Zion: Riley's Story

I'm finally getting around to Riley's story...if it weren't for Riley, the boys may never have had this amazing experience. Sadly, Riley doesn't go out of his way to take pictures on his own. So he chose a few random shots from Jake and Reece.

But first, here's his summary...

"Zion was probably the best trip I've had so far. It was an exciting adventure. It's not everyday you get to hike a beautiful canyon with a group of other guitarists. My favorite hike was Angel's Landing although I almost fell to my death. I made a couple friends there and hung out with them every night. There were some great restaurants and I only spent 1/3 of the money I was given. I really enjoyed this trip and hope to do it again next year."

Well, that was a fun paragraph... on to the pictures. ;)

Riley chose this because he was on this hike...just didn't take a picture of his own,

A video of the squirrels eating people food... bad campers!!

Riley's shirt he got from his camp. I

And this is why my boys don't blog...I don't know  why this was chosen. It's definitely night time...and definitely a deer.

Riley did take this one... this deer might have been warning him to not climb up to Angel's Landing. It's blurry but super cute!!

That is not a sunbathing lizard...it's not a breathing lizard either. Eek!

Riley had his chicken "on the rock."

Reece in the river.

Riley admitted he only chose this picture because of Reece's face.

Not swimming...that's a hike!

Riley liked Reece's face here too.

Riley's mean. hehe

 Riley's best picture. He is the only one to make it to the top of Angel's Landing. He said he'd never climb it again, but so glad he did it.

Just because there aren't enough pictures of Riley...

Final morning... Dad is probably slaving away, and the boys are pigging out on food.

I've decided for my blog's sake, I must never send the boys out alone and trust them to take pictures for me. But they had a blast and I'm so thankful for that.

Zion: Reece's Story

I asked Reece to summarize his trip:

"Camping in Zion was great! We did many hikes in water and on sand. Also Shopped for ice 24/7. We were able to have a campfire every night and had S'mores. My favorite hikes were The Narrows and Angels Landing. I had a great time at Zion. And I went to swim in the river every single day."

And that sums up his trip! Typical 10 year old boy.

This bug must have fascinated Reece because the picture made the cut.

Reece really enjoyed the many deer that hung around the camp. They weren't scared of humans and would come close to them.

Major highlight of Reece's trip is this gemstone dad bought him. This is actually one of two. Just to put in into perspective, this is probable the size of my hand. The lady at the store was so excited about Reece's love of gems, she gave him a small discount.

Reece and his creatures... see the lizard?

The Watchman hike.

Super fat squirrel. Their neighbor campers got a fat fine because they didn't lock up their food...this squirrel has obviously had it's share of people food. 

Another lizard...

Blue Moon!

The Narrows hike.

The Narrows hike.

Road through Zion.

Reece's favorite place to be. If he wasn't hiking , eating or sleeping, he was swimming in the Virgin River.

Checking out the dangers of Angels Landing.

The cool switchbacks from above... 21 in all called "Walter's Wiggles" on the Angel's Landing hike.

Wild Turkey.

More deer...this kid obviously loves all living things.

The storm as they were heading home... They actually stopped for gas on the way and when lightning struck near by the power went out while Jake was filling up. Luckily no damage and it came back up right away.

There you have Reece's story. It's funny seeing his choice in pictures.

I decided to add this picture... it shows the size of Reece's new treasures. They are sitting on a bench. As you can tell, they are huge! Reece is in heaven. :)

Zion: Jake's Story

Oh, this post is so over due. I've been dragging my feet on it. I have a couple excuses... first, I wasn't on this trip to Zion. It was a "manly" trip. Second, I had 3 devices to get the pictures from, so taking the time to transfer all the pictures to my computer was not made an immediate priority. I've decided to break this down into 3 posts... The trip through Jake's eyes, Reece's eyes, and Riley's eyes. The reason the boys made this trip to Zion National Park was Riley receiving a scholarship through Aspen Music Festival and School to take part in the first annual Aaron Shearer Summer Institute. I unfortunately didn't have the time to take off another week of work, so I got stuck at home. Jake was lucky enough to get to take the time and go explore while Riley was getting world class instruction for his classic guitar hobby. I'm going to need the boys' help in telling the story, so from here on out I'll be typing what they can, or want, to tell us about their trip. I've had them choose the pictures they want to share, so there may be duplicates along the way. Lets get this party started...

***

Day 1...7 hour drive to St. George, UT.
This is a shot from i70 near Green River.

The officially gathering spot was in St. George, UT. This is where Jake dropped Riley off with his new guitar family for the week. They did have dinner with some of the instructors and students at a steakhouse called Anasazi. 

You can order your food "on the grill" or "on the rock."
This is "on the rock"... the rock was a chunk of granite lava rock, and it was served at a blistering 700 degrees. Ouch! Don't touch! ;)

Day 2... After staying the night in a hotel in St. George, Jake and Reece got up early and drove an hour to Zion. They wanted to secure a camping spot, which was first come first serve. Luckily they got one and really loved the location. This was their home for a week.

Let the exploring begin!
This was their first hike, The Watchman. Not the most exciting hike, says Jake.

The campground was right next to the Virgin River. This was Reece's favorite hangout. Any time they weren't hiking, eating or sleeping, Reece was swimming in the river.

The entrance to Zion National Park.

 Day 3... Riley was able to meet up with Jake and Reece to do a short hike and have lunch before he had classes and rehearsals to attend. This is the Emerald Pools hike... this is a view looking up from the Lower Emerald Pool.

SeLfIe TiMe

Reflection from the Upper Emerald Pool.

 The view looking up from the Upper Emerald Pool.

Day 4...Reece and Jake hiking The Narrows. They literally hiked in the Virgin River. They rented special socks, shoes and staffs to help make this hike easier. Zion National Park is the desert, so in late July it's about as hot as it gets. The Narrows is a very popular hike this time of year to escape the heat.

 The start of the hike... just about to the water.

Reece leading the way...heading upstream through the canyon.

Twinsies! 

Oh, the beautiful canyon! The water was fairly cold and when you add the shade, I can only imagine it being very chilly.

Reece climbing a rock, just so he could jump into the river.

More canyon, Reece went shirtless here...to keep his cold, wet shirt off of him.

 Narrow canyon.

More canyon.

Day 5... Reece and Jake attempt the craziest hike ever. Angels Landing.  This is Reece educating himself on just how many deaths have taken place on this hike since he was born in 2004...and the answer is 6! =(

Here is the bottom of Walter's Wiggles.
21 amazing looking switchbacks up to Scout's Landing  or maybe it was Scout's Lookout.

Here's a pictures I stole from the web to show how insane this hike was...and this wasn't even the insane part!!

These switchbacks were a pretty steep hike...here is view from the top of the wiggles, looking down at what they had just hiked.

Another warning...here is where the real trek to the actual Angels Landing begins. 

Sadly, the boys didn't make it to the top...They got started a little late and the crowds were big. They eventually decided it wasn't worth the stress of the tight, narrow trail AND dealing with the people too. Just an uncomfortable risk...next time they start earlier. (FYI: Riley did start early with his guitar friends, and he DID make it to the top...but more on that in his post.)

Heading back down...just look at that trail!!

Instead of finishing Angels Landing, they ventured on another hike...Court of the Patriarchs. It was an easy hike.
Left to Right we have Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

When they got back to camp they got a nice surprise. Their camp neighbors apparently don't know how to read.  There were signs everywhere talking about squirrels and people food... guess who got a big, fat fine from the park rangers for not locking their food up appropriately. (You can see a fat squirrel chowing down on the ground if you look closely.)

The Great White Throne.

Finally, Riley's Concert.  This was at the Community Library in Springdale, UT. You can see Riley in the background, ready to show off his skills.  This was a culmination of a week of work, and Riley's first Guitar Orchestra.

Looks like they got out just in time. There were some nasty looking clouds on the long drive home.  6 days of camping was just enough, but the experience was well worth it.