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Hey! I have just spent 8 days at Zion National Park in Southwestern Utah which was absolutely amazing :) It is such a gorgeous park with towering cliff faces and canyons carved by the Virgin Rover that still flows through it. Zion National Park has been subjected to freeze thaw action, where water freezes in the rock face, expands and retracts overtime, gradually weakening the rock. Wind and rain also cause the slick rock to erode. The rock is made of sandstone which is weak and easily eroded. The arid climate and sparse vegetation allow the exposure of large expanses of bare rock which make all these processes able to take advantage and shape the national park.
Our project was to re-route a trail on one of the major trails in the park - the Emerald Pools. The current trail is being subjected to erosion by the Virgin River which runs alongside it, which increases the potential danger of it collapsing. Our trail had to be six feet across and we used pick-axes, shovels, a drill lots of wheelbarrow trips to create it. I spent a lot of time shovelling rocks off the trail and into a very high pile to keep it off the trail and stop hikers from tripping. On the last few days I wheelbarrowed dirt down a horse trail which built up the biceps (I even have the blisters to prove it!) The current trail that was being used should be revegetated at some point and the hikers will then be using our trail! The National Park Service were impressed with our work and it was such a great expereince to build something so important that will be used regularly by the hikers in a national park :)
I had the opportunity to do some hiking whilst there so went on the Emerald Pools trail and visited Weeping Rock. they were very beautiful areas to visit. Many hiked Angel's Landing, but I am going to wait for my Trek America tour and hike it then or do Observation Point. I only have so much energy after a work day lol.
We had mostly sunshine, although the first night camping was freezing cold, I couldn't sleep as it was so cold! Monday it rained and snowed when we worked which made shovelling very difficult as it all clumped together and it was heavier. My rain gear got so muddy and it was so cold, but it was all part of the experience.
Camping was always a treat and I had a functional tent this time (my other one was so rubbush.. those at Mohave and Saguaro know that!). I was cozy but slept in so many layers... my base layers, pj's, hat, gloves, fleece, fleece liner and sleeping bag lol :) So I was cozy like I said lol. The food was great because we had a Belgiun guy we called Junior who loved cooking so he played the role of head chef which was always appreciated :D Had a really awesome crew and had some great campfires. We even sang Disney and the Grease songs lol. I still find getting out of my warm sleeping bag into the cold morning air a challenge... early mornings dont bother me but the temperature does :( lol.
We had a crew dinner at a Thai restaurant in town... was so lush.... I shared this banana battered starter with honey which was gorgeous and had sweet and sour chicken and vegetables.... so worth it :P
I now have a few days off to relax and enjoy the pleasant warm sunshien of Flagstaff :) Who knows what antics I will get up to next lol... but it's always nice to be home - and yes, I have settled in completely now... and have only a month left with ACE.. that is so crazy! Time has really flown by. The great thing about ACE is how many people you meet from all walks of life from all over the world. It's so much fun :)
Take care y'all!!! x x x x x x x
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