On Top Of The World...

Let me preface this by saying that I am not a hiker. I have had the desire to be awesome for awhile now though. Anthony loves to hike and I admire anyone that can hike and think happy thoughts at the same time. There are a couple of people in my life that I look up to because of their athletic abilities out in the wild and I wish I could pocket that talent. Pocket it for my own good.

Shanna and I have talked about being hikers. Anthony and his family have planned on doing the Havasupi hike this fall and after going back and forth on the idea, the two of us decided that we were able to make it happen. Unfortunately as soon as we decided to go, Anthony realized that all reservations were booked for the year. Bummer. He has another hike in mind but we thought we would take a smaller hike before we fully commited.

This is our journey and these are our stories....

Shanna arrived Friday night to prepare for our hike. I had a long 11 hour day at work. Aunt flow might have arrived that morning (Thanks Flow for arriving on such a long day....jerk) I was miserable all day and I upchucked my entire lunch...some might of even landed on my work pants. It was a less than awesome day. I felt anxious about our hike, knowing that flow was around.

Saturday we woke up early. Shanna and I packed up our provisions which consisted of water, candy, chapstick and toilet paper. Anthony was coming to keep us alive. He packed his gun, energy food, first aid kit, gps and probably 20 other life saving items.

Let me take a moment to explain the gun situation. The other night I had a horrific dream. Shanna, Anth and I were hiking and we came in contact with a Momma bear. She started mauling Shanna and after Anth and I tried to attack her we ended up with one less arm and a ripped off face. It was horrific. It was scary. And it messed me up. I was totally freaked out and was concerned about our impending hike. I told Anth and he decided he would take his gun....just in case. I wasn't sure if it was just a dream....or a premonition... of things to come, but I did not argue with him on the matter. 

We did a trail at the base of Big Cotton Wood Canyon. It was a beautiful day. It was in the 60-70's, hardly any wind and perfect. We put on our candy packs. We were ready.

 The hike was.....hard. I don't know how to describe it. It was all incline the entire time. I am not being dramatic. We literally climbed to the top of a mountain. The destination was a lake and every switchback felt more and more steep. We had to stop numerous time for me because I am a wuss, am cubby, am out of shape, emotional, etc. etc. It was 4 miles up. Mile 1 and 2 we were good. We ate lots of snacks and lots of water. Then mile 3 came. It lasted forever. Then I lost all hope.

 At the end of a switchback I looked up at some hikers ahead of us and they were so high up. My calves kept getting jolts of pain, charlie horse pain, and I took my glasses off like a soap opera star, buried my face in my filthy sweaty swollen hands and weeped. It was ridiculously dramatic but all hope was lost. Anthony gave me a treat and after a 5 minute break we continued. I didn't want to let them down. They both are so athletic...it seemed like a breeze to them. We climbed a rock slide, did some more switchbacks and at the bottom of a hill we were told by some hikers that, "You are so close! It is just right there!!! You basically made it!" I didn't really believe them, but we trudged on. AND THEY WERE RIGHT!

 The lake was beautiful and littered with exhausted hikers. Anthony took a stroll while Shanna and I rested and continued to eat our snacks. I was so proud  of us for making it to the top. We discovered that it was 3000 feet in elevation. Good heavens!!!

After a 30 minute break we started our descent. We didn't take any breaks and we hauled down. But even with our quick speed it still took 2 hours. Our legs were jello. Our knees were killing, our toes were aching from being shoved to the bottom of our toes, but we finally made it! 8 miles total.

I woke up today barely able to walk up and down stairs but I feel good about life. I still am not a hiker, in fact, at one pathetic moment I declared, "I am never hiking AGAIN!" I am more of a nature walker. I love observing my beautiful surrounding. Quickly walking up and down a mountain isn't enjoyable to me. I want to stop and take pictures and enjoy the waterfalls, bumblebees, caterpillers, birds and plant life. So if you want to take a stroll with me...please call me, I am willing to go.

I also want to mention how great of a husband and friend I have. Never did they tell me how incredibly annoying I was when I complained, sobbed, boo hoo'd and kept them from getting home quicker. They motivated me the entire time and never left me behind, but instead let me lead. I love them both and couldn't be more grateful for them!

Very top of the hike. You can see Utah Lake in the distance. We were on top of the world. BEAUTIFUL!

Oh and side note. We did not encounter a bear. Anth didn't have to shoot a Momma in the face nor did we lose any appendages. All in all, it was a successful day. 

Second side note. No, we will not be attending the family hike. This was an easy decision after yesterday. But we have decided to do a couple other hikes...smaller hikes...happier hikes.