Sunday, April 12
We arrived at Arches late in the afternoon and hiked to Delicate Arch, probably the most recognizable arch in the park. It was about a 3 mile hike round trip on open slickrock with no shade. I definitely wouldn’t want to hike this in the dog days of summer, but this time of year it was quite pleasant. This hike was a great way to kick off the trip.
We let the kids out of their packs for about the last 100 yards of this hike. Look at how much fun they had. The spring in Brayden's step says it all!
After that we headed to the condo we were staying at. All of the doors in it had lever handles so Brayden and Makenzie could both open them. We shouldn't have even bothered packing any toys. They just ran through the house opening and closing doors. There was a coat closet by the door that they loved to play in. For some reason, however, they couldn’t open that door from the inside. We frequently heard muffled whines and would have to go let them out of the closet.
Monday, April 13
Today we packed our lunch and headed to Devils Garden. The kids were eager to get going and were pulling Andy faster than he could walk.
After this cute photo op, we loaded the kids in their packs and hit the trail.
They were so excited. The chattered about everything they saw and greeted most everyone we passed with a smile. They especially liked it when we passed other hikers with baby carriers. The kids would say “hi” to each other and the adults would check out the features on one another’s packs. (The general consensus was that we had the Cadillac Escalade of child carriers. People especially liked the sunshades that ours had. Score!)
The Devil’s Garden hike is about a 7 mile hike that contains eight of the best known sandstone arches in the park, including Landscape Arch.
I really liked Partition Arch (directly below) and Navajo Arch (below) as well.
We stopped and had lunch near Navajo Arch and let the kids play in this little hollow. Do you think they were having a good time?
Most of the trail was wide and well groomed. There were a few scary parts where you had to scramble up rock ledges and walk on a somewhat narrow cliff like this.
I’m not afraid of heights at all. In fact I’ve hiked on much narrower and scarier trails without even a second thought. (See below pic from a hike in Oregon. . .the little dot behind the tree branch is me.) But for some reason hiking on the rock ledge freaked me out. I think it was because of the precious cargo I was carrying. It's funny how kids change your perspective on things.
One of the other views we enjoyed from this trail was of Klondike Bluffs from Dark Angel. I really liked the contrast of the desert against the snowy mountains.
Tuesday, April 14
Today we went took the kids to a small petting zoo. I thought it would be a bit more open so you could actually pet the animals, but there were only small holes in the fence where you could stick you hand to feed the animals. Lame-o! The kids were a little apprehensive of the animals and wouldn’t feed them. They still seemed to enjoy it though. They were baaah-ing in the car after we left.
Next, we headed to the Island in the Sky section of Canyonlands. Most of our sightseeing in this park was from the car and viewpoints along the road. 
On the spur of the moment we decided to stop and check out the Mesa Arch trail. I am so glad we did! It offered great views and was sooo much fun.
We decided not to strap the twins on our backs for this trail. It was an easy hike—only about ½ mile—and we figured the kids could handle a good portion of it if we held their hands. As it turns out, they could handle every last step of the way and then some! The trail was basically a series of small rises and falls that resembled stairs. Makenzie had to jump off of every single one. No exageration. Every one! On the way back I tried to hold Brayden’s hand. He said, “No, mama! No no no no no NOOOOOOO!!!” And off he went. My little boy turned into a mighty hiker.
After that we headed to the condo we were staying at. All of the doors in it had lever handles so Brayden and Makenzie could both open them. We shouldn't have even bothered packing any toys. They just ran through the house opening and closing doors. There was a coat closet by the door that they loved to play in. For some reason, however, they couldn’t open that door from the inside. We frequently heard muffled whines and would have to go let them out of the closet.Monday, April 13
Today we packed our lunch and headed to Devils Garden. The kids were eager to get going and were pulling Andy faster than he could walk.
After this cute photo op, we loaded the kids in their packs and hit the trail.They were so excited. The chattered about everything they saw and greeted most everyone we passed with a smile. They especially liked it when we passed other hikers with baby carriers. The kids would say “hi” to each other and the adults would check out the features on one another’s packs. (The general consensus was that we had the Cadillac Escalade of child carriers. People especially liked the sunshades that ours had. Score!)
The Devil’s Garden hike is about a 7 mile hike that contains eight of the best known sandstone arches in the park, including Landscape Arch. I really liked Partition Arch (directly below) and Navajo Arch (below) as well.
We stopped and had lunch near Navajo Arch and let the kids play in this little hollow. Do you think they were having a good time? Most of the trail was wide and well groomed. There were a few scary parts where you had to scramble up rock ledges and walk on a somewhat narrow cliff like this.
I’m not afraid of heights at all. In fact I’ve hiked on much narrower and scarier trails without even a second thought. (See below pic from a hike in Oregon. . .the little dot behind the tree branch is me.) But for some reason hiking on the rock ledge freaked me out. I think it was because of the precious cargo I was carrying. It's funny how kids change your perspective on things.
One of the other views we enjoyed from this trail was of Klondike Bluffs from Dark Angel. I really liked the contrast of the desert against the snowy mountains.
Tuesday, April 14
Today we went took the kids to a small petting zoo. I thought it would be a bit more open so you could actually pet the animals, but there were only small holes in the fence where you could stick you hand to feed the animals. Lame-o! The kids were a little apprehensive of the animals and wouldn’t feed them. They still seemed to enjoy it though. They were baaah-ing in the car after we left.
Next, we headed to the Island in the Sky section of Canyonlands. Most of our sightseeing in this park was from the car and viewpoints along the road. 
On the spur of the moment we decided to stop and check out the Mesa Arch trail. I am so glad we did! It offered great views and was sooo much fun.
We decided not to strap the twins on our backs for this trail. It was an easy hike—only about ½ mile—and we figured the kids could handle a good portion of it if we held their hands. As it turns out, they could handle every last step of the way and then some! The trail was basically a series of small rises and falls that resembled stairs. Makenzie had to jump off of every single one. No exageration. Every one! On the way back I tried to hold Brayden’s hand. He said, “No, mama! No no no no no NOOOOOOO!!!” And off he went. My little boy turned into a mighty hiker.
Wednesday, April 15
Before we headed home we were going to do a few more short hikes in Arches and have a picnic lunch. Unfortunately, it was quite windy and made it miserable to be outside of the car.
The winds caused a huge dust storm and even blew a portion of the roof off of the ranger station at the entrance/exit of the park. We were glad to be on our way home. We weren’t so glad, however, to encounter snow in Spanish Fork Canyon or at our house. Seriously? What ever happened to that silly little season called spring?
Today
I know that was kind of a long travel log. Hopefully I didn’t bore y’all to death. We really enjoyed our trip and are (hopefully) looking forward to crossing a few more parks off the list in the next few years. Acadia, here we come!!
Before we headed home we were going to do a few more short hikes in Arches and have a picnic lunch. Unfortunately, it was quite windy and made it miserable to be outside of the car.
The winds caused a huge dust storm and even blew a portion of the roof off of the ranger station at the entrance/exit of the park. We were glad to be on our way home. We weren’t so glad, however, to encounter snow in Spanish Fork Canyon or at our house. Seriously? What ever happened to that silly little season called spring?
Today
I know that was kind of a long travel log. Hopefully I didn’t bore y’all to death. We really enjoyed our trip and are (hopefully) looking forward to crossing a few more parks off the list in the next few years. Acadia, here we come!!
2 comments:
I have lived in Utah my whole life too and have never been to Arches or Canyonlands. I do want to go though. It looks like fun and you got some great pictures!
You guys are awesome! I seriously am a horrible hiker and I cannot imagine doing it with Faith on my back! It looks like you family had a fantastic time!
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