pointy things are called "hoodoos," formed out of the lakebed by erosion. This place is much higher in elevation than Zion National Park, with the ampitheater's rim at a whopping 8,000-9,000ft above sea level.

Zion National Park:

Angel's Landing. Yep. Thousand feet drop on both sides, about a foot wide in some places, and a handy little chain to keep you there. This is definitely a highlight. There are apparently mountain lions all over this place, and things like this are not reassuring, especially since we're going to be camping in a teensy little thin-walled tent:

Monument Valley:

This is less of a hike and more of a drive, but it still is going to be amazing. Recognize this from Forrest Gump, Stagecoach and Back to the Future III? Just so pretty!

Arches National Park:

Another day hike for this one. According to Wikipedia, it is the home of over 2000 natural sandstone arches, formed when a giant sea evaporated, leaving a layer of salt beneath the ever-increasing weight of additional dirt and rock above it. When the weight became too great, the salt liquified, and thrust up layers of rock into big domes, which were then eaten away by the elements in various shapes.

Antelope Canyon:

There are really no words to describe this. Caused by water eroding the sandstone, this slot canyon's rock flows like a river itself. Light begins to enter through the top of the canyon starting March 15 (phew, we'll just make it!) and goes away every year on October 7. The only thing a little bit scary about this is that flash flooding does still occur, and eleven people were killed in a flood in 1997, which occurred when a thunderstorm dumped lots of water at the canyon basin seven miles away the day before. The only person to get out was the guide, who had already had "swiftwater training." The rescue ladders and nets were swept away... but now they're bolted on, and let's cross our fingers!

Natural Bridges National Monument:

We are going to be here in the evening, and it's a good thing, too, because Natural Bridges has the only night sky monitored by the NPS Night Sky Team that rates a Class 2 on the Bortle Dark-Sky Scale, giving it the darkest sky ever assessed. That there is the Milky Way, kiddies. Ahhhh, we're tipping!

We are alternating camping nights with hotel nights and renting a car to drive the very long hours between these places. We'll end up at Salt Lake City to fly back to New York a week after we get out there, and here's to hoping it's an amazing trip!