Day 8: Zion National Park

Jeez. Today was TOUGH. We woke up early to clear the campsite and get on our way to the single hardest hike in the National Park- observation point. We had originally planned to do angels landing while we were here in the park but, due to a massive storm on July 11th, there was so much damage done to the trail that it’s closed indefinitely:( The sights on the trail were phenomenal but let me tell you, this hike is not for the faint of heart. It was a steep uphill climb about 85% of the way and even though we started the trail around 9 it climbed to 106 degrees F while we were there. I know some hikers love a good challenge and this would totally be the hike for them, but I was R U I N E D. I have a hard time keeping up with people as I’m a fairly slow hiker (I like to stop to admire the views, the plants, and keep my heart rate down so I don’t feel like throwing up- the normal stuff) but even hiking slowly with Haley I had to take so many break because good lord I thought I was gonna die. We finally got to the top and I had already drank over half of my water (nice one rach) so I had to preserve it for the hike down. I inhaled my lunch and realized that, god, I really didn’t want to go back down! I was so exhausted and even at the end of the hike when the group all met back up, I was in the back, walking with blistered, swollen, lead laden feet and a level of dehydration I had never felt before (I drink about a gallon of water a day REGULARLY, so in the heat not even over a half gallon gave me what I needed). After we finished the hike I sat with the group at a stream for a few minutes before leaving to head back to the visitors center to find water and sit in the AC for a little. To say that I was exhausted is an understatement. I put all of my energy into getting up and down that mountain so I was drained on all fronts for the rest of the night. I took some time to walk to the Virgin river that runs right next to the campsite to decompress and read and it was wonderful.

If you couldn’t tell, the moral of the story is to know your limits. It can be hard to be honest with your companions as to when you’re not doing too hot and when you need to stop. I’m lucky in the fact that our group is very open with each other and are learning a lot about how to communicate. Always tell people when you can’t do it, because sometimes it takes more bravery to quit than it does to start.

Stay curious and happy travels!