July 14

July 14

Today was our last day on the bikes. It was a shorter day but really tough because it was crazy technical! The trail, Thunder Mountain, rode over the spine of the mountain. That means we rode along the top peak of the mountain. The views were amazing and the landscape was very different. Really orange, dry rocks. Hoodoos were all over the place and it was like a different planet.

I was a little disappointed with myself today because I wiped out on a killer switchback about 4 miles in, didn't really hurt myself but my face was inches away from smashing into a large rock. It pretty much scared the shit out of me and the rest of the switchbacks I only rode maybe 10% of. I was just really freaked out and didn't want to hurt myself on the last day. Plus my arms are so worn out I think my form was slacking a little because my arms kept shaking and I couldn't keep them locked straight on the descents. Oh well, Donna says you should ride to ride another day, meaning don't kill yourself!

The last mile of the ride was smooth, downhill single track that gently wound down the mountain into our lunch spot. After lunch we packed up and jumped in the van. We are now headed back to St. George where I am dropping Ben off at the airport and then heading south to Vegas. I can't wait for a shower, bed, and to see Nick!

Looking back at the trip it was the most physically challenging 4 days of my life. I pushed myself cardio wise harder than ever. I used my muscles more than I have in any weight lifting class. Mostly I had to push down my fear more than I ever have in my life. Day one I was hurling myself down the mountain knowing nothing about sitting behind my seat and keeping my elbows locked on descents. On day 2 I climbed over 2000 feet starting at an elevation of 9000 feet. I was so tired at the end of the ride that the last hour I was riding down a killer steep mountain while hallucinating from exhaustion. Day 3, the easy day, sent me face first into a mud puddle and smashed my leg between a rock and my bike. Day 4 I was riding along a trail on the rim of a mountain peak, about as wide as two bike tires, with zero room for error or you fall down the rock face. Now none of these things would have killed me, probably, but I could have been seriously injured. While this sounds like I didn't like it, I totally did! I had the most amazing experience ever and I would do it again in a second. I made some great friends and learned so much about myself and pushing the limits of the human body.  I think that on a slightly less challenging course a bunch of my friends and family would enjoy it too. 

July 13

July 13

Today was so fun! We decided to do an easier route today than the main part of the group. Greg, Tess Ben and I stayed on a double track part of the trail and it was a lot easier technical wise. It was still a tough cardio and strength challenge. We did 16 miles and the first 8 were pretty much steady uphill climbs. We ate lunch half way through but instead of eating I cleaned all the caked on mud off myself...

It started raining right when we got to the trail head and we stayed under the overhang till it slowed down. That made the trail pretty wet and there were lots of small dips that filled with water. About 2 miles onto the trail we hit a dip and my front tire hit a rock that stopped my bike and sent me over the handlebars head first into the ankle deep puddle of mud. It was everywhere! Face, body, helmet-- all got it. I wasn't hurt though so I was happy. Back on the bike. Less than a mile after, I hit another dip and my back tire slipped out and I rammed into the ground on my left side. Still nothing major, but I got a few pretty bad bruises on my legs. The rest of the trip was ok as far as falling goes.

We actually had a blast today. We all joked and laughed a lot. Took tons of pictures and took our time on the ride enjoying the views and the company. The last mile or so Tess and Greg pulled ahead of Ben and I. We were talking and laughing and goofing around, and totally misses the van which was parked right off the road. I don't know how we missed it, but we ended up doing an extra 2 miles or so. We didn't even realize we were on the wrong trail until we went down this giant hill and saw the highway and were like oh shit! The funny thing is we even passed a horse ranch and were like, oh horses:) so we started trekking it up the hill we just coasted down, pretty discouraged but laughing our asses off.

We were hoping Tess would come looking for us, which she did, but she brought the van, trailer and the rest of the group with her. All the bikes were loaded on top of the van and the whole crew was worried that something happened to us. I only felt bad for Tess because we really scarred her. And for Ben and I because we were a bit embarrassed!

We got into the van and made it to camp where we set up and then got to take showers! It was a bag shower but it was fresh and warm. I was the first to go, and as per the trend of the trip, I got lost finding the shower! I felt pretty retarded, but the shower was amazing. I can now add taking a naked shower in the woods to my list of cleaning habits.

Sitting here by the fire for our last night I am a little sad that I will be leaving my new friends. Dona and Greg and I were talking about doing the white rim tour at the end of May next year. It is a lot easier and goes through Canyon Lands. Maybe I can get someone else to do it too??  That would be fun!!  Any takers?

July 12

July 12

I slept well last night with the exception of being petty cold and having to go to the bathroom at 1:30 am. The only good thing about having to pee was that I saw the stars which were again incredible. I was the last one awake, which surprised me. I missed the coffee call but there was still enough there when I got out to the kitchen. For breakfast we had fruit yogurt cereal and French toast. Delicious!

We headed out of camp on our bikes around 9 am and immediately started climbing. Holy hell, there was a ton of climbing! Just this morning we climbed 1000 feet. The views were spectacular and it was shocking to see how high we climbed. Ben and I did awesome on the climbs and were really proud of ourselves. There was one section where we had to get off the bikes and maneuver our bikes under a fallen tree and then duck under ourselves. I was thinking "this is some crazy shit! I can't believe I am doing this!

 

After a shit load of climbing we had a good break of easy flats and then went into at least a 1/2 mile of rock field. My ass was really hurting but Tess gave me a good riding tip to stand up and hold the seat between you thighs. That felt a lot better.

We started back after lunch and Rob gave Ben and I the option of taking the road back instead of the way we came. We decided to go back the way we came because we wanted to ride the down part that we climbed. We were like, "We can do it. Well just take it slow and walk of we need to." Well, that was freaking crazy! I can't even describe how insane the ride was. It was crazy long, crazy steep up and ridiculous downs. When we were almost back and going down the part we climbed in the morning I couldn't BELIEVE I made it up before. This is not a beginner’s trip. Seriously this is the hardest thing I have ever done. It is also the most insane thing, even on my terms. I mean I do some stuff that i probably shouldn't do. I know I push the limits sometimes with safety and pushing me body.  But let me tell you, this is beyond anything I have ever even thought of doing. Ok, enough complaining and scaring mom:0)  It wasn’t so bad;)

A great part of the trip has been the weather. It has been really cool and shady. The first ride we had some sprinkling but it felt good and refreshing. It cools off at nighttime. This afternoon it got a little warm and we were sweating, especially during the insanely long part of the trail when we walked up the ridiculous steep slopes!

I have stayed very hydrated on he trip, with the help of my very cool hydration pack. So I have not gotten light headed or anything, but I was hallucinating during the very end of the ride. The shadows and logs were tricking me and I kept thinking they were people. I can't describe the exhaustion. Ben and I agreed today was harder than running a marathon. I mean, we were riding for 8 hours at 9-10 thousand feet, on steep and rocky terrain, with a huge 29 pound bike! As Mer would say, "OMG WTF was I thinking? I think I'm dieing. Might actually BE dieing!"

Finally, we made it back to camp after 8 hours of riding! We rode about 16 miles and climbed over 2000 vertical feet. We all went down to the lake to clean up and I was so delirious and exhausted that I wasn't really thinking, or standing for that matter, and grabbed my towel and soap but didn't change into my swim suit. Dummy? You bet! After the long ride to the lake I was not about to turn around so I went in my underwear, almost a swim suit. The water helped wake me up and turned my stumbling exhaustion into that amazing accomplished exhaustion where you are content just sitting and staring into space, or in my case writing all this down in a delirious stupor.

Stats:

17.56 miles

2000 feet vertical

July 11

July 11

We loaded the vans this morning and headed out. There are 8 people on the trip, 2 being guides. We are driving up the mountain and passing so many evergreens I don't feel like I'm in the desert. The air is already cooler and I'm wishing I brought more shirts with sleeves. We passed Dixie national park and the trees have turned to Aspens. Did you know that aspens are one of the largest organisms? Their roots are all connected so if one tree dies all the connected trees die. It can wipe out all the trees within eye sight.

We got on the trail and holly crap! Talk about diving in head first! The trail was NOT a beginner trail. There were tons of ups and downs, very technical spots, and some major heart attaches. I fell three times, one was not my fault. Ben, an administrator at a private school in Miami, is a beginner like me and at one part he stopped in the trail but then started up again so I didn't stop. Well then he stopped again and I had to stop really fast. Luckily I didn't run into him but I couldn't clip out fast enough and tipped right over. I didn't get banged up or anything though. Both the other falls were because I got stuck on an up-hill in too high a gear and didn't clip out in time. Again, no injuries except maybe small bruises. Nothing like last time!

We rode about 7.5 miles into our camp where we set up our tents and then had lunch. We had deli sandwiches and hung out for a little while. Then everyone got ready for the afternoon ride. Ben and I were pretty nervous but the second ride was a lot easier than the first. We rode over single track rolling hills to a lava field of molten rock. It is very out of the ordinary. I wish I knew the history to know why it is there.

Before we went on the afternoon ride Tess, one of our guides, switched my clipless pedals out for platform pedals. It was so much better in most ways. It was a lot more safe feeling because I wasn't locked in and could put my feet down if I was about to fall. It wasn't as good because on an uphill climb I couldn't pull up on the pedals so the climbs were harder. My feet slipped off the pedals a few times too. But in all the platform pedals equal less injury, so that is what I'm sticking with.

When we made it back to camp a few of us went down to the lake to "shower". The walk to the lake was really long and it didn't look it from camp. I thought it would be about .5 miles, but I think it is more like 1.5-2 miles. Not exactly the thing I wanted to do after all that riding, and in a swim suit. I also made the mistake of walking straight to the lake through the field instead of taking the path. It turned all marshy and muddy and I started thinking, "I wonder if there are snakes here?"  Walk faster! The water was really cold, a little colder than Powell but the air was also colder so it was not a pleasant experience.

After the bath we had dinner. Chicken, salad and mashed potatoes. Now we are sitting by the fire and going to make s’mores...again. They had hot tea for us too, which was amazing because I was freezing and it was very relaxing. I can't even describe how my legs feel right now. They are so exhausted and feel like jello.

Everyone keeps talking about bikes and parts and all this stuff that I have no clue about. I can't believe how over my head I am with all this. I guess I will be a lot better in a few days!

Some words about camp:  we are settled in a spot that looks out on the lake and the mountains/bluffs/ridges are all around us. The trail heads from today and tomorrow are right out of our camp site. Tess and Rob set up camp with a full kitchen including stove, grill, dish station and drink station. We have these great chairs to lounge in and we don't have to lift a finger. That is really nice considering even my fingers are sore. It's 10:30 pm and I can't believe I am still up. 

Stats for today:

Camped and Rode in Dixie national forest

9000 elevation

Rode 16 miles

One cut on left ankle when I dropped my bike in myself and the chain hit the top of my ankle--dummy.

Afternoon ride on the Navajo lake trail

Morning ride on the Virgin River Rim Trail

1:45 am-- just had to pee outside. The stars are amazing. The air is cold but my bag is keeping me warm. The people at the site next to us have this strange native am sounding music on. It's odd to me that it is still on.

July 11th

I depart this morning on my bike trip. I am really excited but nervous too. I really hope I am not in over my head. Keeping up cardio wise I am not worried about, but I hope there are not too many technical parts of the trail. I don’t really want those bruises to come back! I will meet my group in about 2 hours and we will take a van to Cedar Breaks National Monument, which is about 75 miles away. We will ride along the Virgin River Rim Trail which goes along the edge of the Markagunt Plateau. Then we will camp at Navajo Lake for 2 nights. Doesn’t it sound like I really know what I am doing? Well, I just copied that from the itinerary, but I am excited to see what they are talking about!

It will be at least until the 14th before I can post again, and probably not until the 15th because I think I am going to be pretty tired when I finish this adventure. I miss and love all of you and really wish you were experiencing this with me. Out for now:)

July 10th

July 10th

We got off the boat this morning and packed up the cars. I headed off to St. George. The drive took me about 3 hours. I took my time though, stopping in the towns to go to the bathroom and stretch. The views were amazing and I couldn’t stop smiling the entire drive. I kept thinking, “How did I get so lucky to experience this?”

I arrived in St. George, UT around 3:00 pm and checked into my hotel. I couldn’t wait to get in the shower! I unpacked the car and then took, not kidding, about a 30 minute shower. The water felt amazing, the soap smelled amazing, the towels were clean and I used 2 of them!! Oh, the small things in life. I worked on this blog, repacked my things, and enjoyed the quiet and air conditioning for a while and then ventured out of my room.

There was a strip mall one exit down on the highway that had a few stores so I walked around there for a while. It was 108 degrees out when I got in my car at 7:30 pm. After dinner at Outback, by myself, which I was not a fan of and may not ever do again (that’s why they invented take-out) I headed back to the hotel. At this point it was about 9:30 pm and it had cooled off to 105 degrees. What a relief! Really, though, it didn’t feel that hot. When I was walking around I didn’t feel hot or sweaty or anything. Put me on a bike in the middle of the day and I think I will be singing a different tune!

July 9th

July 9

Today is our last day on the boat. We will be getting off tomorrow and heading our different directions. Me to St. George, UT, about 3 hours South and West of Page. The Peacocks to Grand Junction and then to Parker. I am glad to be getting off the boat because I am sick of the nasty toilet and a shower with clean water instead of lake water sounds pretty good right now. I am sad though that I will not see this amazing lake and cliffs again for at least a couple years.

The day passed slowly with nothing really eventful. We moved the boat closer to the docks but a huge storm was rolling in so we docked earlier than we wanted to. We had to put out 6 anchors, and I am pretty sick of anchors! Watching the storm roll in was awesome! The clouds were dark in the distance but it never really hit us. The wind and waves, however, hit us hard! Ryan, Mark and Travis wrestled with the speed boat while I took pictures of them. I thought about helping but it looked a bit painful getting thrown into the side of the boat, so I stayed put.

We went off the slide in the evening and took showers on the back of the boat. Nothing sexier than a chick in a Speedo shaving her legs on the back of a boat! I’m too sexy for the shower, too sexy for the shower…

One more night under the stars, one more morning waking up to the sun rising. I will miss you Lake Powell!

July 8th

July 8

I started the morning by swimming across the cove before the boats started coming. I am guessing it is about 200-250 meters across. Jane was giving everyone the play-by-play as I went across. “oh there she goes. She’s under, no she’s up, no she’s under. One more time under. I think she is going to drown. She’s not going to make it.” It’s called breast stroke, Jane! The water was really refreshing and it felt good to get some exercise. We are constantly moving and doing stuff out here, but it’s hard to do the kind of exercise I am used to.

After we made breakfast Mark, Travis and I got in the speed boat and rode to Rainbow Bride National Monument. I had been before but last time I rode on a jet-ski and didn’t take my camera. The way there was beautiful. The sun was up, the rocks were glowing, the water was flat. The way there the wind was in our face so the ride took a little longer. We are docked at mile 39 and Rainbow Bridge is at mile 49. That doesn’t seem far until you are on a bouncy boat. But it was worth the drive. When we got there Travis realized he didn’t have his shoes. Hmmm, 19 year old boy? He wore Mark’s shoes and Mark stayed on the boat while we walked the short hike the bridge. I tried to capture the size of the cliffs that tower above you as you approach the bridge, but I’m not sure it is possible with a camera. The size is completely overwhelming. The bridge itself is actually a natural archway made of sandstone. As water and wind hit against the rock it slowly hollowed out a cave, eventually breaking through the middle of the rock. More wind and rain hit against both sides of the rock and make the opening wider and wider. Nature is amazing!

Back at the boat I decided it should be a sun-free day because I got a little burnt the day before. I laid on the top deck under the awning and read my book and took a nap. Then we went off the water slide and, of course, I had a small mishap. Nothing big, but when I went off the slide I knew I would hit the bottom, so I was prepared to catch myself. Well, I didn’t know there was a giant, jagged rock directly in line with where I was going to land. Ouch!! I didn’t cut myself or anything bad, but my foot did hurt for a little while.

In the afternoon Darcie, Ryan and I went to Dangling Rope Marina to fill the boat with gas, get more ice, and treat ourselves to ice cream… as if the s’mores every night and the ridiculous amount of chocolate they brought has not been enough! I hate will-power! The marina was only about a 15 minute drive on the speed boat and we took care of all the things we needed. Then on the way out, for some reason still unknown, the boat would not go into gear. The engine would start but as soon as we tried putting it in drive or reverse it would shut down. Being the first time ever driving her dad’s boat, Darc was very discouraged and we didn’t know what to do. The other unfortunate thing is that the boat started just enough to push us about 200 meters away from the dock and we were then floating in the middle of the lake without a working boat. Ryan and I searched the boat for paddles, found one, and Ryan started fighting the wind from pushing us into the rocks. After about an hour of fighting the wind and trying to start the boat, not to mention attempting to contact Mark with cell phones that don’t get service, we decided that I would swim back to the marina and ask for help. So… I strapped on Darcie’s shoes and jumped off the boat and started my swim. It was roughly 200 meters to an area near the docks. I couldn’t get to the docks because once I got there I wouldn’t be able to get up on the dock because it is too high. Also, there are really huge and nasty carp that swarm around the docks and I didn’t feel like making friends with all of them at this moment.

I made it to the edge of the dock and climbed up onto one of the rocks. I walked around the back side of the dock and was a little uneasy because I had to jump and duck under tons of wires that supply the dock with electricity. Not exactly something I wanted to do while dripping wet! When I got to the dock I ended up coming into the rear side of the store and one of the workers came over to help me. He asked if I had just swam from that boat and gave me a glass of water. I told him we were stranded and the engine wouldn’t start. He got on the phone with his manager and asked if he could tow us in, but right then another boat from the marina went out and started towing the boat. Mark and Travis also showed up at this point with the jet-skis. We docked everything and Mark tried to figure out what was wrong with the boat without success. We hooked the boat up to one of the jet-skis and started towing the boat out to the main channel but it was a very slow process. Luckily another boat came and offered to tow us. We hooked that up, then Ryan took one of their passengers on a jet-ski back to her boat because she needed to get back to feed her baby. Similarly, Darcie needed to do the same, so I took her back on the other jet-ski. I felt like I was on a super top-priority mission and I had to deliver Darcie safely, then return to the boat to make sure everyone else was safe! (If you can’t tell with my writing, that was in a super important, Mission Impossible type voice. Oooh, better yet, Jack Bauer voice!) Then I hooked the boat up to my jet-ski and towed us the rest of the way in. In the end, it was a 3 hour trip to the marina for ice cream that was not really very good.

The rest of the evening was uneventful. More swimming, reading, making dinner, and of course, a fire and off to bed under the :( cloudy sky.

July 7th II

July 7 pm

Waking up today was by far the best wake up on the lake yet. Our spot is so great because the cliff is really high and it is directly to the East so when the sun came up this morning we stayed in the shade much longer than usual. The air stayed cool and the color the sun was splashing on the rock faces was so beautiful. I wish I had other words to use to describe this place. The words beautiful, gorgeous, breathtaking… none of them do this amazing landscape justice. I said again when I got up this morning, “This is the most beautiful place on Earth.”

We took the jet-skis out to find the canyon I found yesterday. Ryan and Darc went on one and Travis and I went on the other. It took us a little while, but we found it again. The canyon went so far back. From the main channel into the cove took us about 15 minutes to ride. Then the mouth of the slit-canyon back to where we turned around was about 30 minutes. The canyon got really narrow the further we went and the walls of the rocks were towering above us. The water was clear enough to see that the rocks also went strait down, making the center of the channel a dark blue-green color and the edges a lighter sea green color. Lizards scurry along the sides of the canyon and I am impressed they can stay on. There was a cave like inlet in the rock and I jumped off the jet-ski and swam over to it. I crawled up into it and Travis took my picture. Then when we got back out into the wider pool I jumped in again because the water in the back was a bit stagnant and I wanted to rinse off. I felt like I was living in the book, “Island of the Blue Dolphins.” Remember that book? I don’t, really, but I know I read it and I think the girl in the book got to swim wherever she wanted. With dolphins, perhaps? Oh well, it sounds good.

We got back and I laid out on the top of the boat again and listened to music. I took one of the books I need to read about Science note-booking up with me, but it just served as a good shade for my drink. Maybe I will read that later, or maybe not:)

Hilarious side note: I am sitting at the kitchen table writing this and Molly is in Kipton’s bouncy seat with HIS passy in her mouth. She is not supposed to have it and Darcie said, “here comes daddy.” Molly jumps out of the seat with passy in mouth and runs her cute little but back into the bedroom. Darcie and I are cracking up!!

July 7th I

July 7th am

We just finished a great breakfast with eggs and bacon and Honduran coffee. Ryan made the food, I made the coffee. Mark took a plate and coffee up to Jane who was still asleep on top of the boat. It was very sweet, totally different side of Mark Mang! Where was that side when I was 16 years old?

I didn’t write at all yesterday because we were running most of the day. We started off by moving the boat to a new location. I laid out on the front hull for a while then Mark had me drive the house boat. I drove it for about 30 minutes. I felt pretty cool!

Jane and Darcie found a good spot but it was a little crowded and there was not a huge area for the boat. We had to tie down 4 anchors. I actually felt like I was of help because I was pulling the ropes on the boat and tying off the anchors. Ryan taught me how to tie the knots around the cleats on the boat and I even did a climbers knot when we needed to tie two ropes together.
Ryan and Mark decided they needed to tie the boat on the rock towering above the boat, so Ryan climbed up a rock face with the rope and they tied it around a rock, that didn’t look very sturdy to me. To test how strong the rock would hold, Mark repelled down the rock face with the rope. Then he told Ryan to do it. By the look on Ryan’s face, I could tell he was not thrilled about the idea. BUT… Ryan can’t not do something that Mark does because he knows he will get ENDLESS shit for it, so down he went. Mom, you will be proud, I held back the urge to do it myself, but I think I am going to volunteer to take the rope off!

Later I took one of the jet-skis out and found a canyon to go down. It didn’t go very far before it got too narrow and I had to turn around. Then I went down a little further and found another canyon that went really far back. It was amazing because it would narrow into about a 2 jet-ski wide channel, then open up into a beautiful pool. I felt like I was a bond girl zooming and swerving around the turns with the canyon walls shooting straight up. I was pretty far back until I turned around because it was too narrow. On the way back my wake had disrupted the still water and the waves were crashing against the walls, and then consequently into my jet-ski. Very quickly I went from feeling like a hot bond girl to a drowning wet dog… not nearly as good of a mental picture! After being thrashed around a bit I got back into one of the wide open pools. It was so unbelievably beautiful. I killed the engine on the jet-ski and jumped into the pool. The water was refreshing and again, I just can’t believe how beautiful this place it. I am totally amazed by the beauty of the lake and the canyons.

After the jet-ski jaunt I went for a hike behind the lake up into the canyons. I walked probably about 3 miles up rock faces, through bolder fields, and over sand dunes. As I got further down the cove and the channel narrowed I decided to swim across to the other side instead of walk all the way around. It freaked me out a little bit because as I was swimming I could only see about 5 feet in front of me. There were a few trees on the bottom that freaked me out and made me swim faster. When I got to the other side I started up a rock face that was pretty steep. About half way up my mother’s voice popped into my head. Before she left me she gave me her usually speech about being careful, not doing anything stupid and all that. One line she gave me was, “Before you do something, please think about your safety.” So half way up the rock face I thought, “wow, this is steep. I can make it up, but how am I going to get down?” So I turned around and slid down, one foot out in front of me and the other tucked under my butt. I was actually impressed with the agility I had getting down so…. I decided to go up another one. Sorry mom! Amazingly though, not a single scratch! Yes!

Up and down a few more rock faces and I was sweating pretty bad. Back in the water and across to our side of the channel, I started back to the boat. Instead of tracing the coast line I went in a straight line back to the boat. This resulted in having to swim across two more small inlets where the water cut into the rock. It was so cool, jump in the water and swim, climb up the rock, do it again. I loved it!

The rest of the evening was laid back. We made dinner and hung out on the top of the boat. The boat near us was setting off fire-works that Molly enjoyed. At this point the sun was down and the air had cooled off, so the next thing to do was to give into the droopy eyes and go to sleep under the stars.

July 6th

July 6th

We are on the move again. Yesterday we found a spot to dock and hung there the rest of the day and night. I laid out a bit more, then went running back behind where the boat was docked. It was tough running up hill through the sand but once I got to the top of the dune it flattened out and was a little easier. I didn’t run too long because it was scorching hot and I kept getting light headed. I came back to the boat and swam what I’m guessing was about 400 meters. Then I played with Molly and laid on the raft in the water.

After dinner Mark took Travis and I out with the speed boat and we went wake boarding. I went first and got up on my first try! It wasn’t as tough as I thought it would be, but it does exhaust your legs quickly. It made me want to learn to surf! Travis went next and it took him a while to get up. When I pointed that out to Nick on the phone he commented on how competitive I am. Me? Competitive? No way, never heard that before!

While Travis was boarding I was relaxing on the boat and taking in the beautiful sunset. The color of the rocks change in the evening and the colors are so rich they look wet, like if you touch them the color will stain your hand. And, actually, the sand does stain everything. It is very fine, soft and very orange, and it is everywhere!

After the wake boarding we made a fire in the sand and ate s’mores. Delicious! Mark dropped a marshmallow on his bare chest and it got stuck in his hair so he took a bath in the lake. I thought about doing the same but after watching him shiver I decided the wake board bath was good enough. Then it was off to bed under the stars with Molly next to me. She was so sweet, until about 2am when she woke up, freaked out, and went down with mommy.

July 5th

July 5th
I feel bad for the rest of the world! How anyone could not feel fortunate out here I don’t know. I believe this is the most beautiful place in the world. The orange rocks against the blue sky and teal water. The cloudless sky. I think about the photograph in my kitchen from the last taime I was here and for a while I thought “the colors are not that vivid. It must be the photoshop.” But no, they really are that vivid!

As I write this, first in my journal, I’ll type it later, I am laying on my stomach on the top of the house boat as we travel through the wide canyons in search of our first docking area. Molly, Ryan and Jane are on the speed boat. Mark and Travis are steering the house boat. I’m going to be on waverunner duty in a minute as we dock everything.

July 2-4

July 2-4
Friday morning we woke up in Denver at Darcie and Ryan’s and packed everything up in the cars. I woke up at 5 AM thinking it was 6 AM. I didn’t realize I was up too early until after I showered, dressed, packed, and walked upstairs to load the car. When everyone was still asleep I figured I had it wrong. The funny thing is I did that twice in Honduras too. The time changes are killing me!

We drove about a 4 hour drive through Vail Pass that took us almost 6 hours. Traveling with babies is pretty time consuming. Secretly I was grateful any time we needed to stop for the babies because I always had to go to the bathroom. Guess I got another thing from mom. Driving through Vail pass (straight through the mountains on hwy 70) was amazing, as usual. When we passed over the continental divide the landscape was even more beautiful. I was amazed at the colors and the way the Colorado River snaked along the side of the highway. Darc and Ryan were making fun of me because I have been through that part of the mountains a few times before, but I was always asleep.
Driving through Glenwood Springs was really incredible. There is a train that goes from Denver, through Glenwood Springs, all the way to Grand Junction. I would LOVE to take that train and stop in Glenwood Springs for a weekend. There are mountain bike trails all over the place, paved trails that run along the river, amazing rapids for rafting, and a cute town with plenty to do. I think it would be an amazing get away! Gretta-Corinne would have a great time there too… very kid friendly.

Once we hit Grand Junction the landscape really changed. There are very few trees, mostly desert scrub type vegetation. The rocks are more abrupt and rugged. They are a dominating presence against the blue sky and really breathtaking. I love visiting and seeing this landscape, but I prefer the Denver side with the green pines and more lush greenery.

We got to Katie and Paul’s house in the afternoon and immediately the trip went from peaceful and laid back to stressed and chaotic. The babies doubled, adults tripled, and living space shrank. We had 8 adults and 4 babies crammed into a house that was only partially unpacked from moving in. The house is beautiful though. It is not a huge house, but it is plenty big enough and the details in the house are amazing. There is tile everywhere, on the walls, in the showers, lining the arched door-ways… just beautiful. The best part of the house is the master bed and bath. The shower is a walk-in (like the one we had in Hilton Head) with two shower heads and a long bench. Darcie announced in front of the entire family that she and Ryan would never leave the shower if that was in their house. Thanks Darc! There is also a two sided fire-place that you can see from the bedroom and the bathroom and there are two walk in closets attached to either end of the bathroom. When I grow up I want to have a bathroom like that!

We spent Friday and Saturday helping them unpack and take care of babies. We washed ALL 5 cars on Saturday, in Mark Mang fashion, and then moved on to wash the two wave-runners and the boat. In the evening Ryan, Darcie, Molly and I went to watch fireworks and pigged out on caramel pop-corn. Molly was so cute watching the fireworks. Each one she would say, “ooooh, a red one! Ooooh, a blue one! I like the pink ones. I live the red ones.” Her face was priceless!
Sunday we packed up again and started our drive to Page, AZ. Again, it took a while, but the views were absolutely incredible. Again, I was teased because while I have driven through here before, I was asleep for it so this was the first time I actually saw the views. The orange cliffs and canyons are offset so well by the huge blue sky. The sky seems bluer out here, the air cleaner, the clouds whiter. We drove through monument valley and once again I was taken aback by the dominating force those rocks have over me. They make you feel so small, so insignificant. How people don’t believe in God after seeing these rocks amazes me. Darcie was riding with me while we went through Monument Valley and it was nice to be alone with her. I miss having her to myself, though I understand why I can’t.

When we arrived in Page the work really started. We had to have the boat and wave-runners inspected then, while Mark and Ryan dropped the toys in the water , Jane got the house boat ready and Darcie took care of the babies. Travis and I loaded carts up with the $600 worth of groceries and carried them down the very steep sloped drive to the slip area. Mark, assuming we knew what he was talking about, directed us to a parking lot that was close to the slip then told us our boat was slot 77. Travis and I unfortunately parked in the wrong lot, went down the wrong drive, and found that the boat slips are NOT numbered! We were tired, sun burnt, and really thirsty by the time Jane found us wandering around the slip.

After two more trips up and down to the cars, I put my bike in Mark’s truck bed and we all crashed on the top of the boat to watch the fire works. It was beautiful seeing them over the lake. It reminded me of Innsbrook on the 4th. We would get our lawn chairs and blankets and camp out on the hill over Aspen Lake. That was much more relaxing than swimming 500 meters in it the other day!

After fire works we all set up our beds on the top of the boat. It was amazing laying under the stars as we fell asleep. They are endless and so bright. I wish I knew more about the constellations and stars. Travis was commenting on the way the stars almost form clouds in the distance. He had way too much energy and while he was talking and telling me stories about what he does with his friends at home I fell asleep. I apologized the next morning for falling asleep while he was talking. Gretta and I both have a habit of doing that!

July 1, 2010

The morning started off with Ryan and I compiling Darcie’s 500 packing lists into one giant list on Molly’s dry erase board.  Molly was very tired all day and as a result I could not talk to her or even look at her without sending her into a crying fit yelling for “daddy.”  After trying to help Ryan pack for about an hour we gave up and Ryan took Molly to the sitters for the day.

I went for a bike ride after lunch and it was a great ride.  I rode on the Cherry Creek Regional Trail.  It is about 12-13 miles of flat, paved trail winding through natural grassland and forested areas.  There were lots of shady spots along the way, a few other riders and runners, and great resting areas with water fountains and bathrooms.  On the way I saw a few prairie dogs and a group of deer.  I also ate quite a few bugs.  I felt like I was on the highway, bugs flying into my face and legs.  Luckily I don’t think any splattered on me.  After about 20 miles or so, on my way back, I took a wrong turn and ended up on a different trail.  I didn’t realize until I had gone about 2 miles out of the way and had to back track.  Then I realized that the last mile of my ride, in order to get back to Darcie’s, was a 1 mile upward climb…seriously!  Within that last upward mile, the first ½ mile was an insanely steep upward climb.  I was about to jump off and walk my bike up but like Keith says, you can do anything for 1 minute.  Well this was more like 5, but it inspired me all the same.  I made it home after 32 miles of unexpected riding, and a nice sunburn to top it all off.

Needless to say I had one of the best naps EVER today.  It stormed this afternoon, making the nap even more enjoyable.  Dinner and then a game of softball where I had to play 3^rd base brought Ryan and I to the parking lot at the ball park to find that Ryan left his lights on in the car and the battery was dead.  We borrowed jumper cables from another player and then were on our way to ice cream.  When we got home Darc was in a packing frenzy and we jumped in to help.  It is now 2:30 am and I need to be up in about 5.5 hours to drive to Grand Junction for the weekend.  Loud music and windows down tomorrow in the car!!