Scenic drive
Today, Jonathan took the day off of work and so we went and checked out Arches national park. Our ultimate plan was to hike delicate arch. But we definitely had some scenic vistas that we wanted to check out on the way.
We were all in awe of the landscape. As we were drinving, E.e. kept saying ‘this is increble.” Which was obviously heckin cute.
What was less cute was Isaac’s grumpiness. He was giving us a bit of trouble the whole time. So, Jonathan ended up sitting in the car a fair amount as we made our brief stops.
Also, while we were in Provo, Jonas and Clara both got colds (So glad they are vaccinated). Clara’s symptoms were fairly minor, but poor Jonas was really not feeling so great.
We got to the Delicate Arch trailhead at about 11 and we got out, sunscreened, and started hiking.
We tried to be cognizant of our limitations, and took breaks when we needed to. All the same, I don’t think we were quite prepared for what we had gotten ourselves into.
Isaac’s grumpiness continued. He wanted to be held a lot. But at some point, we were holding his hands, and swinging him occasionally, and he decided that he was into it, as long as we bounced him up the hill. So that helped.
About 2/3 of the way, Evie decided she was done, and of course, Jonas was sick… So, Jonathan decided to wait with the two of them while the rest of us continued to make our way up to the arch.
It was slow, and strenuous going. Isaac still wanted to swing his way up the darn mountain. Clara helped for a bit, but I did a lot of it myself.
But eventually we made it up to the top. And OH MY GOSH, IT WAS SO FREAKING WINDY. Honestly, I don’t recall ever experiencing wind quite like that. There was a powerful gust or two that nearly knocked ME over.
Logan and Isaac were freaked out by how strong it was.
We definitely didn’t hike down to the arch itself. I honestly didn’t feel like it was safe to do so with the two little fellas.
So we snapped a quick picture or two at the viewpoint, and turned around and headed back.
And guess who we ran into as we headed down.
We had only walked about 50 yards back down the trail. So we decided to have everyone go back.
Jonas and Evie reacted pretty much the same as Logan and Isaac when they felt those first powerful gusts. It actually knocked Jonas down. So, we took our picture and headed out.
And as we were going back down the trail, I don’t know if the wind was just stronger, or if it was that we were now facing into the wind, but man. It was windy. And cold. And sand kept blowing into our faces and eyes.
Logan was especially having a hard time with the sand. So, Clara gave Logan her glasses to help protect his eyes (isn’t that the cutest thing ever? She is such a good sister.)
Evie and Isaac were both miserable. They wanted to be carried. But that is a long way to carry thirty pounds in your arms. So, we put them up on our shoulders for a while. And they screamed.
Jonathan and I each carried a screaming baby down a mountain. It was as fun as it sounds.
Eventually, Evie fell asleep, and eventually, as it warmed up and the wind got blocked somewhat by various features of the landscape, Isaac stopped screaming.
We finally made it back to the car at about 1:45.
We divvied up some snacks, and headed into town to get some real food.
We went to a place called Zax. And we all proceeded to eat everything we could shove in our mouths. Nothing has ever tasted so good.
And then we drove to Albuquerque. Or as the twins call it, Alba-cookie
