Zion National Park, Utah

Zion National Park is located in south-eastern Utah. It is a canyon (small compared to the Grand Canyon) with sandstone walls with shale caps. The highlight was a hike up the Narrrows of the Virgin River. It is an interesting hike because there is no trail and in most places the river runs right up to the walls of the narrow canyon. You have to walk in the water. We hiked about a mile up the river around sunset. The boys loved it! They did a lot of swimming and playing with the sand and mud.



Along the way there was a small waterfall. Actually, it was quite tall with only a little water. We saw a mule deer walking in the river. We also ran into many people that had walked down from the top. A 17 mile hike in the water that they started around 6 am. They were all pretty beat up by the time we saw them.



Here is a picture of the boys being sworn in as Junior Rangers. To earn you badge each kid must participate in a variety of activities specific to each National Park. In Zion the boys did a 3 hour program with rangers called "no arms, no legs, no problem". It was about snakes. The best part was it was no parents allowed. So Diane and Tom did a hike to the weeping wall where water seeps through the sandstone and continously rains down from an overhang in a cliff. Because of the water there is a hanging garden where plants grow right out of the wall. It was really cool!



The boys got to spend a lot of time in the water for a vacation in the desert. Here are some pictures of them tubing in the Virgin River just outside the park. As you can see they loved it!

Bryce National Park, Utah

Bryce National Park is located in south-central Utah. The primary geologic features are Hoodoos. They are spires that are formed by the repeated freezing and thawing of water (dew and frost). The high elevation of the park leads to more than 200 days a year of daily freeze/thaw. The rocks are layered in amazing colors, white, orange, pink, brown. We took a great hike down into the canyon.



One section of the hike was called Queen Victoria's Garden. As you can see, Diane really liked this section of the trail.



Here are Bart and Alex next to a feature called the "fist" They had a great time climbing on and around the formations.



The trail went through very narrow passages at times. There were even a couple of tunnels cut through the walls to allow passage. It was like visiting another planet.

Arches National Park, Utah

Arches National park in Eastern Utah was a wonderful place. Over 2000 Arches. Many are monstrous. This one is the North window. Too big to get the whole arch and still see Alex, Bart, and DIane. Unfortunately, we only had a day and a half to explore.



This is a small arch along the way on the hike to Delicate Arch. The hike is 1.5 miles with an elevation gain of 500 ft. Really no shade along the way and it was around 100 degrees. It was a challenge for the family, but we made it with the help of a five liters of water.



This is Delicate Arch. Probably the most recognizable arch in the world. It was very impressive. The small things in the center are Alex, Bart, and Diane to provide some scale.

Cataract Canyon, Canyonlands National Park

We visited Canyonlands National Park for an afternoon by car. But the highlight was a 2 day raft trip through the park. The best part was running the rapids of Catarcact Canyon. River rafting at its best. Many class 5 rapids. We all got soaked which was fine because it was around 100 degrees. We also got sandblasted and gnatblasted. Gnatblasted is when the raft is moving fast through clouds of gnats that pelt your face like bugs on a windshield.



Here is a great picture of Bart getting wet in a rapid called "Big Drop 2". We bought a special clear container to keep the camera dry. As you can see it was necessary.

Vancouver Island Rainforest

My favorite part was the temperate rainforest. It was amazing. Here is the family with a giant red cedar.

Vancouver Island Tidepooling

He is high and dry now but Alex got the wettest.

Shredding at Whistler

Bart and Alex enjoyed a 3 day snowboarding camp. Picture is with instructor Jamie