Holiday Hiking

Our 4th of July weekend consisted of us packing up and getting out of town to cooler weather. We went with our friends Brian and Cindy, and Daniel F. up to Brian Head and also made a few other stops during our weekend. The trip was great and we have lots of memories to share and TONS of pictures too.

Friday morning the Fire Department in Brian Head was having a pancake breakfast which we attended. It was fun to see some of the locals and just be able to start our doing with a good cause. Brain and I also purchased the T-Shirts so we could be twins for the rest of the day!

After looking around at the Craft Fair that was taking place, and also in the small shops of Brain Head we decided that it was time to head out and do some hiking. We were going to be heading to Cedar Breaks National Monument for their Wildflower Festival that had just begun. We stopped for free snow cones and cotton candy on the way which was tasty and then made our way the 10-15 minutes to Cedar Breaks. We talked through the gift shop and saw the flowers and then decided we wanted more. We took an impromptu hike all the way out to the rim to see the Bristlecone Pine trees. We did all of this with no sunscreen, and no water. Not a smart move and I would not recommend this to anyone, but the trees were awesome!

We came home and BBQ'd some hot dogs and had some lunch/dinner. Then after we relaxed for a while and cleaned up we were ready for some fireworks, but the fireworks weren't quite ready for us. We were not quite sure when they were going to start since the people we asked just said... oh about 9 or 10... So we picked a bench and waited... and waited and waited... Sure enough it got colder and colder as well. This had to be the first 4th of July that I was in jeans, and a sweatshirt and needed blankets to keep warm, and was still cold. We also watched as more and more cars and trucks kept arriving too. They were parked everywhere and there were TONS of people now invading this small town for their fireworks show. The show did finally start about 10 and it was great. The best part had to be when one firework didn't get quite high enough and came down onto the meadow and caught on fire! The fire department had to pause the show to spray some water on it... then the show resumed of course!

Saturday was our day to head to Bryce Canyon to explore there. When we arrived we were a little nervous because it was cloudy and beginning to rain, and cold. By the time we checked out the Visitor's Center and drove to the place where we wanted to start our hike the rain had stopped and the weather was perfect. We were able to get out at almost all of the overlooks and enjoy the view and then we did our main hike as well. We hiked to Inspiration Point.

After a long day of hiking we were ready to come pack to the condo and just hang out. We once again had some dinner and hung out while we waited for festivities to begin. Tonight they were having free smores and a bonfire and added entertainment of a marching band from Canada! It was fun to have smores since I honestly don't remember the last time that I had had any.

Sunday morning we had to pack up all of our things and say goodbye to the nice weather and to Brian Head. We were sad to leave but we had one more stop on our way home. Zion. We were going to be hiking one more time on this trip.
Our first hike after arriving was to Weeping Rock. It was very cool up there and fascinating to see 1200 year old water falling from the rock. We decided that we wanted more so we hiked the Rim Trail back to the Narrows and then did a little while in the Narrows.

The water was freezing, but actually refreshing on your toes and a neat way to hike up the mountain with awesome sights.... We headed back down the mountain and just in time. As we were getting to the truck to have some lunch we saw the clouds roll in and heard the thunder and.... RAIN! Yes, we were glad we had turned around when we did. We would not have wanted to be stuck in the Narrows during a rainstorm and been washing away in a flash flood or been struck by lightning.

The weekend was great and we had great weather and great company. We hope we are able to go back again, or maybe have the same company and go somewhere different. Hope everyone else enjoyed their days off and their 4th as much as us!