I Voluntarily Went Camping

That's right....You read it here first.  I voluntarily went camping this weekend.

It's been a bit of a crazy few days.  P. Fisher had the entire weekend off (which was a first since he started his new job in April) so we started making plans to get away from it all.  It started with plans to go to Yellowstone for the weekend.  And then that changed to going to Rocky Mountain National Park for the weekend.  And then all of that went awry....There was the possibility that I was going to be jumping on a plane....Once I knew I wasn't going anywhere, I suggested camping in the Uintas....Yes, that is correct, I suggested camping....voluntarily. 

I've been real camping once and it was very dirty.  I had fun, but I was very dirty and I like a shower a bit more frequently if I'm going to be smothered in dirt.  That was two years ago and I thought it was about time that I gave it another try. 

All in all, I'd do it again.  I got dirty this time, but I got to go home and take a shower.

I will say that the Uintas are pretty spectacular....It's beautiful up there....and quiet.  BUT, very, very cold.  I think I only slept for a couple hours because I was so cold.  I definitely could have used a couple of those hot water bottles they got me used to camping in Africa.

The highlights were definitely hobo dinners, hotdogs on a stick, and s'mores.  I saw one animal....One measly deer, a few robins, and a bazillion mosquitoes.  I even brought my binoculars and my birding books to identify all of the new birds I saw.  Maybe next time I'll have more luck with both the animals and birds.  The mosquitoes I can do without.  Today I look like one big red splotch from all of the mosquito bites....

Back to the Uintas

Summer has arrived.  After a very long winter, we had a nice spring day on Tuesday and summer showed its face yesterday.  With the weather in the 90s and the snow pack we still have, that leaves us with flooding.  And morbid curiosity made going to see the flooding our entertainment for the night.

Provo River Falls

The flooding road

The sunset

Bryce Canyon - Escalante Grand Staircase - Capitol Reef

It has been a whirlwind of a weekend.  It probably would have been far less eventful had I not purchased an atlas shortly after we started our drive to southern Utah.  But I saw it, bought it, studied it,  and decided we could fit more in than we probably should have. 

As a side note, I was told I didn't need a map - I feel like everyone can use a map - And as it turns out (not surprisingly), I was right on this one as there is no cell service throughout most of the areas we were this weekend (AT&T does NOT have more bars in more places - The Verizon users seemed to have very little trouble making and receiving calls) and without that signal, there was no GPS that I have come to be very dependent on.  So I guess it's a good thing I impulsively bought an atlas after all....

Anyway - One of my New Years resolutions this year was to visit all of Utah's national parks.  I went to Arches a couple years ago for a friend's birthday and that's it in the ten years that I have lived here.  S ever so nicely got me a National Park's pass for my birthday and I immediately went to Zion as part of my birthday trip.  Since then I've been a bit of a slacker - I did go to Colorado and visit Garden of the Gods and Royal Gorge, and went to the Uintas and Fish Lake National Forest in Utah, but I haven't made my way to any other national parks yet.  Until this weekend....This weekend was the weekend to go to Bryce Canyon N.P.  We spent Saturday hiking about through the hoodoos (Which I learned is Caribbean - like voodoo) and then went on a guided walk and learned lots of fun facts about the park.  And even went out and looked at the stars in the crystal clear sky.

The highlight: I SAW WILDLIFE!!  I never see wildlife.  I don't know why that is but I never do.  I saw a chipmunk which hardly counts.  And then I saw a stellar jay which apparently is rare - I thought it was a blue jay.  And then we saw a baby deer and it's mom.  I love the baby animals.  And then a bunch of pronghorn deer.  And then to top it of, there were wild turkeys.  It only could have been better if I saw a bear or a mountain lion....

So then today with the help of my new maps, I figured out how to get to Capitol Reef National Park.  I thought it would be much closer but it was an extra three hours or so driving to get there.  We took the scenic byway, highway 12 through Escalante/Grand Staircase which was definitely worth the extra time. 

Of all the national parks, I would have to say that I'm glad I didn't plan on spending an entire weekend in Capitol Reef.  It is pretty spectacular to see.  And the pictures definitely don't do it's size justice but there wasn't a ton to do there.

All in all, a good weekend....I wish I had more time and I think I would have finished the entire national park circuit.  I have officially visited four of the five Utah national parks and I'm feeling pretty good about it.  Just need to get to Canyonlands before December 31 to complete my checklist.

The Uintas - How Have I Missed These for the Last TEN Years?

Yesterday I went up to the Uintas for the first time. I am completely aware of how ridiculous that statement is. June marked the 10th year of living in Utah and the Uintas are practically in my backyard.

Having the day off, this was a spontaneous adventure with the goal being Mirror Lake. My family used to go there every time I went back to school after we moved from Indiana. (Maybe not every time, but it certainly seemed like it) They even went fishing when I wasn't around.

So with some time on our hands, we decided to head up into the mountains. I am not the most outdoorsy person in the world yet I have a fascination with water and trees. Some of my issues with Utah are that so much of the outdoorsy stuff is in the middle of the desert where it is just way too hot for me. But this was perfect. It was beautiful. Lots of trees and lots of water. As I said, we were heading up to Mirror Lake. We never made it because the Provo River Falls distracted us. I love waterfalls and these were exceptionally nice. There is a place to park and a couple hundred yards of walking and you are there. There are three cascading falls and you can walk through the water and climb around the rocks from top to bottom.

The water was freezing but definitely worth walking through. (Lesson learned: bring some water shoes)

I'm excited to go back. And more importantly, I have decided that I am adequately prepared for a weekend camping trip. I have finally realized that camping is not necessarily backpacking miles into some slot canyon in the desert.

My concerns have been addressed. We watched people camping yesterday and I think I can handle it. My only requests. I would like to be near water and go fishing. Canoeing would be nice too but I'll take fishing for starters.