Moab

For our 2nd anniversary this last August we took a trip down to Moab and visited Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. It had been a long time since either of us had been down there so we were excited to be able to make the trip. We stayed at a really neat bed and breakfast called the Adobe Abode. We never got a picture but it was an awesome place to stay. They have a website if you want to check it out.

The first day there we went to Arches National Park where we did a bunch of hikes. The first one we did was Delicate Arch. That hike can be a little tough in the heat but the arch is absolutely amazing. Here are the pics.

Next we stopped by Sandune Arch. This is the only one I really had any memory of from coming as a child. It was still as cool as I remember it being back then. Here is a picture of Brian practicing his levitating skills.

And here is the well known Balanced Rock!

We then went over to Turret Arch and the Windows. Here are some shots we got while sitting inside the right window. We couldn't believe how amazing the view was from inside there.

And here is Double Arch. This arch is absolutely amazing. I think that it is my all-time favorite.

Our second day staying in Moab we drove out to the Canyonlands. We wanted to go to Dead Horse Point but we were turned off by the price we had to pay to see it. So we just visited the Canyonlands that day. I think the highlight of our visit there was Mesa Arch. The view through the arch is incredible.

Another trail worth going on is the Grand View Trail. The majority of the trail goes along the edge of a cliff with a view that is breathtaking. I'm not sure pictures will be able to portray this aspect but here a some for kicks.

Our third day in Moab we decided to go back to Arches and do the Devil's Garden trail. This trail is neat because it has 8 different arches you can see along the way. We only made it to 7 of them but they were all pretty amazing. We were able to see Tunnel Arch, Pine Tree Arch, Landscape Arch, Black Arch, Navajo Arch, Partition Arch and Double O Arch. The only one we didn't see was Private Arch.

Tunnel Arch

Pine Tree Arch

Landscape Arch

Partition Arch

Navajo Arch

Black Arch

Double O Arch

(from the back side)

It is incredible to me the amount of beauty the state of Utah has. I'm glad that we get to live in a state that has so much to offer. We really are lucky to be surrounded by so much beauty and the Arches and Canyonlands are great examples of this.

Pine Creek Canyon

The second hike we went on while we were in Zion was called Pine Creek Canyon. I was a little hesitant at first because it is a repelling hike but it ended up being really awesome! Here is a picture of the whole crew that went.

Some of our repelling pictures.

This is a 100 foot repell. It was a little nerve racking getting over the egde at the top but it was totally worth it.

And the beautiful view we saw when we got through all of the repells. There was about another 45 min hike out of the rest of the canyon. It was a beautiful hike and we are planning on doing it again. If anyone wants to come the next time we go let us know!!

Subway 2010

In the middle of July we took a trip down to Zion with a bunch of friends. We did two hikes while we were down there. The first one we went on was the Subway. It is 8 miles long and it's pretty much an all day hike. 90% of the hike is on a downgrade and it's absolutely gorgeous. The last 10% is what I call a "death march" straight up out of the canyon. But we won't focus on the last 10%. Here are some of the pictures we took.

Steph and me

This is why the hike is called the Subway.

This is the only good picture I could find with Brian in it. I now realize that he was the one taking most of the pictures.

I love this picture of Steph! I'm kind of jealous that I didn't get a shot like this too.

We found of little slide that was fun to go down!! Here's a video of me! I know... I look like a goof! But it was fun!

White Pine Lake

At the beginning of July we decided to take a weekend and go backpacking! We decided to go to White Pine Lake up Little Cottonwood Canyon. Here are some pictures from our trip!

We ran into a lot of streams that crossed the trail on our way up. Here is a little demonstration on how to cross a stream without getting your shoes wet.

We weren't actually expecting to run into snow in July. It definitely made the hike a lot more challenging than it needed to be.

Despite the snow we did make it to the top and the lake was beautiful. It was worth the hard hike.

Luckily we found a little patch of land that didn't have snow on it and we pitched our tent there.

We decided that if we do this hike again that we'll have to wait till later in the summer when there is less snow. That would have made things a little more enjoyable and less time consuming when it came to hiking. We would definitely recommend this hike to anyone just for the beauty of the lake at the top.