Colton Goes To Cali (and Mom&Dad too)

 

California here we come ... last year Colton had been approached by a travel team for basketball, and we didn't commit then, but held onto the information for the future. After his Wolves finished up he needed a team, so we went ahead and joined Metro for Summer 2023. I'd told Grayson that while I'm not a big traveler, I wanted to go and attend one of the tournaments. Colton had three, Arizona in April, and two to California in July. We went to the one July 15-16th. We flew in a day early, on Friday the 14th. We got settled at the hotel, the same one the team would be staying at, the ubered out to get some dinner. Found a little Italian place ... and ALL the servers were good-looking young men. Our waiter's biceps barely fit into his shirt (Grayson was the one who commented on it, not me!). It was the opposite of Hooters :) 

The hotel served breakfast, so Saturday morning we partook of that, then ubered out to Newport Beach. Our Uber driver chastised Grayson for his Red Bull (oh no, you should not be drinking that!) and was very talkative. At the beach, we walked the pier and dipped our toes in the sand and water. Grabbed some donuts from a popular shop there.  

Gray noticed a little shop selling souvenirs ... usually his name "Grayson" is unique enough that he doesn't ever find it on pre-personized items, but today, there it was! No Callahan or Keaton, but Cooper and Landon were there. Cole, but no Colton ... and NO Jen (generally quite common).  I was busy getting a little Pokemon Go in while we were out and about also. 

 

Colton and his Metro team had two games Saturday, at 3:30 and 5:40, and two Sunday at 9:00 and 12:15. They won two, lost two (they were still pretty close). It was a nice facility, but they charged parents $20 to watch, and they charged $20 for parking too.  I got video and made highlights ...

Game 1 ~ https://youtu.be/QiQWJp_eMZE

Game 2 ~ https://youtu.be/dtfJ6-e3K0w

Game 3 ~ https://youtu.be/AhsntW5Khnk

Game 4 ~ https://youtu.be/3WKXI7hr5bA

Salt Lake Metro - Black

Kahner, Jason, Cai, Carter, Colton, Dawson, Reef, Coach Hammer

We flew from Salt Lake to Long Beach Airport, which was very small and low-key. We Ubered when we needed to get places. Colton's buddy Carter was playing in Vegas on Friday, so he and his folks drove the rest of the way to California for this tournament. We carpooled with them a few times. I'm not a travel gal, but this went well and made me wish that we'd gone to some of the other tournaments as well. 

After we got back - Gray had recapped some of the little memories he had, bullet style ...

• 65 degree room with queen....err, double beds
• Running lost - calling Jen - maybe not the one to aid in this sitch
• "Hooters" Italian restaurant except it's for the ladies
• Extremely loud gastropub with meh fish and chips (no beating Red Robin at this point, methinks)
• Uber driver chastening my decision to drink Red Bull
• Newport donut lunch with pigeons eating fries under our table
• Red Vines and more Red Vines - the short, thick ones please
• The Mule starring LaMar
• Watching a weird episode of Barry in a weird way
• Airport moving sidewalks with Jen laughing - thinking she was pretty funny
• Colton with two elbows on one arm

... adding more of my own ...

• Colton going on his own with TSA precheck - Gray staying with me, like a peasant. On the way back "why are you here in this line?" LGB airport (took a picture, Landon's initials!)
• Squished, three in the back of an Uber
• Colton gets his own room
• Gray's RedBull runs at the nearby gas station
• Hotel breakfast - cute little circle waffles
• $8 Dibs
• Watched "The Lizzie Bennet Diaries" on Youtube during drives
• Watched Creed on the flight there - thought I had Creed II for the flight back but it wasn't downloaded. Had a backup movie "We Have a Ghost"
• Getting some Pogo in ... missing out on the little Koala
• Family History "find relative nearby" activity between games
• Catching a ride with Carter's family ... Carter's mom squishing into the back for the final ride back to the hotel (with the two sweaty boys)
• Kahner (tallest player) almost hitting the ceiling at the hotel ... and sitting next to Colton on the flight home. Definite space issues for that size!
• Not so great fish and chips (twice) ... Red Robin still a favorite
• Gray zooming through the airport ... would he notice if we were no longer following him?

I asked Colton to write up his memories ...

Friday - We landed in California in the evening and had a pretty cramped Uber ride over to the hotel. Really just dropped off our stuff in our rooms then headed back out to get some food. Went to this Italian restaurant. Nothing really happened for the rest of the night, just chilled at the hotel for a bit, before going to sleep.

Saturday - Don’t remember exactly what time I woke up, but I quickly headed down to breakfast and met up with Vaughn for just a bit. He told me about how he had a distant grandma with my same last name and was just wondering if I maybe had a family tree to look at and see if there was any connection. After breakfast, we headed to the beach for like an hour, just walking around and eventually grabbed some donuts to eat. After we got back, a few of the other boys were waiting in the lobby for their rooms to be ready, so I just had them come up and chill with me for a couple hours until they got their room keys. After that, we had the first games of the weekend, losing the first game and winning the second. I was pretty exhausted after the games, just took a shower and needed some food, so I headed to the Carl’s Jr. next to the hotel with Cai and Dawson. Got some snacks from the gas station to take back to my room after and watched Creed III on Amazon once I got back. That was all for the night.

Sunday - Not too much happened for the trip on Sunday as our games all wrapped up by 3:00. I headed down to the lobby to grab a quick breakfast then went back up to the room to pack up my stuff. I left my luggage with my parents before I left with the team for the games, since we were leaving for the airport directly after the games. The games went really similar to the day before, losing the first one and winning the second. Did a quick change of clothes back at the hotel before catching an uber to the airport. We ate at a nice little restaurant right by the gate and finally got on the flight back to Salt Lake City.

At home, Landon and Cooper were holding down the fort. I had instructed Cooper on the watering of the garden (most of it needs handwatering) and he handled that while I was gone. The guys (Landon, Cooper, Cal and Keaton) still made a foursome for pickleball Sunday morning.

Landon Spartan

 

The Spartans arose from the city-state of Sparta of ancient Greece. They were a warrior society that paid homage to the values of honor, duty, discipline, and endurance. Values that have led to their being regarded as some of the fiercest warriors history has ever known. And while their legacy still inspires and instructs professional warriors who are actually involved in armed conflict to this day; their legacy is equally as inspiring to everyday people. Why? Because we are all warriors. We all fight wars, be they internal struggles with motivation, our purpose, our relationships, etc… or external struggles like struggling for the flourishing of our careers, the survival of our businesses, or the advancement of our dreams (From The Strive).

Inspired by the Spartan legacy, taking the traditional 5k a few steps further, a Spartan Race is a series of obstacle races of varying difficulty ranging from 3 miles to marathon distances. These races are held in the United States and have been franchised to 30 countries, including Canada, South Korea, Australia, the Philippines and several European countries. I'm not sure what inspired Landon to look into such a race, but he did. He signed up and completed it. I asked him to write up a few memories ...

Today I completed my first Spartan race. I hadn't really looked into what the race would entail until the night before. A few YouTube videos later I was feeling confident and prepared for the race. The Spartan took place at the Snow Basin resort. I had to miss our family pickleball, but the run was honestly a ton of fun. There are three races: 5K, 10K, and 21K. I signed up for the 10K ...  and it kicked my butt. It was silly to think the 5K would’ve been too easy, when that’s maybe what I should’ve started with.

For the 10K race, we had 26 obstacles, and I’m proud to say I only failed one! Said obstacle was a wall that you needed to move horizontally across using only grips for your hands; no support for your feet. I’m sure I would’ve figured it out if I took my time, but I was feeling rushed as this was one of the first obstacles. One aspect of this race that ended up being most challenging for me was the elevation. I believe it was 1,300 ft of elevation, which is insane. Somehow I ran the first mile of incline, and it about slaughtered me. From there I decided to hike the inclines and save the running for the declines.

Most of the obstacles were entertaining and genuinely fun. The obstacles that were the buggers were all the carries. Carry a sand bag from here to there. Carry an atlas stone from here to there. And carry a bucket of rocks from here to there. You get the idea. Something I learned from YouTube was the importance of keeping your hands clean for some obstacles. There are a number of monkey bar-like challenges. Unfortunately one of them ripped up my left hand a bit. I looked ahead hoping that the remaining obstacles didn’t require my hands. ... but that was not to be. There was even a legit rope climb! For being one of those classic PE class activities featured in movies, this was my first ever attempt. I saw others using a technique with their feet, but I just brute forced through it. My favorite obstacle was the Hercules Hoist. It was a sandbag attached to a rope and run through a pulley. The objective is to pull the other end of the rope to raise the sandbag to the top, and bring it back down softly. I quickly noticed that the technique was to use your bodyweight to hoist up the bag. You jump up the rope a bit, throw your body back, and repeat. I thought it was so fun (even though the previous obstacle had just ripped up my hand!)  One of the final obstacles was a 5’ hurdle. Leading into the jump for the first one, my right calve almost cramped on me. Luckily I shook it off and finished the race. 

For whatever reason I didn’t eat breakfast before, which wasn’t great, but nor was a real issue. Overall, I felt really good about the race. It was a challenge for sure, but I'm glad to say I conquered it.

 You can read a little more about the event and see some pictures HERE.

Wiffleball

 

The 4th of July was on a Tuesday, and the guys had the day off work. We decided we'd get an extra edition of pickleball in ... but apparently we weren't the only ones with that thought. The eight courts at Constitution Park were completely packed, as were the ones at Ron Woods. The baseball diamond however, was available, and Landon had been wanting to try some wiffleball ...

We were missing Cal&Kate, and while Gray had joined us for the pickleball attempt, he had since jogged home, getting in his workout for the day. So I filmed the four Blackham Brothers as they got some wiffle in ... hitting the ball, catching, stealing bases. Landon and Cooper both ended up with some skinned knees, but there was a lot of laughter, as often happens when these guys hang out together. 

https://youtu.be/wr5TlgeF4v0

2023 ~ June Recap

 

June ... Summer is in full swing. More hiking, some golf, some getaways, and basketball, as always. There was hail, and Hale, and haircuts. Pickleball and poker (ok, it was Blackjack, but alliteration!) More medical appointments and the annual Westra gathering for Father's Day. Cal&K8 have become puppy parents!

• Basketball - Colton had a busy month. He has had some practices with Metro, and training with Coach Scott. One week was team camp at the high school (he got the "camper of the day" award on Thursday, and was awarded "camper of the week" at the end - won an Echo Dot). He went down to St. George for a tournament with the school team and got to play in the AllStar game, and then played up at the U in a tournament there. There were also a couple car wash fund raisers to help pay for said tournaments and camps. 
• Staying Active: There is a Blackham Bunch at the pickleball courts every Sunday morning, trying to beat the heat (which wasn't bad in June). It's so much fun! Gray has added more hikes (see the updated post about the Symphony Hiking Challenge HERE) - he and Landon summited Olympus, and Landon has gone on some hikes himself. Gray had a golf activity for work and roped Landon into that too (Landon does quite a bit of "client entertainment" on his job - mostly TopGolf thus far, but it's good to improve ball & club skills). You can see a post about that HERE. Gray did a little writeup for work, as he does for the hikes, getting creative with ChatGPT. Jen has her Zumba Mon/Wed/Fri and pickleball with the relief society ladies on Thursdays. 
• Bear Lake: Gray got invited up to a work friend's place at Bear Lake ... it's quite rustic, so he rented an RV to be a little more comfortable. The water was too cold to play in, so it was mainly just hanging out. Landon was under the weather for a day. 
• Medical Moments: Jen had been hit with something at the end of May, and it was still hanging on a bit as June started. She had a follow-up with her family physician, met with a cardiologist (the ER doctor has seemed to think that was a good next step) and had a heart monitor tracking for a few days. Ultimately though, based on the video of the fall (caught on the grocery store cameras) and the aftermath, we're thinking it's neuro. There was an appointment with Neurology at the end of the month. Jen will start some anti-seizure medication and we'll hope for the best. 
• Doggie: I guess it was Callahan who was pushing for a doggy (even though K8 is the one who grew up with one). They adopted Vera from a shelter and are now proud puppy parents. Kate posted a bunch of pictures on Instagram showing how cute she is and how happy they are followed by "I've also cried every single day the last three weeks. Vera was a stray and bounced around shelters her whole life. She has a lot of behavioral issues to correct. She's chewed through her crate, ate my snake plants, scratched our walls and shutters, costs an arm and a leg. I'm exhausted and am grieving my freedom and I love her with all of my heart."  Many of the Westras got to meet her at the family Father's Day gathering.  Coop also was on Doggy Duty for the neighbors at the end of the month. 
• Westra Group Gathering: Hosted by Scott and Amy, as it has been for the past many years ... but now at the Havenmoor House, which has hosted many a Westra party too! It was fun to visit with family and to see all the updates and renovations.  
• Charger Changes: Colton's Charger had its spoiler ripped off at the local car wash. We scheduled it out so that the repair was done the week he was in St. George, so that timing worked out well. One day Jen drove the Charger to Zumba as Colton was traveling further (let him have the Tesla) and it totally confused one of Jen's Zumba ladies who thought someone else was at the church when she didn't she the traditional vehicle, but this "muscle car".  The Charger needed its registration renewed ... oops, that's still on the to do list!
• Food: Jen continues to make sourdough, several loaves every week (about a dozen). She tried making bagels for the first time, and Cooper has been creating homemade breakfast sandwiches. Coop also tried his hand at making a cheese ball (Gray had been grabbing them from the store, a favorite snack). There were snickerdoodles and homemade pizza ... Gray bought ANOTHER pizza oven (we now have three). 

We all started the month with HAIL ... it was a crazy storm. The next weekend it was HALE, as Olivia had invited Jen to go see Hello Dolly there. Aunt Olivia also came over and did a haircut housecall. Landon shaved off his beard ... for a bit, it's already back!  Jen had two bookclub meetups ... the books were The Measure (recommend this one) and Mrs. Mike. 21 books total for the month. 

Here's a look back at the month live - one second style

https://youtu.be/i1gdDaBoE00

Golf Guys

 

Grayson had a work golf tourney ... he's not a big golfer but figured he'd support Symphony's Rob, who is head of the HBA. He invited Landon to join (Landon has been entertaining at LKL and thought golf skills/experience might come in handy). Both guys came back with red necks after the sun sans sunscreen. 

There were stations set up at the various holes ... Gray took a moment to snap a selfie (ussie) there by the WCF one and sent it to Scottie. Other than some exhaustion, there were no injuries.

Gray had been utilizing ChatGPT for his activity summaries for Symphony. He asked Chat CPT to write a short satirical ode to four sojourners set off on golf’s long travail. Prompts ... Brandon, Landon, Grayson and Cole. 18 long holes. Birdies but few. Long balls so many. Brandon’s boonie on fleek. Cole’s driver so sleek. Landon’s attire so chic. Golf cart stuck in reverse. Will this course never end?

Oh, gather 'round and listen close,

To the tale of four golfers who dared to impose,

Upon a course, a challenge so grand,

But little did they know, things would get out of hand.

Brandon, Landon, Grayson, and Cole,

Embarked on a journey, with golf as their goal,

But birdies were scarce, lost balls aplenty,

Their dreams of glory, vanishing gently.

Brandon's boonie on fleek, oh so stylish,

But his swing, oh dear, it was quite childish,

The ball flew astray, no direction in sight,

As he adjusted his hat, full of false delight.

Cole, with his sleek driver, oh so pristine,

Believed he was destined for a golfing queen,

But alas, his shots went amiss, far and wide,

His dreams of triumph, quickly defied.

Landon, in attire so chic, so refined,

But his fashion sense couldn't save his scoreline,

As the ball rolled and tumbled, lost in the rough,

He realized fashion couldn't make his game tough.

And poor Cole, what a sight to behold,

His golf cart stuck in reverse, a tale untold,

He revved and he struggled, but no progress he made,

As he cursed his luck, his plans began to fade.

Will this course never end? they groaned and they sighed,

As the hours dragged on, their patience was tried,

The lost balls, the misfires, the cart stuck in reverse,

The golfing gods surely had them under a curse.

But amidst the chaos, a lesson was learned,

That golf is a game where fortunes are turned,

With humor and laughter, they persevered,

Their misadventures, memories revered.

So raise your clubs and toast to this crew,

Brandon, Landon, Grayson, and Cole, so true,

For in their golfing travails, a bond did form,

And though the course seemed endless, their spirits were warm.

A look at Landon in 2023 (above) ... and a flashback to his younger years in 2009 (below).

Tulips - Thanksgiving Point

 

Totally out of the blue on Friday, May 12, Grayson texted asking if I had anything going on that day. I'm pretty open. I thought maybe he needed me home for a delivery but he proposed a trip to Thanksgiving Point to see the tulips. We the colder spring, the Tulip Festival had been extended later into May, and there were lots of blooms. 

Like last year, there was a Dutch theme, with wooden shoes hidden throughout the walkways, and a couple spots with big shoes for picture taking poses.  

We had gone to the Tulips in 2022 too.

... and a family tulip trip back in 2011.

Check out Cal and Kate's 2022 trip to Holland.

Keaton's Corner

 

Keaton had been thinking he'd like to try this "adulting" thing and get a place of his own. After looking at apartment possibilities for a few months, he found one he liked and signed a lease. He's not far, about 10 minutes away in South Jordan, just a little NorthEast of the Oquirrh Mountain Temple.  It's a house, and he's in a newly finished basement apartment. It doesn't feel like a basement though, there is a lot light. He has off-street parking, then he walks around the side of the house to a rear entrance. 

Here's a peek at the inside ...

Home Sweet Keaton Home.

MS Walk~ Team Ana

 

Last year Grayson's sister Ana was diagnosed with MS. Multiple Sclerosis.  It's a tough diagnosis and disease, but Ana has been doing better now that they know what the problem is and getting treatment. When there was a local MS walk, we decided to participate as a family. 

It was Saturday, May 6th. We got up and headed out with most of the crew (Colton had basketball practice, and I don't know if we'd remembered to tell Cal and Kate about it). Courtney came with the two boys (Clay had church obligations but was able to come at the very end, bringing Milo) and Olivia came with Ana's family. If you donated a certain amount, you got a bright orange t-shirt. There was a big Start/Finish but the walk itself wasn't super specific. It was just a loop (or two, or three) around Veteran's Memorial Park in West Jordan. There were lots of informational booths set up, and games and a band, and people cheering everyone on. 

Here's just a quick peek at the morning ...

The weather was nice. It was a little cool. It rained later in the day, and we were glad it held off until after the event. 

2023 ~ May Recap

 Memories from May ... 

• Jen's Medical: The head is healing ... it's a pretty big/bad scar this time, that not even a lot of hair covers up all the way. It's been a little tough getting back to the exercise and eating. Walks on the treadmill and Zumba have been fine (there was even an evening Zumba session with the Young Women), with pickleball added back in. A tetanus shot was needed near the end of the month after some gardening ended with an encounter with a rusty piece of metal ... and the day after that Jen was hit with dizzies and nausea. Couldn't get out of bed for the whole day (500 steps on the Fitbit). Hoped it was a one day thing, but it stuck around for about a week, getting only slightly better each day. But it was a solid week without leaving the house, and not leaving the bed much. Missed out on Colton's Wolves basketball tournament :(
• Car Stuff: Gray's truck wouldn't start mid-month ... and luckily we're in a pretty good situation with Coop/Jen able to share the Durango, so Grayson was able to take the Tesla while the truck was in the shop. Landon has been driving a work vehicle for a while, but with the divorce final and the house sold, he was in a good spot financially to finally get a car. It's a  2023 Toyota Camry - and it's RED! In addition to Colton's Charger having the spoiler ripped off at the car wash (and that's not something they claim responsibility for) his front license plate gets bent every time he goes through. He installed a plate frame to help with that issue before it broke off completely.
• Ice Ice Baby: Our icemaker in the freezer has been having issues for a long while. Sometimes it would work fine, then other times ... nothing. Then it would drop some ice cubes and pour water directly over them creating a big, solid block. We are super spoiled with out nice commercial pebbled ice maker, but we want the bigger cubes too. I called for repair ... it took FIVE trips. But we have ice again. Finally.
• Keaton's Corner: Keaton moved into his place back in March. Not many photos were taken the first day, and we hadn't been back to see him settled, until now. So if you wanted to see his spot, you can check out the blog post HERE. 
• Blackham Bunch Activities: The Blackham's got together for an MS Walk at Veteran's Memorial Park, super close by! You can read a little more about it HERE. We also gathered to try out Clay's new pizza oven (the WJ Blackham's have a couple ovens that have been used quite a bit the last year or so). The dessert pizza was a hit!
• A Trip to the Tulips: Gray surprised Jen with a day date to see the tulips at Thanksgiving Point ... with the cooler weather, there were still a lot in bloom later in May. You can see photos HERE. 
• Mother's Day: A lovely bouquet of flowers. It was drizzling, but we did a little family pickleball in the rain. Cal and Kate had been gone but got back in time to drop by in the evening.
• Pickleball: We've been hitting the pickleball courts each week. Originally Keaton had said he didn't care for the game as much, but he's become one of our regulars as well. He has a crazy lob! So there are five regulars (Jen, Coop, Landon, Cal and Keaton) and once in a while we get Gray and Colton out too. Jen also plays once a week with the relief society ladies, and went with a friend to an evening session in Murray. 
• Basketball: Colton had a tournament with the WJ Jags the first week of May. Jen's still been cautious (especially in the evenings, driving and going out alone) and so Landon accompanied her to the first game, Keaton was the chauffer for a late Friday night game (the boys had a great comeback). Colton has still been practicing with Metro and with Coach Scott. He had a final tournament with the Wolves (they won the championship) and Cal's men's league has started up again, and Colton has been filling in there when they need an extra man. 
• Hiking Hubs:  Grayson's hiking adventures were mentioned in the April update, and the dedicated blog post about all his activities has been updated. New hikes, pictures, maps, there's even a haiku and new lyrics to a hit song (with a little help from ChatGPT). Scroll down HERE to see the latest updates. 
• Books! Jen's Bookclub read(s) this month were Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk (had a bit of a "To Kill a Mockingbird" feel. Wrote a lot on the GoodReads review!) and The Measure by Nikki Erlick (what would happen if everyone over the age of 22 suddenly had the choice to see how long they had to live?) Tons of discussion ideas on this one. Horse by Geraldine Brooks was another favorite.
• ByeBye Beta: Colton had received a little Beta fish last year (an answer/ask to a date/dance). The kitties loved to drink out of the beta bowl (ewww, fishy poop) and one day I found the bowl knocked over and poor Beta exposed. I scooped him up and put him in water, and he was alive, but never quite the same after that. It was a bit of a relief when he was out of his misery, and flushed. 
• Cal&Kate: It was a busy month for these two. They had a weekend away in St. George, then a trip to Oregon. Kate also had a birthday!

School was wrapping up as the month ended ... so things will shift into a summer schedule for the next few months.  Here's a look at a month of memories one second style ...

https://youtu.be/PTgKoSoepcM

My Hiking Hubs

Symphony Homes, and the Health Insurance provider EMI have a hiking challenge going ... "Beginning April 1st and ending on September 30th, all members of EMI Health’s medical insurance are invited to lace up those hiking boots and get on the trails! The goal is simple: complete 20 hikes before the season is over."

Grayson got going!

Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve - San Diego, California

Three mile hike from the trailhead to beach, then along the beach back to the trailhead.

Gray and Landon had gone on a quick getaway to SanDiego. In a text to me, Gray wrote "I think I may have set the wrong expectation on this one" (to Landon) "I called it a walk, or a mile hike."  Gray had done a six mile run in the morning, and added the three mile hike to that, and was topping 20k in steps. I mentioned Cooper was close to catching him in steps .... Grayson said "he better not" ... oops! April 21, 2023

Adam's Canyon

From Grayon's email to me and to the Symphony challenge... "ZLichtie and I reporting in on conditions in Adam’s Canyon this morning – brisk and icy – but exquisite nonetheless. Hike was 4 miles and in better conditions we would have been done at least 20 minutes faster. We. Needed. Spikes. On our shoes. There was much slipping and sliding. Coming down was not fun. I do want to do this one again but prepared. Good start to the day. A hike can be pretty cathartic."  April 28, 2023.

Orson Smith Trail to the Bear Canyon Suspension Bridge

Weather report – a far cry from Monday earlier in the week. Cool bridge and overlook – enough climb to get your heart rate up. Saturday, April 29.

Living Room Lookout Trail

Not a long hike but almost entirely uphill to the overlook. Downhill was a quad-killer – rubbery legs for the rest of the day. Weather Report – perfect. Sunday, April 30, 2023

South Deuel Creek Trail

Creek flow is very heavy – and beautiful. All bridges were cross-able with only some sketchiness. Trail condition is great up to the rope swing. The rope swing itself seems to be ready for the coming season of swingers (that sounds weird now that I read that back). We trekked past the swing about 3/4 mile and end up in mucho snow before we turned around. All in all, an excellent hike. Bonus: about 1/2 mile up (give or take) springing up from the base of the canyon is an absolutely exquisite tree in bloom. The attached pic doesn’t do it justice in any way. You have to go see it. And unfortunately the blooms will probably be gone in very short order.

Viewmont V 

Conditions – very, very schwetty. Excellent views of the valley and our Great Salt Lake puddles . Since the “peace” sign is the official BeWell hand symbol (don’t look at me funny, I’m just following the book), it seemed a fitting hike for the theme. So yeah…..and done.

Bountiful Lake Loop

Conditions – W-E-T. I tacked this “hike” on with a morning run directly out of the office. About 1/3 of the trail is under water so I was doing some serious high-knees through much of it and returned with sopping shoes. Listed at 6’ of elevation gain, yes, SIX FEET, this one was a grunt. Luckily it was breezy keeping any mosquitoes away. Probs won’t be recommending this one even though it’s on the list of suggested hikes. My suggestion…..skip it.

Wild Rose Loop

Above North Salt Lake

Conditions – Perfect. Cool and fresh from some light rail the night before. Greenification is still in the works. Numerous options on this jaunt that can extend from 40 minutes to well over an hour, if you want. Great views of our stomping grounds in Davis County. Unfortunately, no roses, wild or otherwise, to be seen.

Ensign Peak via Bonneville Shoreline Trail

May 10 ... Hammered out 6.35 miles with Zac dragging my sorry carcass to the finish. Speaking of carcass, the elk or deer remains on the trail certainly got our attention wondering who’s dinner this was and if we were next. On our return trip to Tunnel Springs Park, the photo ops were in FULL BLOOM – grads, engagement, bridal, missionary….what have you. They are were all there. While the views are mostly urban and less mountain-y, this was a great loop. The city overlooks are worth a glance. Trail conditions were perfect.

Farmington Creek

May 13 ... Farmington Creek Trail 

This oft-forgotten trail needs its minute. 2023 may be its year and quite possibly not have another year like it. Why, you ask? The falls……Oh. Em. Gee…..the FALLS. Neither my verbosity nor any picture will help. This hike is worth its ending. Hard stop. To summarize some info: The actual trailhead is about one mile above the Farmington Canyon gate which is currently closed/locked and will probably remain that way for another month, plus or minus. There’s a parking lot right below the gate. Park it there and start walking. Because Zac-Attack is an animal and takes no prisoners, he made me park at Farmington Pond and add another mile to our jaunt. Because of course. At the first switchback in the road you break off to the trailhead. The greenification of the canyon is still a work in progress. Not sure what bug we encountered but it was def worth a close up. Along the path, the tale of casualties coming from the road above is told by the vehicular carcasses still on display at the canyon floor. R.I.P. whoever was inside whence they descended. For those who will venture out on this hike, waterproof hiking shoes or better yet, hiking boots are invaluable. There are 3 stream crossings which I would call small, medium and large. Being able to get into water at least ankle deep will make your voyage a bit easier. About 2 miles from the trailhead you reach it….your destination….your purpose for being there that day. The Falls. Here’s the kicker – to get down to the base of the falls where you can really take in the proportions…..nay, its majesty… there are two routes: Rope descent – not a rappel but marvelously sketchy nonetheless. Muddy switchback – not as bad as it sounds as it will be drying a little bit everyday and making it much more passable. The choice is yours. The payoff, if you don’t tumble down the hill into the raging rapids below, is beyond any description. And I shall not attempt one. Now you can wait until the gate is opened in a few weeks and park right at the trailhead. But you risk the waterflow dropping to a more normal level. To reiterate….the pics just don’t capture it. Real life is the only way to experience it.

Here's a little video (https://youtu.be/py9WbQxqb7Q)

Parrish Creek

May 16 ... Gonna go ahead and say cross this one off your list unless self-punishment is part of your regimen. Parrish Creek Trail (not to be confused with Parrish Creek Pictographs Trail).  A tad over 6 miles. Over 2000 feet of elevation gain. Scenery and views decent but no climactic ending point. Just a heave almost the whole way. Note to self: no more light grey shorts. There’s a reason I wear black. Won’t going into details.

Fun fact: I did not know that Milk Duds grew naturally in the wild. A tad bitter at this stage, so I’m guessing they need to ripen a little bit. But Jon Olson will be relieved to know he no longer needs to spend absurd amounts of money when he can harvest them naturally in the foothills of Davis County.

To reiterate….proceed at own risk! GB Out.

Mueller Park - Elephant Rock

I asked Gray how they got the cool shot (below) of them on the rock from a distance. He said that Zac spotted a biker who had just arrived at the point where you start the scramble to the rock. We yelled up to him and he obliged. Then we scrambled back to the trail so he could text it to us. Even the full images aren’t particularly good quality but they were much better than nothing.

This was May 25, and here's Grayson's write up for the work competition ...

So I said to ChatGPT, I says…. “Write a satirical haiku poem about our hike on Mueller Park Trail to Elephant Rock” (I am not responsible for this content. Blame ChatGPT. I’m just the messenger)

Perfect day to hike,

Zac and Grayson hit the trail,

Fashion show begins.

Zac, hot and stylish,

Hiking gear on fleek, they say,

Nature's catwalk star.

Seven miles conquered,

1099 feet uphill,

But Zac steals the show.

Elephant Rock waits,

Scrambling to a fierce pose,

Overlooking views.

Fashion-forward hike,

Zac, the trail's top model,

Nature's runway won.

 

Deuel Creek - Attempt

May 26 ... with a crew of five. Creek had overrun one of its crossings. We couldn’t find an alternate. Had to back out. Bummer. Decided on breakfast instead. Again, Grayson turned to ChatGPT...

Grayson completed the hike himself a few days later.

Bell's Canyon

Gray hit Bell's Canyon in Sandy on May 21 (alone) and then again on May 28 with Landon. Landon has been getting into hiking now too. Grayson doesn't want to dominate the Symphony hiking challenge, so he's not even submitting all his hikes. No clever write up for this one. 

Over Memorial Day Weekend, Gray and Zac hit three different trails ...

... more HIKING in JUNE/JULY 2023 and in AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2023