Kolob Arch, Kolob Canyons, Utah

The Kolob Arch trail has been on my 'to do' list for about 4 years now, and finally I got to do it all!! It completely lived up to my expectations, and then some!! Simply insane weekend that challenged us in every way. The hike in was easy. The first 4 miles of which we have done about 3 times before, never having enough time (or energy) to complete the entire 14 miles round trip in one day. So to get to the point where we always turn around, and knowing that we have our backpacks for an overnight stay was exciting to know we can explore further. Our camping spot was just perfect, it had its own little natural Spring set back a little ways that provided the perfect water source from which to filter our drinking water. The camp spot was about a mile from the actual arch and after setting up camp on Saturday, we took off to find the Arch. The last half mile of the trail is quite hard-going as it involves a lot of climbing over things and navigating your way round large boulders and fallen trees that block the path, but the trip is worth it. The Arch is huge and very impressive, equally impressive are the 2 gushing waterfalls spilling out the mountain high up above us. The weather was simply perfect - cloudless skies and bright, hot sunshine. Saturday night was nice - the camp spots are sufficiently spread out that you feel completely alone in the wilderness and it is extremely quiet and tranquil. We got up bright and early (aching and sore from the previous day's hike) and made a start on the long slog back to the car. The first 3 miles of the trail were flat and easy-going but once the trail started gaining elevation, the sun got higher in the sky and it was extremely hard-going. The last 2 miles of the trail are steep, uphill and quite honestly, down-right miserable with a heavy backpack. We crossed the creek about 12 times, navigating our way over stones and occasionally getting wet feet - fortunately the 'waterproof' sticker on my boots held up to its claim! Exhausted and with blistered and sore feet, I have never been so pleased, but in a way, sad, to complete a hike. This hike was amazing!Above & Below: At the junction with the LaVerkin Creek and Kolob Arch trails. The above pic is supposed to be some historic horse corral thing - the horses are long gone but the bazillions of flies still remain!

The river was flowing a great speed and volume - some of the trail had been wiped out in places and alternate routes had to be sort out.

Almost at the Arch!

Taking a break at one of the many hidden little wonders on this trail. This waterfall was beautiful.

Our home for the night. :)

Yay!! Made it to the Arch!

On the long slog back home - he may look like he is smiling but it is more of a grimace from the pain!!

South Fork of Taylors Creek - Kolob Canyon, Utah

After a long week stuck inside the office with gorgeous sunshine teasing me, I figured we would have enough time to strap on our boots and head down to Kolob for a quick hike before the sunset. The South Fork hike is one I only heard about a couple of weeks ago - it is an unofficial trail in the park but the trail is extremely well-maintained. It was like nothing I was expecting. Having hiked the Middle Fork of Taylor Creek many times, I figured the South Fork, in the next 'finger' canyon over would be much the same scenery - wow, was I wrong! The trail is fairly short compared to some of the death marches we have done, as Wade calls them :| We hiked about 3 miles round trip which was the perfect distance for the time we had on Friday night. The canyon starts off fairly wide but as you descend further in, the walls start to close on you - due to the recent rains having washed parts of the trail away, one is expected to make like a mountain goat in parts to rediscover the trail and climb your way over obstacles that block your path. The start of the trail

The hike leads you up to the top of a hill that was made by an ancient landslide which is really interesting as the terrain and plant life up there changes considerably. The deeper into the canyon we got, the deeper the snow got - another big surprise given how warm it was in the main canyon. As we neared the end of the trail, we were sinking in drifts up to 18 inches deep - the snow had covered trees and wild roses so as we sunk in the snow, we were getting pretty scraped and cut from obstacles that lay hidden under the snow.

Our final destination ... gorgeous.

Finally we the canyon narrowed to the point where we couldn't hike any further and so we stopped by the stream in the most wonderful spot and enjoyed the peace and solitude of our final destination. The walls of the canyon at this point are made of different colored sandstone with little alcoves / caves and you could spend hours looking at their walls and the colors. Last night's hike reminded me so much of why Kolob is one of my favourite places on this earth.

Temple of Sinawava / Riverside Walk

This is hike #12 of 22 we will be doing this year; at just 2 miles round-trip, mostly on a flat, paved surface, it is one of the easiest hikes in the park but affords gorgeous scenery. The Riverside Walk serves as the gateway to the famous Zion Narrows. From the moment you leave the car parking lot, you enter the narrowing and looming walls of the Canyon before you. Due to the recent rains, the waterfalls and river were flowing good and added beauty to the trail. We have hiked this trail many times, always stopping at the point in the picture above, which is the start of the Narrows hike which we will be completing this summer as soon as the weather warms up, and the water slows down and gets warmer!

The picture below doesn't do it justice - this waterfall was spurting out fast and impressive from the Heaps Canyon - notice the 2 huge mounds of snow/ice it has created toward the bottom of the picture?!

Zion National Park, Utah

Since we haven't been out of town in a while, we decided to head to Zion National Park for a couple of days for a treat. Zion is Zion - it needs no introduction or explanation - it is simply my most absolute favourite place in the entire world. I love it so much! While there, I picked up magazine that details 22 of the top hikes in the park. We have done several of them already but it is my goal to complete all the hikes in this coming year! The weather was not the greatest on this trip but it didn't in any way ruin the trip - the heavy rain and snow only made the park more beautiful. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Above: Driving up-Canyon to the Temple of Sinawava trailhead.
View from our hotel on Saturday night after the rain stopped briefly to reveal a gorgeous sunset.
This picture, above, was taken at the same time as the one above it, just on the other side of the road.
All the times I have been to Zion NP, I can't believe that I had never discovered this beautiful waterfall, right off the main Canyon road.

Medal of Bravery

Valentine's Day bought a big surprise for Wade after he and a co-worker were awarded a Medal of Bravery each from our Sheriff for an incident they responded on together last Summer. The award is a huge honor and reflects the courage, bravery and actions they displayed that day, that in the Sheriff's words, were above and beyond the call of regular duty. I am so proud of him!Wade & Quinn with their awards.

Wade and the Sheriff.

Kolob Canyon: Taylors Creek Trail & Double Arch Alcove

We are having incredible weather for this time of year; it's insane how warm and pleasant it has been. So off we set on another adventure back to Kolob Canyon to do the Taylor's Creek / Double Arch Alcove hike which we have done many times before but each season brings new beauty to the trail and we always seem to find new things to look at that we hadn't noticed before. The trail is 5 miles round trip, culminating in the most beautiful and natural double arch alcove. When my mum came to visit in June last year, she did the first mile of the trail, but due to inappropriate footwear on her part, we turned back and she didn't get to see the rest of this amazing hike.. so this post is dedicated to Mum so she can see what she missed.


Despite a gorgeous 51f in town, once in the canyon, the sun rarely hits a lot of the trail so there is still quite a bit of snow and thick ice.

The rock formations and textures along the way are so pretty.

Above is the lower arch/alcove and the picture below is the upper arch/alcove.

The Arch is amazing. The lower arch that you can walk in is huge and the walls/rock are lined with all these amazing colors and plant life (in summer) that grows to the porous rock. The second arch is clear up high and not visible when stood in the lower arch, apparently there are very few natural arches of this kind in the world which is why this one is so unique. Once at the lower arch, there is an optional side trail which not many people seem to know about that continues on about a half mile further to a section in the rock that has been carved out, probably over millions of years by this waterfall. It is insane, and these pictures nowhere near do it justice. In the picture below, we are stood inside the lower alcove and the mound of snow next to us is from all the dripping water; it was frozen solid!

Below is the waterfall in the rock.

LaVerkin Creek Trail

The promise of pleasant weather had us lacing up our hiking boots and heading 20 miles South to the beautiful Kolob Canyons area (the Northern section of Zion National Park). We decided to tackle a part of the LaVerkin Creek Trail which we had not previously hiked. When we got there, we were surprised by the amount of snow still laying on the ground - well over a foot in the more shaded areas. We started the hike about 12 noon and the mild sun had already melted some of the snow away to expose the muddy trail beneath.. and as the sun got higher and melted the ground more, the ground got even muddier! The combination of hiking in thick mud one minute and deep snow the next really took its toll on our feet and by the end of our hike, it was quite clear that the 'waterproof' label on our hike boots was a false claim!! The trail was gorgeous - it descends to the Canyon floor for the first 2 hours of the hike... the hike back out was the issue - 2 hours of hiking uphill with sodden boots caked with mud. It was our goal to make it to the Kolob Arch but at 13 miles round trip, best achieved on a very long summer day, we knew this goal was impossible. We made it about a half mile past backcountry campsite #3 before resting near some waterfalls ready to start the long hike back up the Canyon. This is a little over half way to the Kolob Arch. It made for a perfect afternoon hike in gorgeous surroundings. But wow, are our legs screaming with pain today!!

Lunch stop - a little over half way of the total hike trail.

Photos not in order - this below pic is the beginning of the hike.

Below: The hike criss-crosses the creek for a while.

The frozen creek in some places made it easier to cross!