adventure

February 12, 2016

My sister and I really wanted to go somewhere out of the inversion and to somewhere new. With inspiration from a friend we decided on Stewart Falls. Stewart Falls is not somewhere I like to hike in the warmer months because it is SO packed with people - so I was a little hesitant that we would see lots of people but surprisingly we didn't! We only saw two pairs of people coming up the trail while we were coming down.

To get to Stewart Falls drive up Provo Canyon (Highway 189) and turn off onto Highway 92 - same turnoff for Sundance Resort. You will drive past the resort to the American Fork Canyon ranger pay station and park here at Aspen Grove. American Fork has a $6 dollar fee, there are self-service envelopes if a ranger is not present.

The trail was packed down and we opted for no snowshoes, but because it was packed it was slick at times. I had my yak-trax and Brook had her snowshoe poles - which helped us with the slick parts!

Hike Stats:

Length: About 3 miles (I didn't have my GPS and there are various lengths stated)

Start Time: 11:05

Lunch - about an hour at the falls

End Time: 2:00

view from the parking lot

head up the left trail to "Stewart Cascades"

the only one fork in the trail is near the beginning and you will take the left fork, an almost 90 degree left turn, and the trail will head up the mountain

the trail is pretty mellow and never gets very steep

the hill down the mountain to the falls- this part of the trail was actually pretty slushy and only the very middle of the trail remained packed, and as soon as you stepped of the middle and inch - you would sink a foot!

frozen falls

lunch of course - jetboil

letting oak have bites of lunch

oak pup

brook looking beautiful

adventurer

climbing back up from seeing the falls

happy birthday weekend!

matching sherpa hat selfies

selfie stick selfie

arrows to show the way

the walk back through the shaded trees was magical

Top of my 2016 bucket list was to hike Angels Landing in Zion's, and when a weekend opened up with family staying in St. George we jumped on it. I was nervous to hike Angel's Landing because I'm afraid of heights... and the fact there was going to be snow and ice, but I was determined to see the views.

Hike Stats:
Start time: 7:45 am
Top of Angels Landing time: 9:45am
Lunch time: 1 hour
Back to the trailhead: about 11:45am
Length: 2.5 miles (one-way)
Elevation gain: 1500 feet

We started early in the morning (mostly so our dog wasn't alone in St. George for too long during the day) but it also meant we beat the crowds, we only saw a few people until we were on our way back down. We started at the Grotto Picnic Area at about 7:45am and it was a bitter 29 degrees and I was wearing every single warm layer I brought with me. We warmed up when we started hiking but the cold and icy wind was daunting for awhile.

The first mile is a steady uphill climb up many switchbacks. Once up the switchbacks you enter Refrigerator Canyon, the trail continues uphill but it is more mellow in the canyon. Next up are Walter's Wiggles which is a series of short switchbacks up to Scout Lookout. Once you leave Scout Lookout you start the scary part with heights and built in chains to hold onto.

I was shocked at all the people we passed on our way down who were attempting to hike this trail. Many of them did not have water, warm clothes or a backpack! Many of them did not have extra traction for their shoes, some were even wearing slick dress boots! They were slipping and sliding all over the place!!

Things you NEED when hiking Angels Landing (or anywhere....)
10 essentials
Water
Food - bring a lunch, spend some time at the top enjoying the view once you've made it!
Appropriate clothing and layers
Appropriate shoes **In winter you need extra traction for the
icy and snowy sandstone - wear
Yak Trax or Micro spikes. You can rent
them from Zion Adventure Company
for $7-10 a day**

here we go, bright and early 7:45 am, 29 degrees

wearing every layer of warm clothing we brought

morning sun hitting Zion's

switchbacks got nothin' on us

the sun lighting up each mountain

a pretty impressive, steep climb - about 1 mile

after the mile climb up the switchbacks you get to refrigerator canyon that receives little sunlight and remains quite chilly throughout the day. the snow and ice were quite slippery here