Knowing that we had several days between the marathon and the graduation, and knowing that John would not be his happiest hanging around Provo, I came up with a plan for the two of us: a quick getaway to the Grand Canyon. I have only visited it once, and John has never been there, so it seemed like a fun idea.
One reason to love Utah (since I can't find many others)?
One reason NOT to love Utah? The high altitude. I discovered at an early age, when my parents and I would travel to Colorado to ski when I was a kid, that my body does not like altitude. Back then, it was a lot of dizziness. I might have the same kind of dizziness now, except that I don't move as quick or demand as much of my body now that I'm thirty years older. However, I have terrible symptoms: exhaustion, lack of appetite, trouble breathing, nausea. Even when my body isn't stressed and is at rest, I just feel "off". It might be that I now have sinus problems and resulting asthma, but I feel downright rotten when I'm in the western US.
I love getting away with John. We have so little time together when we are at home because of John's busy schedule, so I cherish the times when it's just the two of us. Plus, John is usually at his best on vacation, keeping me laughing at every turn:
An added bonus? The cell service was sketchy at best in the canyon, so there were times when I DID actually have him to myself :-)
We drove down Sunday afternoon, and pulled into the Moenkopi Lodge in Tuba City. It's a hotel owned and run exclusively by the Hopi people. It was a nice, friendly hotel that had lower prices than any other hotel close to the canyon.
Monday morning, we were up bright and early (staying on East Coast time), ready for the day. We planned on hiking down into the canyon. It wasn't hard to figure out where to go and what to do--the National Park Service does a good job helping people figure out exactly what is best for them.
We parked at the visitors' center, and I saw this sign:
Anyone who knows John knows EXACTLY which trail we took. I'm not sure I was prepared, and I'm definitely not in the shape that John is in, but we are a team. In other words, THIS IS WHAT WE DO, BABY!!
By the time we got to the trailhead, I was feeling a bit of worry:
We took the Bright Angel Trail. It descends about seven miles into the canyon. Turns out, there were lots of other people who also thought they were young, strong and invincible, because the trail was fairly busy.
The view was really beautiful, but we noticed something around mile three: it was all the SAME view. Turns out, the trail goes straight down into the canyon, so nothing changed as we descended. John really wanted to see something besides the same view (and move more laterally), so we decided to head back up and find another trail that would let us see more.
Oh my gosh, those signs weren't kidding. I walk everyday, up to ten miles each day, but going back up was a completely different experience from anything I was used to. Of course, John could have billy goated it back up, but the 8,000 foot altitude did me in. No joke, I couldn't breathe as I headed back up. It was walk 100 steps, sit down, breathe, repeat. It really DID take 2-3 times longer to make the trip back up. Of course, while waiting for me, John was meeting the entire population who decided to hike the trail that day. I think I had flashbacks to our runs in Germany--I was panting along, trying to get my long run in for the marathon, and John would run ahead, pretending to slay overhanging bushes with a tree branch he had found, and then run back to me, smiling and laughing.
All I have to say is thank goodness for marathon injuries. By the time we got back to the bus, John could hardly walk because his achilles tendon was so inflamed. Me? I could hardly walk because I'm obviously not strong, young and invincible. That achilles tendon saved me from several more miles that day!
When we got back to the car, we had sand/dirt/dust everywhere. Our feet were in pain, so we took off our shoes, and found the sand/dirt/dust even INSIDE our socks!
We relaxed that evening in the pool and with a hearty dinner at the local Denny's. No doubt, that's where the strong, young and invincible eat, right?
One reason to love Utah (since I can't find many others)?
 |
| You better believe John took FULL advantage of this! |
One reason NOT to love Utah? The high altitude. I discovered at an early age, when my parents and I would travel to Colorado to ski when I was a kid, that my body does not like altitude. Back then, it was a lot of dizziness. I might have the same kind of dizziness now, except that I don't move as quick or demand as much of my body now that I'm thirty years older. However, I have terrible symptoms: exhaustion, lack of appetite, trouble breathing, nausea. Even when my body isn't stressed and is at rest, I just feel "off". It might be that I now have sinus problems and resulting asthma, but I feel downright rotten when I'm in the western US.
I love getting away with John. We have so little time together when we are at home because of John's busy schedule, so I cherish the times when it's just the two of us. Plus, John is usually at his best on vacation, keeping me laughing at every turn:
 |
| The best way to make a FAST pit stop... |
We drove down Sunday afternoon, and pulled into the Moenkopi Lodge in Tuba City. It's a hotel owned and run exclusively by the Hopi people. It was a nice, friendly hotel that had lower prices than any other hotel close to the canyon.
 |
| We were in the pool every night. It was just beautiful. |
Monday morning, we were up bright and early (staying on East Coast time), ready for the day. We planned on hiking down into the canyon. It wasn't hard to figure out where to go and what to do--the National Park Service does a good job helping people figure out exactly what is best for them.
We parked at the visitors' center, and I saw this sign:
 |
By the time we got to the trailhead, I was feeling a bit of worry:
 |
The view was really beautiful, but we noticed something around mile three: it was all the SAME view. Turns out, the trail goes straight down into the canyon, so nothing changed as we descended. John really wanted to see something besides the same view (and move more laterally), so we decided to head back up and find another trail that would let us see more.
Oh my gosh, those signs weren't kidding. I walk everyday, up to ten miles each day, but going back up was a completely different experience from anything I was used to. Of course, John could have billy goated it back up, but the 8,000 foot altitude did me in. No joke, I couldn't breathe as I headed back up. It was walk 100 steps, sit down, breathe, repeat. It really DID take 2-3 times longer to make the trip back up. Of course, while waiting for me, John was meeting the entire population who decided to hike the trail that day. I think I had flashbacks to our runs in Germany--I was panting along, trying to get my long run in for the marathon, and John would run ahead, pretending to slay overhanging bushes with a tree branch he had found, and then run back to me, smiling and laughing.
All I have to say is thank goodness for marathon injuries. By the time we got back to the bus, John could hardly walk because his achilles tendon was so inflamed. Me? I could hardly walk because I'm obviously not strong, young and invincible. That achilles tendon saved me from several more miles that day!
 |
| I absolutely LOVE this picture of us on the bus, headed back to our car. John was thinking about the fact that his eyes always look squinty in pictures :-) |
We relaxed that evening in the pool and with a hearty dinner at the local Denny's. No doubt, that's where the strong, young and invincible eat, right?
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