Sanctuary

Stephen: We delayed our first anniversary celebration to last weekend so we could stay at a Bed and Breakfast by Zion Canyon. I don’t regret that choice. The room was very nice (completely adorable, he means) and the breakfast was delicious (and beautiful) – there was even a jacuzzi tub to relax in after a strenuous day of hiking. The beauty of the canyon made the trip perfect. We covered quite a bit of ground: Angel’s Landing, Hidden Canyon, the river walk, Weeping Rock, Emerald Pools, and even a long hike in the Kolob Canyons section of the park.

Alisha: Our favorite hike was definitely Angels Landing. It began with a turkey sighting. Poor guy – he was all puffed up trying to catch the attention of a nearby female and she completely ignored him, didn’t even acknowledge his existence. We were expecting the hike to be rigorous so, in the end it wasn’t that bad. We were pretty surprised when we got to the top and we were already there.  The views were amazingly fantastic – the pictures don’t even begin to catch the majesty of it all. We didn’t even die or anything although the chipmunks did try to rid us of our food supplies. It started to rain while we were at the top. That made me a little freaked out; a five foot wide trail of slippery, wet sandstone and cliffs on either side is no joke.

Stephen: After hiking and attempting some artsy photos, only one or two of which turned out decently, we tried to find a picnic area to eat at. For a little bit we were scared we’d have to set up in the backyard of the bed and breakfast. Fortunately, we found a picnic table and enjoyed our camp food: sloppy joes, carrots, and ginger beer. The whole time we watched dark clouds mass on the horizon and prayed it didn’t rain on us again. Luckily, it didn’t. It felt a little funny, eating camp food then going and sleeping in a super soft pink bed, but I’ll admit I didn’t mind it all that much.

Wildlife sightings: 3 turkeys, 2 deer, millions of chipmunks and squirrels, lots of lizards and a clan of mating water bugs