Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Beautiful Bryce Canyon

What an amazing Memorial weekend we had camping in Bryce Canyon. I had never been there before and we were told that of the national parks, it would be one of the least crowded. So we packed up Friday morning and were off. We stayed until Monday at it was really one of the most beautiful places! The temperature was perfect during the day, mid 60's, and the nights were nice and chilly. The sky was the deepest blue I had ever seen! During our stay we went on several hikes. The first one was through all the Hoodoo's. My boys are awesome hikers and were able to do almost the whole thing without complaining! The rock formations are so cool and look like castles and frozen people.

Bryce Canyon boast one of the clearest skies on earth. On a good, clear, summer day, you can see out over 100 miles. It's incredible! Then at night you can see more stars than almost anywhere else. We went to a lecture on space at the visitors center, then went star gazing using some massive telescopes. We saw Saturn and Mars. They really are out there and Saturn really does have rings!
I just learned that all national parks have a "Junior Ranger" program for kids. They get a really fun activity book about the area that they have to fill out. Then they get sworn in and receive a really cool badge. We are going to do this every where we go from now on. Really fun!
The other long hike we went on was in the Grand Staircase National Monument. Mike had researched online and found this really cool slot canyon. We followed a little river all the way through it and had to keep jumping over it from side to side. The boys were great and almost never got their feet wet (almost).

It really was beautiful, peaceful, and relaxing. My boys were in their element out in the wilderness. They loved building fires, sleeping in a tent, hiking, exploring, climbing trees, and getting dirty. It takes a lot of work to pack everything and go, and then a lot of work to clean up after (I've done 5 loads of laundry so far and still have about 2 more to go), but it is so worth it!! I hope they learn to appreciate nature and this amazing planet we have to live on. Heavenly Father created some beautiful places for us and I am glad Mike is so willing to get us out there to enjoy them. It was perfect!

5 comments:

Stephanie said...

What BEAUTIFUL pictures! WHAT AWESOME BOYS to hike all those places! Mitchel, Max, and Mason really do have the PERFECT parents who LIKE camping, hiking, cooking outdoors, and DIRT! What more could BOYS ask for?? Soon Miles will be there hiking, too! You GO, Harkers!!

Laurie D. said...

I can't wait to take my kids there one day, and Joel for that matter, because he has never been. It's so beautiful. I'm glad you were still able to make the trip work. Everyone must have been feeling good.

Nate and Kristin said...

How fun! I haven't been there either so I love your pictures! It looks beautiful! I'm so impressed that your boys did all that hiking!

Steve & Brenda said...

Bryce is a beautiful place isn't it? And you all sure saw some beautiful rock formations, canyons, and the cherry on top...the star show. Sounds like a wonderful Harker vacation, memories for a lifetime!

Unknown said...

How fun! We went to Zions in Feb. and it was absolutely gorgeous! I'm glad you had a great time!