Woke up to a cold but sunny morning in Zion NP, had my
breakfast of cereal, a banana, and a yoghurt, and started preparing myself
clothing wise for a hike in the park. I
had been told that Angel’s Landing was a spectacular hike, but was classed as
“Strenuous. 4 hours, 5.4 miles, long drop offs, not for young or anyone fearful
of heights. Last section is along a steep, narrow ridge to the summit, may b
snow covered and icy.” Right, nothing to fear for a young, fit, seasoned hiker
and mountaineer like myself then !!
As the road through Zion NP is a dead end road, and the
end is only about 6 miles from my camp site, I decide to drive through the park
first to see it all before attempting the hike.
And every inch of the way is stunning – every rock formation different.
And without the roof on adds another dimension that only bikers and convertible
car owners can experience. I drove to the Temple of Sinawava at the end, and
took a look around, but then started back, stopping in a small layby maybe one
mile back down the road There I was in
awe of all the mountain peaks and walls around me – They are so close to you
you feel you can almost touch both sides if you reach out. There was a Harley
parked there with Montana plates, so started chatting because Montana is on my
route later on, and turned out his name was Carl. He was on tour for personal
reasons, and we had a good chat about his trip and mine. He was in the military in Vietnam when I was
working on the rigs in Darwin and he, like many of the US Troops, used to come
into Darwin for R&R. We might even have met !! He has two sons
both currently serving in Afghanistan. He then gave me a small medallion and
said to look him up if I came to Missoula – The medallion is his Sheriff’s
Medallion – He is the Sheriff of Missoula Montana !! So a wonderful keepsake. We looked on my route map and my famous
“yellow highlighter line” planned route actually goes right through Missoula, so I will
look forward to seeing Carl in his uniform in a few weeks time !! Meanwhile we were looking up at the cliffs
behind us, and could just make out some people right at the top on the edge of
the cliff. “Crazy idiots”, we both
agreed, and then parted, him to continue his ride to Bryce Canyon for the day, and me to
ascend to Angel’s Landing. My drive was
just another mile or two down the road, where I parked, and after making sure I
had some food and water in my camelback in my backpack, I set off to Angels
Landing with it still fairly cold.
And the climb started, and it got steeper and steeper,
and more switchbacks and turns, and people stopping to take breathers. One guy passed me running UP the trail ! He was back before I even got half way up and
said he had made it to the top !! Probably didn’t have time to enjoy the view
at all – Serves him right for being so bloody energetic !! After the first steep section, then through a
cool and fairly level canyon, then up the super steep Walter’s Wiggles to Scout
Lookout for a brief rest – and who should be there but some crazy Scot playing
the bagpipes !!! Fancy carrying your
bagpipes all the way up that hill – Bloody masochists those Scots – and sadists
too once they start playing, some of them !! This one actually did a pretty good job !
When I finally made it to the top, I was SO pleased. I was actually very proud of myself for
getting there, because it really was much more of a physical challenge than I
am normally used to. So when the photo of me grinning was taken, I really was
very very relieved and glad to be there, believe me!
After a short interlude of trying to eat a little while
the resident chipmunks try to steal the food out of your hands, it was time to
set off down, and I found this actually more scary because I could now see
where I was going and how narrow some sections are !! I was also very aware that my thighs were
starting to ache, so I deliberately went quite slowly and took frequent rest
breaks. By the time I got to Walter’s Wiggles my legs were seriously wobbly,
but I kept going, (I was scared that if I stopped for too long my legs would
give up altogether!!) and finally after about 3 ½ hours, I made it back to the
car, and have never been so pleased to see Elsie in my life. I threw my back pack in the passenger seat,
and climbed in the driver’s seat and just sat there for about 15 minutes before
I could start the car and drive slowly back to the campsite. A hot shower would have been great ……..but no
showers in NP campsites !!!! So after changing I went into town and had a shaved ice with Pina
Colada and Strawberry flavouring, and sat in one of their easy chairs doing
some emails and downloading photos off my camera for my blog ! While I was there, Carl the Sheriff was
riding by on his way back from Bryce Canyon and saw my car and stopped to say
he had forgotten to write down my blog address.
And I said that I was SO glad he stopped, because I wanted to explain to
him that those “Crazy idiots” we had seen up on the rim of the mountain above
us that morning were actually up to Angel’s Landing, and I was now officially
one of those crazy idiots !!! The second
last photo attached is actually taken from the layby where Carl and I had
been talking and looking up at Angels Landing – I went back after my walk to take the photo to
give to Carl when I passed through Missoula !!
Safe trip home, mate, and see you in a couple of weeks. After Carl rode off, I went back to the camp site, heated up a can
of stew in my little cooker, and then went and sat with one of my neighbour’s
Bill and Deb who are from Canada, and we chatted around their fire for a while
before I went back to my tent. Bill and Deb live not far from Kamloops in BC,
so as I will be going to Kamloops to see some friends on the way back from
Alaska, Bill and Deb have also said I would be welcome to go and stay with them
on the way through. Great meeting you and chatting, and have a good journey
home with your crazy Mexican dog !! Hope
she learns to speak Canadian soon, eh ?
So that was Zion Canyon.
Just totally mind blowing every second of the day. Photos just cannot do
it justice. I could easily live in a tent in places like
this for the rest of my life. There is
NOTHING that even comes close to waking up in the dawn, lifting up the edge of
the tent and seeing a view like that right in front of you. I think I should have been born a chipmunk so
I could live up there all the time !!
Photos here :- https://picasaweb.google.com/117739775480775657932/ZionNatParkUtah?authkey=Gv1sRgCOTa1bOlitnLmAE#
Photos here :- https://picasaweb.google.com/117739775480775657932/ZionNatParkUtah?authkey=Gv1sRgCOTa1bOlitnLmAE#
If you want to see more about Angels Landing, see here :- http://www.zionnational-park.com/zion-angels-landing-trail.htm Please note where it says “Angels Landing is one of the most famous hikes in the world and it deserves it place with the best.”
If you want to see a youtube of the climb for added realism (and appreciation of my mountaineering skills and derring-do), see here !!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8ygjEUFI1E
Bad weather apparently coming in from the west tomorrow, and I have to be in Denver Colorado at a Lotus meeting at 6 pm in three day’s time (Tuesday night) , so I need to forget the sightseeing for a while and get some miles under my belt. It is only about 600 miles to Denver, but most of it is mountains, snow is forecast, and I have to climb Pikes Peak before going to Denver !! So need to get up and started in the morning.
I think I will sleep like a log tonight !!!
