That is not meant as a slam, instead it is meant as a “Thank you” to the friends and followers who have sent personal notes to check in and see if I am doing okay, since as one friend put it, “You’ve gone dark.” Your notes of care and concern mean a lot to me.
I temporarily lost my blogging mojo. Continue reading
By now, news of my Dad has come from home, and I need to get to an airport and find a place to stow the Winnie to fly back to Texas. Phoenix seems to be the most logical option, so as not to have to winterize the Winnie (pay no attention to that recent snow covering on the saguaros!) So I head for McDowell Mountain Regional Park, a place I have been before, so I am familiar with the area. I will make this my base for a couple of days while I scout out suitable storage areas. Continue reading
When I asked Mark and Bobbie for recommendations on Valley of Fire hikes, both stressed emphatically, “You’ve got to hike the wash!” Of course, this means an unofficial, unmarked, unmaintained trail, which makes me a bit uneasy as a solo hiker, not having done much exploring of unofficial trails. But the great thing about hiking a wash is that the trail has been marked by nature. Just follow the gully, and you can’t go wrong. Continue reading
There has been steady, constant drizzle since I arrived at Valley of Fire State Park. The dismal gray skies match my gloomy mood. After so many days of perfect cobalt blue skies of Zion, it seems only fitting that I would be greeted by gray and gloom. Continue reading
I am the last of “the Red Rocks Gang” to leave Zion. Like the last leaf dangling precariously from the bare bones limbs of the cottonwoods long after they have dropped their brilliant golden color for the season, I am reluctant to let go.
Each goodbye has taken a piece of me. It is like pulling the bandaid off one hair at a time. But none stung as badly as the “final goodbye” because it signifies Continue reading
It’s my last day in Zion National Park, and I still haven’t done the one hike I came to do. I had my sights set on the Angel’s Landing hike since last August, when I made plans to join the Red Rocks Gang in Southern Utah. But I psyched myself out that I “wasn’t ready.” For one reason or another, I haven’t been in the right frame of mind to attempt this hike since I arrived. Conditions need be just right….weather that is cool but not rainy, a mid-week day with light crowds, and an opening when the rest of the gang is taking a day off or riding their mountain bikes, so I won’t miss out on a hike with the gang to a destination I have not yet seen. But once I realize time is running out, it’s already too late… Continue reading
It was with an extreme mixture of emotions that I checked Dad out of the rehab center this past week. He seemed to be doing so well mentally, but limited exercise was rapidly becoming a pitfall. Although he had both a Physical Therapist and an Occupational Therapist, neither seemed to be working him to the extent he worked himself, just the weeks leading up to his pneumonia. And no therapy on the weekends made me feel like we were losing ground. Continue reading
Zion has three extremely popular, highly sought out hikes in the park. The Trifecta includes The Narrows, wading up the Virgin River between 1,000 ft walls, Angel’s Landing, climbing a sliver of a 1,500 ft high backbone, and The Subway. Of these three, only the Subway requires a permit from the Zion Wilderness Center to enter. They only allow 80 hikers into this area on any given day, sometimes requiring a lottery to manage the demand. This hike is, according to NPS, “a strenuous 9-mile round-trip that requires route finding, creek crossing, and scrambling over boulders.” No joke. Continue reading
Zion National Park is “the gift that keeps on giving.” Although there are so many notorious destination hikes, such as the Narrows and Angel’s Landing, it seems as if one could drop down into any canyon in the park and find equally stunning scenery. Maybe not the adrenalin rush of guide rails of chains or special water boots required, but no less of a feast for the eyes. Continue reading
I am typically running behind on blog posts. I find it challenging to be a “real time blogger.” Like many areas of my life, I tend to procrastinate. Just like one of my favorite Joni Mitchell songs, “I’m always running behind the time…just like this train. Shakin’ into town with the brakes complaining.”
It’s even tougher to stay current when hiking with the Red Rocks Gang. Although I often “journal” a post in a timely manner, it takes me several days to do the photo downloading and selection. So when in a place like Zion where every single day offers a hike worthy of its own blog post, it’s really easy to fall behind in a hurry.
But not this blog post. It is coming to you “real time” Continue reading