Saturday, October 10, 2009
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
September Wrap Up
September went by so quickly. Here is a brief recap of our month in Zion National Park.
Jordan and I have been constantly working at the resort. We meet such interesting people from all around the world each week. Some guests are friendly, courteous and so happy to be here. While others hate it the moment they drive into the resort. My favorite guests to come were an older couple who walked in and immediately asked to be upgraded to the best place possible (this was before they ever saw where they were staying), next they asked for organic tea to be brought to them each morning, the music be turned off at the pool, the hot tub to have more bubbles and the temperature to be cooled down, and my favorite, terry cloth bathrobes, which they walked around in (with nothing underneath) their entire stay. We do our best to accommodate each guest but there are some who we can't help but be completely entertained by.
We worked the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort booth at the St George Marathon Expo. We sat at the booth, handed out fliers, signed people up for a drawing and answered questions. Most people asked about Zion National Park not the resort and it is surprising how much I have learned about Zion's hiking trails, restrictions, hours, ect over the last few years. I felt pretty knowledgeable. As a bonus for going to the expo the resort bought us dinner.
Jordan went with our friends Jonathan and Issac to The San Rafael Swell. He spent a few days in several slot canyons TA-ing for Issacs BYU's canyoneering class. He loved being with the boys for a few days amd playing in the canyons. Sadly while Jordan was there he forgot his backpack along with our camera so no pictures for awhile.
We learned through experience the importance of keeping an eternal perspective, having hope and how comforting the temple can be.
We celebrated our one year anniversary!!! Originally we had planned on going to the St George temple and then to a Thai resturant for dinner. We realized that both of us were working and that our plan would have to be altered. So after talking it over we decided to save up our money and celebrate a little later by going to the Tuachan in St George to see Thriller for Halloween with Thai food before the show. I am so excited! Jordan is loving, caring, protective, funny, hard working and my best friend. I feel so blessed to be building a life with him and excited to see where the next few years take us.
Jordan and I have been constantly working at the resort. We meet such interesting people from all around the world each week. Some guests are friendly, courteous and so happy to be here. While others hate it the moment they drive into the resort. My favorite guests to come were an older couple who walked in and immediately asked to be upgraded to the best place possible (this was before they ever saw where they were staying), next they asked for organic tea to be brought to them each morning, the music be turned off at the pool, the hot tub to have more bubbles and the temperature to be cooled down, and my favorite, terry cloth bathrobes, which they walked around in (with nothing underneath) their entire stay. We do our best to accommodate each guest but there are some who we can't help but be completely entertained by.
We worked the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort booth at the St George Marathon Expo. We sat at the booth, handed out fliers, signed people up for a drawing and answered questions. Most people asked about Zion National Park not the resort and it is surprising how much I have learned about Zion's hiking trails, restrictions, hours, ect over the last few years. I felt pretty knowledgeable. As a bonus for going to the expo the resort bought us dinner.
Jordan went with our friends Jonathan and Issac to The San Rafael Swell. He spent a few days in several slot canyons TA-ing for Issacs BYU's canyoneering class. He loved being with the boys for a few days amd playing in the canyons. Sadly while Jordan was there he forgot his backpack along with our camera so no pictures for awhile.
We learned through experience the importance of keeping an eternal perspective, having hope and how comforting the temple can be.
We celebrated our one year anniversary!!! Originally we had planned on going to the St George temple and then to a Thai resturant for dinner. We realized that both of us were working and that our plan would have to be altered. So after talking it over we decided to save up our money and celebrate a little later by going to the Tuachan in St George to see Thriller for Halloween with Thai food before the show. I am so excited! Jordan is loving, caring, protective, funny, hard working and my best friend. I feel so blessed to be building a life with him and excited to see where the next few years take us.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Zion National Park has sunsets unlike anything I have seen before. They are breathtaking. 
Jordan and I have been spending most of our days working long hours and spending our nights around the campfire, in the hot tub or watching movies with our coworkers on the projector.
It was very busy over Labor day weekend but slowed down enough in the last few days that we were able to go to dinner and the movies with most of the staff.
We are looking forward to hiking another canyon but are waiting for the flash flood weather to pass before trying our luck. We feel pretty blessed to be in Zion this fall for Jordan's second internship. He has been given some pretty incredible opportunities that he wouldn't have found anywhere else.
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Western Legends Round up
Jordan and I went to the Western Legends Round up in Kanab, Utah over the weekend. It is a weekend of old western movie stars, fiddling, quilting, tractor pulling, a lot of John Wayne and for the first time a rodeo. As we were leaving for Kanab we noticed a fire on the hill across from the park. From the amount of smoke we thought it could be in the park or near the resort. We found out that it was a controlled fire almost 200 miles away!
Once in Kanab we spent the evening walking around looking at booths, stopped for pizza and then went to the first ever Kane county rodeo. We met up with some of our friends from the ranch and had a lot of fun. At the rodeo they had calf roping, break away roping, team roping, barrel racing, mutton busting and my favorite bronc and bull riding.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Orderville Canyon
At the trail head
Remnants of a flash flood a few months earlier.
Finding obstacles along the way.
Revisiting the place in the narrows where Jordan proposed a year earlier.
Welcome to the Narrows.
"Orderville Canyon is an adventure through a slot canyon, so spectacular that it rivals the grandest of them all - the Zion Narrows. At the start of the route, juniper and pine trees abruptly give way, as hikers drop into a brushy waterway and see their first glance of a waterfall, if it has been a wet year. Rock walls and waterfalls slowly start to populate the stream as towering vertical barricades enclose the canyon. A trip through this slot is not a meager undertaking. Several obstacles requiring competent down climbing skills, and rope work complicate the 10 to12 mile trek. This one-way 'hike' begins outside the eastern boundary of the park and ends at the Temple of Sinawava in Zion Canyon."
Jordan, our friend Adella and I started our technical hike to Orderville canyon around ten in the morning. Most of the morning was spent as an easy down hill hike into the canyon. Once in the slot canyon we realized rather quickly the danger of slot canyons and flash flooding. We saw trees stacked one on top of each other climbing half way up the canyon wall. We had to weave ourselves through the wreckage in places in order to continue.
We located our first obstacle, a large boulder. We found the bolt and secured the rope. Jordan was the first to climb down landing in thick mud and surrounded by hundreds of bees. Adella and I followed next down wedging our bodies in the center of the rock and chimneying our way to the bottom where Jordan guided us across the mud trying to keep us out of it as much as possible.
We weren't hiking for very long when we found we were hiking in shallow water and finding our next obstacle another boulder. This time we had two choices: a hard down climb which should probably be rappelled or a shorter down climb along the side of the canyon wall. The tricky thing about this was the water being trapped along the side of the canyon created a small and fast moving waterfall. Jordan anchored the rope and climbed down the waterfall, splashing into cold, deep water. He swam to the edge and Adella was the next to go. She also climbed down without much trouble. As I adjusted the rope in my hands I started to climbed down the rock. Water was splashing and moving very quickly around me. I couldn't find a foot hold! Everywhere I placed my foot it slipped on the slick rock. I placed all my weight on my left foot and tried to continue down. Almost instantly my foot slipped and I fell down, scrapping my elbow along the rock and landing in cold water. I quickly swam to the side, Jordan checked my arm (bleeding but fine) and we continued on.
I had heard there were only two obstacles in Orderville canyon. Thinking we had successfully managed our way through both of them I relaxed. This only lasted a short time. We found ourselves climbing down logs, boulders, and swimming through dark, deep and COLD water to reach our final stretch exiting Orderville canyon into the Narrows. Seen we started seeing other hikers who casually hiked along in the river. We one the other hand were exhausted, cold and ready to be out of the water. The narrows felt like they would never end. Once we reached the river walk we dried off, took the shuttle to our car and drove as fast as we could to make it back to the resort in time for dinner. At dinner I started to notice all my cuts, bruises and swelling ankle. All of that didn't bother me for a second. I was so proud of myself. I had hiked twelve miles, overcame my fears, and loved every moment.
Jordan, our friend Adella and I started our technical hike to Orderville canyon around ten in the morning. Most of the morning was spent as an easy down hill hike into the canyon. Once in the slot canyon we realized rather quickly the danger of slot canyons and flash flooding. We saw trees stacked one on top of each other climbing half way up the canyon wall. We had to weave ourselves through the wreckage in places in order to continue.
We located our first obstacle, a large boulder. We found the bolt and secured the rope. Jordan was the first to climb down landing in thick mud and surrounded by hundreds of bees. Adella and I followed next down wedging our bodies in the center of the rock and chimneying our way to the bottom where Jordan guided us across the mud trying to keep us out of it as much as possible.
We weren't hiking for very long when we found we were hiking in shallow water and finding our next obstacle another boulder. This time we had two choices: a hard down climb which should probably be rappelled or a shorter down climb along the side of the canyon wall. The tricky thing about this was the water being trapped along the side of the canyon created a small and fast moving waterfall. Jordan anchored the rope and climbed down the waterfall, splashing into cold, deep water. He swam to the edge and Adella was the next to go. She also climbed down without much trouble. As I adjusted the rope in my hands I started to climbed down the rock. Water was splashing and moving very quickly around me. I couldn't find a foot hold! Everywhere I placed my foot it slipped on the slick rock. I placed all my weight on my left foot and tried to continue down. Almost instantly my foot slipped and I fell down, scrapping my elbow along the rock and landing in cold water. I quickly swam to the side, Jordan checked my arm (bleeding but fine) and we continued on.
I had heard there were only two obstacles in Orderville canyon. Thinking we had successfully managed our way through both of them I relaxed. This only lasted a short time. We found ourselves climbing down logs, boulders, and swimming through dark, deep and COLD water to reach our final stretch exiting Orderville canyon into the Narrows. Seen we started seeing other hikers who casually hiked along in the river. We one the other hand were exhausted, cold and ready to be out of the water. The narrows felt like they would never end. Once we reached the river walk we dried off, took the shuttle to our car and drove as fast as we could to make it back to the resort in time for dinner. At dinner I started to notice all my cuts, bruises and swelling ankle. All of that didn't bother me for a second. I was so proud of myself. I had hiked twelve miles, overcame my fears, and loved every moment.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
The Subway in Zion Canyon
We decided to try hiking the ten mile trail to the Subway in Zion Canyon from the top down.
You start up in the ponderosa, then you go through slick rock, red rock, white rock, different kinds of vegetation and the deep slot canyon and then the adventure begins.
The first obstacle is a six foot drop into the canyon floor.
You start up in the ponderosa, then you go through slick rock, red rock, white rock, different kinds of vegetation and the deep slot canyon and then the adventure begins.
The first obstacle is a six foot drop into the canyon floor.
Continue down canyon. A few nice pot holes can be avoided by clambering around the sides. You then reach your first required swim. The water is deep and extremely cold.
When it was my turn to swim I jumped in, immediately my body went into shock from the cold water, I gasped and tried to swim across as quickly as possible but my pack was weighing me down. I swam to the edge where I could calm myself down and continued to swim the remainder of the pot hole. Hiking the canyon was beautiful but cold. With no sunlight to warm up we shook as we continued through the canyon. As we reached each rappel into another pool of water it took all the will power we could muster to lower ourselves into another ice cold pool of water and swim. We would have one person stand at the edge of the water reminding the swimmer to breathe and encourage them as they swam across the freezing cold water. 
Once we reached the subway we were excited and exhausted. But this is only the half way point. Once you leave the canyon you follow a stream following a path along both sides of the bank crossing the stream several times. Two to three hours later you need to find the trailhead out. This is difficult and if you miss it you can spend hours lost.
Once we reached the subway we were excited and exhausted. But this is only the half way point. Once you leave the canyon you follow a stream following a path along both sides of the bank crossing the stream several times. Two to three hours later you need to find the trailhead out. This is difficult and if you miss it you can spend hours lost.
We luckily ran into another group who knew where to go and helped us find our way to the last obstacle a steep 400 foot climb. I was exhausted at this point and practically crawled up the trail.
After the hike we got back to the resort, ordered pizza and crawled into bed. Happy with our day and what we accomplished.
After the hike we got back to the resort, ordered pizza and crawled into bed. Happy with our day and what we accomplished.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Update from Zion
Jordan and I have officially been in Zion for over a week now! We have been really busy but have loved every minute of being here. I really like working at the front desk. I love talking to people from all over world, helping guests and how fast the time passes. For the next two weeks I am training for the night shift (from 2:30pm-10:30pm) so Jordan and I don't see each other very often but we do sneak in trips to the park and hike around when we can. We are attempting the subway from the top down tomorrow. We will be rappelling, swimming and hiking for nine to ten hours!! A brutal hike but one of my all time favorite.
Jordan is kept busy from the moment he wakes up until he goes to bed. I hear all the time how helpful, kind and hardworking he is. And no matter how busy he gets he still finds small moments to spend with me throughout the day. It makes me smile and reminds me how lucky I am to have such a great husband.
Jordan is kept busy from the moment he wakes up until he goes to bed. I hear all the time how helpful, kind and hardworking he is. And no matter how busy he gets he still finds small moments to spend with me throughout the day. It makes me smile and reminds me how lucky I am to have such a great husband.
Saturday, August 01, 2009
Edge of the Cedars Museum
We stopped at the Edge of the Cedars Musuem in Blanding. It turned out to be a really fun stop.
House on Fire
Hovenweep National Monument
Hovenweep was incredible. It has been one of the places I have wanted to visit for years and was so excited that we took the detour to go. We stopped in at the visitors center and watched a video on the history of Hovenweep and the people who once lived there. It was so interesting. 
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