Zion Day 2: The Narrows

The one big caveat to my previous caveat is that I did get information about how to best hike the Narrows. One of my coworkers had just recently done a similar trip and she gave me one big piece of advice: rent the full gear for your hike into the Narrows. She recommended two different places in town and of course I managed to choose the one that required an additional one mile walk to pick up the gear the night before the hike. Even better, I somehow managed to reserve two sizes too big for the kids.  Thankfully they were willing to go along with the ridiculous oversized outfits. 

After getting suited up at the campsite the following morning and another long line for the shuttle (where I happened to run into a coworker) we were off for another day of hiking.  The first mile of the hike is along the river and is flat enough for anyone and everyone to enjoy.  By the time we made our way through the crowds and got to the end of the paved trail, it was lunch time, so we stopped to eat our sandwiches before wading into the cold waters.  

And then we were off, wading and navigating our way up stream.  Thankfully the number of people thinned out significantly once we turned the first bend.  And there were moments where we were completely alone and it was amazing.  It was such a different and unique experience hiking through the waters, completely dry thanks to the dry suits.  I could have spent all day making my way up the valley. 

We made it all the way to Narrows Alcove before the cold wind and frigid water stopped us.  Alva’s hands were ice cold and there was no way of keeping them warm.  Oskar and Martin went up around the bend to check it out while Alva and I tried to protect ourselves from the wind and warm up her hands.  While Alva was putting her hands in my armpits (it was the best I could come up with) some very kind people stopped and asked if Alva wanted handwarmers...  They had seen us from up the river and figured out what was going on.  And even more importantly, they had a spare set of handwarmers in their backpacks.  It was one of many instances of meeting incredibly kind and generous people while out on the trails.    

While Oskar and I wanted to keep going (we had our hearts set on at least making it to Wall Street or Orderville Canyon) we made the right decision to all head back.  It taught the kids that as a group, we needed to ensure everyone was safe.  The entire walk back, Alva received more than a handful of nods and comments of respect for her ability to hike and forge the river. And both Oskar and Alva induced moments of jealousy as they “floated” with the current in their oversized, air filled dry suits. 

We got back to the campsite later that afternoon, exhausted and hungry.  Only the promise of dinner out at a restaurant could get them up and out one more time. 

Zion Day 1: Scouts Lookout

I should caveat that we did zero research on any of the parks before the trip.  I mean nothing.  We had no idea what hikes to take, what was popular, what hikes were difficult and how to get around each park.  So with each park, our first stop was to the visitor center to get a map and talk to a ranger about what they would recommend.  These stops also enticed the kids to check out the gift shop (they had their standard $20 to spend on the trip) and allowed them to get their Junior Ranger Activity Book which they would furiously work to complete before even leaving the general vicinity. 

From the visitor center, we learned that Zion is a car free park and there is a shuttle that runs through the valley with stops at all of the trailheads.  We also quickly learned that Zion is the Manhattan of the National Parks: the line for the shuttle was an hour long and wrapped around the building. Thankfully, by staying at Watchman, we avoided the other shuttle through the town of Springdale to get to the park entrance and the line to get into the park, so I suppose we had it better than most. 

With the Narrows hike planned for the next day, we opted to hike to Scouts Lookout on our first day. Map in hand, and the hour long shuttle wait over, we finally got to the trailhead at lunch time so our first priority was to stop and eat lunch before the hike (this would be a theme throughout the trip: get ready to hike, eat food at the trailhead and then hike).  

During our lunch break we managed to ruin Oskar’s Junior Ranger Book (something about not getting the camelpack lid on correctly), which coupled with his disappointment for not being able to already buy a magnet from the gift shop, we were off to a rocky start. It was going to be a long 3 hour hike and possibly an even longer trip.  

The hike started along the river, then straight up a crack in the mountain, followed by a nice flat section through some trees and boulders (offering a bit of shade) and finally up through Walter’s Wiggles, which are 21 short, steep switchbacks, before reaching Scouts Lookout where we encountered the most aggressive and fearless chipmunks I have ever met. Thankfully somewhere between the flat section and Walter’s Wiggles, Oskar’s bad mood lifted and we were back to having fun.  The renegade chipmunks also help to lift his spirits. 

Our hike back down brought even more joy: the kids had brought their walkie talkies on the trip and were communicating to each other the entire hike down (Alva was in front with Martin and I was a few hundred yards behind with Oskar).  

Personally, the hike was invigorating and encouraging.  I felt stronger and healthier than I have felt in a long time especially when making my way up the steep sections. And even Oskar’s initial bad mood couldn’t impact my excitement for not only this hike, but the whole trip.  I had flashbacks to my own hiking adventures growing up in Lassen and Yosemite and was excited to create similar core memories for the two kiddos. 

We wrapped up the hike with a quick dip of our toes in the river and then, after the shuttle back down the valley, we immediately headed out for emergency ice creams and crisps. 

Zion National Park

Founded in: 1919

Size of the Park: 146,597 acres

Topography: Famous for white, red, and pink Navajo sandstone cliffs, with Zion Canyon reaching up to 3,000 feet deep.

Number of Annual Visitors: 4.6 Million 

Popular Hikes: Angels Landing, The Narrows, and Emerald Pools.

Breuer Fun Facts: This was the park Oskar was most excited to visit and his only request was to hike the Narrows.  I also wanted to stay inside the park to give him the same experience as the book and we were lucky enough to grab a campsite in Watchman Campground the first 4 nights of our trip.  And while I was a bit nervous that we were going to get kicked out of the campsite (our van was just a bit longer than the site allowed), we were completely okay.

Sin City: Kids Edition

Never in my life would I think to take the kids to Las Vegas.  And more importantly, never in my life would I think I could convince Martin to go back to Las Vegas after our trip over a decade ago. Our original plan was to fly into Vegas Sunday morning and head straight to IndieCampers to pick up our van.  However flights were $500 more expensive on Sunday morning so we ended up flying down Saturday evening. I leveraged hotel points to get a free night’s stay at the Rio, so it felt like it would save us some money, I am not sure if we ended up making or losing money on the deal, but given it is Vegas, I am guessing we lost.  

We landed in Vegas at 7:30 so we didn’t get to the hotel and into bed until much later than a normal night for us.  And with both kids being wired from both the flight and the lights, noise and general “vegasness” of Vegas, we opted to watch a bit of TV while laying in bed before attempting to sleep (something we never do at home). 

We woke up Sunday morning with no plans other than the complimentary breakfast and a 2pm van pick up.  With the pool closed until 11am, and with Martin’s aversion to Las Vegas, I figured we would hunker down in the room for the morning and possibly watch a movie.  It would avoid the overstimulation of Vegas but offset the anticipated drought of man-made stimulation to come.  So imagine my surprise when Martin suggested we head to the Strip for a few hours to explore and introduce the kids to Las Vegas. 

 

We did everything we could for a G-rated version of Vegas: one where there were no rules, the kids could do what they wanted and we could unintentionally walk nearly 5 miles in less than 3 hours.  We spent an hour in the Arcade at New York New York (Alva was too short for the rollercoaster), we ate ice cream before lunch from the Cosmopolitan, we checked out the flowers and water show at the Bellagio, we took a hot lap through Paris for a break from the heat and we wrapped up the tour with fancy drinks over lunch at Cabo Wabo.  

The walking was a good introduction for the hiking to come.  First stop, IndieCamper, to pick up our “home” for the next two weeks and then straight to Zion National Park!