Spring Break at Bryce

We had the most fabulous Spring Break! I took my kids to Bryce Canyon, accompanied by my parents and Daniel and Emily. (Poor Mckay had to stay home and work, but we're glad he has a new job to keep him busy!)

Before we left on Wednesday morning Daniel opened his mission call. He's going to the South Africa Johannesburg Mission and leaves on August 19. What a cool call!

Bryce Canyon
On Thursday my big kids hiked over 7 miles and Carter hiked 4 miles. I also carried Sammy 4 miles, which I think shows how tough I am. We loved looking at the Hoodoos and beautiful vistas. Bryce Canyon is a gorgeous place!
When we started hiking on Thursday morning it was only 25 degrees outside! It warmed to 50 by the time we were done and Friday and Saturday topped out at a beautiful 71 degrees. I'm so glad it warmed up enough that we didn't have to wear gloves on most of our hikes!

I know they look like they'er about to be attacked or something, but they're just yelling, "South Africa!" On Wednesday morning that's what we yelled for the picture of Dan's mission call and the trend stuck. Actually, when Carter wasn't wanting to participate in a picture we would tell him to yell and then he'd get happy and be involved.
Who knew he was just tired of cheese?
Mossy Cave
Mossy Cave is just outside Bryce Canyon and should be called Icy Cave this time of year. It was amazing how much ice builds up there throughout the year. My kids and Emily were totally crazy and decided to wade through the water, even though it was only 50 degrees! They had a blast until their legs started chaffing and they still had to walk back to the car (at least that was only half a mile!). It's a good thing that they're tough! I could tell that Gabriel was in pain by the interesting straggle legged walk he was doing, but he didn't complain at all.


Hackberry Creek Slot Canyon
This was my favorite hike of the vacation. It's fairly remote and one of those places that nobody really knows about. There's a rope at the top of the slot so that we could lower ourselves in. Carter and Madelyn were totally excited about this and just headed in.
Gabe was a bit nervous and didn't think he could do it, but his insensitive mother made him do it anyway. Once he got to the bottom the tears disappeared and Gabe had a blast the rest of the hike. We did a lot of bouldering and had a couple more ropes but he didn't slow down once he realized that he's amazing. He was also an amazing help when it came to Carter and I loved that they held hands for a good 10 minutes of the hike.
I was not to the crack yet when my dad took Sammy in, but I think something traumatizing must have happened. Everyone says it was okay, but whenever we had to lower him after that he would start whimpering. He only wanted his mom after, which means I carried him another four miles on my back.

Madelyn and Emily went the furthest down the creek and then were the first ones out. I wish I could have been there because that means that Madelyn used all the ropes and climbed out of the hole by herself. She is one strong chica!

Hole In The Rock
We decided to visit Hole in the Rock on Saturday, which is a once in a lifetime experience. Seriously. I will never do that again!

I enjoyed hiking the crack, even prodding Carter down the hole and carrying Sammy up, but the 5 hours of riding on a dirt rode to get there and back and the 6 hour trip home were more than enough for one day.

Of course, it did give me more of an appreciation for the poor pioneers who had to cross that miserable landscape during the Winter and then lower their families and all their worldly possessions through that little crack in the rocks. They must have been strong, faithful people.