Timpanogos Cave National Monument

Sometime around the middle of August we took short trip to the Provo area for a bit of fun. It was the kind of vacation where you leave the hotel at 8 am and don't return until 10 pm. I kind of like it that way. At least once in a while.

The first thing we did was hike to Timpanogos Cave National Monument. This hike about killed me. Seriously. And I'm not sure why. There were plenty of other people hiking that didn't seem to be struggling nearly as much as me, including lots of people carrying children. I'm choosing to blame it on the elevation. 

Anyway....The hike is 1.5 miles, 1000 feet above the canyon floor, uphill, on a paved trail. The hike up: 

There are lots of rules. Including one that instructs you to stay off the edge of the trail:

 

Truly as soon as someone tells me not to do something, I have to do it! 

There are also a number of warning sings like this one: 

It states: "WARNING. Extreme Rockfall Danger Next 1/2 Mile - No Stopping In Striped Areas Please." Strangely this sign is placed right on a striped area! 

There are also a number of signs warning of snakes: 

That's where we were headed:

When you buy your tickets for the cave they give you an hour and a half to make it to the top in time for your tour. We thought this was an extreme amount of time, but thanks to me, we used almost every minute.

But we made it!

You enter with a park ranger who takes you on a tour of the three different caves, ending with the biggest: Timpanogos. 

The entrance: 

You may notice that in the first few pictures Sadie was sans jacket. This was because she REFUSED to put one on and pretended not to be cold (it was 45 degrees inside the caves). Apparently she takes after me and does not take kindly to people telling her what to do. 

Oh look....She put it on. Unzipped of course: 

The caves are pretty awesome. Some pics: 

The "heart" of Timpanogos: 

The hike down was much more enjoyable. 

If you ever decide to do this hike (but don't invite me because you would probably have to carry me out), make sure you buy your tickets on-line ahead of time. They sell out fast!

More Utah vacation posts below...

Bucket List Item # - Zip Lining

It has been a LONG time since I have checked an item off of my bucket list. Too long. Happily while on vacation in Utah I was able to complete one: 

Zip Lining! 

Most zip lining courses have age and weight requirements that exclude Jackson and Sadie from participating. But I was able to find one up Provo Canyon (Max Zipline) that has no age requirement and you only have to be 35 lbs!

All properly suited up:








They drive you up the mountain in one of these vehicles. The really cool thing about it is that there are no rules! Meaning that the kids and I were able to stand up and ride in the back all of the way up the mountain (Eric sat in the front with the driver. Sad for him). It was awesome!





At the top of the mountain, with Mount Timpanogos behind us:





Sade was so much fun to watch. She had no fear (at least not any she would admit to). She's so itty-bitty she had to be lifted onto the zip-line each time.



And she's off:




You have to be able to break yourself when you get to the end of the line and she was a pro right from the start.






Tricks:



Jackson:







Megan:








Eric:




Apparently on the last and longest zip-line Eric did some amazing trick where he went upside down, but we all missed it as we were admiring the Provo river. Whoops! Sorry Eric.

And me:

'




This was a blast. We all loved it, and would do it again in a heartbeat.