Holly & Adam: can you say...jealous?

Basically our life is full of adventures, and they just keep getting better every day. This past weekend Adam and I went on a field trip for a canyoneering class that I'm a T.A. for...and it was amazing!!! Adam actually wasn't even in the class, but he was invited to go after dropping me off with all of my camping stuff. He was just hanging out, helping load up the trailer and my teacher asked Adam if he wanted to go because a couple of the other students had bailed and we had enough equipment for him to come along. Of course he said yes...so he hustled home, threw some of his things together and raced to meet us before we took off. We got so lucky! I am so happy he was able to come...overnight trips are never the same without Adam.

For those of you that don't know what canyoneering (or canyoning) is...basically traveling through a canyon using a variety of techniques of exploration...hiking, scrambling over boulders, splashing through water, swimming in freezing cold water, rappelling, and just getting through any way you see fit. It's transforming. I can't even begin to describe how amazing it is. All I can say is that you need to do it at least once in your lifetime. We went down to the San Rafael Swell in southern Utah (next to Goblin Valley) and did Ding & Dang Canyons as a warm up, played midnight sardines in Goblin Valley, and the following day we did the Baptist Draw and the Chute. Hiking Ding & Dang is beautiful, but nothing can compare to the slot canyons. I had the opportunity a couple years ago to do the Subway and Keyhole in Zions, and those were two of the most beautiful slot canyons I've ever been through. Baptist was an awesome canyon with such a variety of terrain and scenery....and an 80 foot rappel. I'm pretty afraid of heights so it was a little scary at first just standing on the rock without being attached to anything, but once I started rappelling it was amazing and the landscape was beautiful. We randomly found the body of a dead cow in the canyon...probably swept in by a flash flood and met his unfortunate ending (made a great picture though! thanks to Adam).

The entire loop of the canyons took us about 6 hours - we dropped in the canyon too early and ended up having to hike back out and work our way over - however, it was totally worth it and the weather was perfect. If it had been sunny and hot I might be whistling another tune (entwined with a bit of complaining) because it's pretty miserable hiking in the heat of the desert, but we had a nice breeze and a cloud cover, so I have nothing to say but great things. I did make more bathroom breaks than I think I ever have before in my life...I was trying to avoid dehydration by drinking water constantly, and inevitably had to make about 10 pitstops along the way. I've learned that water is better to drink and have it in your belly than to save it for when you get thirsty...normally by that point you're dehydrated. At that odd note, we had an unforgettable time, made some really good friends, and made some really amazing memories.