Meadow Hot Springs

As we typically do, we had our November campout this year at a hot springs.  It's getting hard to find hot springs that aren't crowded and rowdy so I don't know how long we'll be able to keep this up, but we'll enjoy it while we can.

Meadow Hot Springs is on private land, but the owner has allowed people to come onto his land to have access to the springs.  It's a pool approximately 25 feet long and 10-15 feet wide, with a deeper spot in the middle, and one spot that drops down 20 feet.  It's always a challenge for the boys and leaders to try to make it to the bottom of the hole, so we bring glow sticks and tie small rocks to them and drop them down.  There isn't really room for more than one or two people in the hole, so that way we know if they make it to the bottom or not.  Not everyone is up to swimming down 20 feet into a dark hole, so we don't push, but those that do it enjoy the challenge.  This year only one boy and myself made it to the bottom.

This year we camped in the backyard of a friend, in Fillmore, and after dinner donned our swimming suits and drove to the parking lot.  It's a quarter mile hike from the parking lot to the springs - cold hike for those of us hiking in swimsuits and sandals as we sloshed through the mud puddles left over from the melting snow!  So the water felt great!  Unfortunately this year there were 2 scout troops camped at the parking lot, so we knew we were in for a busy night!  Luckily not long after we got to the springs, the other two troops cleared out for dinner so we had an hour or so by ourselves.

After awhile the locals started showing up with bikini's and beer, and our boys decided it was best to leave.  Good for them!  So we left the place to the newcomers and went back to camp for a campfire, hot chocolate and bed.

The next morning we played quadball - which is a cross between soccer, rugby, football, and something else, hockey maybe?  It was a lot of fun!  Then we packed up and went home.

Good trip, but does anyone know of another hot springs that we can go to next year that won't be as busy?  We've done Diamond Fork, and Crystal in years past.

Timpanogos Peak Hike

First off, this wasn't a campout. We tried this last year and got rained out, but the other problem was that we had full packs, plus we were carrying our scout with Spina Bifida so everyone got tired too quick.  This year we decided to do the whole thing in one day with day packs.

I've always been up there when the flowers were in bloom, but this time the flowers were all gone.  Luckily the trees were turning colors and were awesome!

We did carry our scout with Spina Bifida with us in the carrier that was made for that purpose.  It was an awesome experience!  Some of our stronger scouts were unable to come, so we invited some adults to come help us, and we couldn't have made it without them.  They were great!

It was a challenge!  We only made it to the saddle and back (14 of the 16 miles), and we were at the trailhead at 7AM, and didn't get back till after 9PM!  But it is challenge that the scouts need (and us adults) to keep us progressing and feeling accomplishment!  I'd so rather go on a long hard hike and be able to enjoy the beautiful sights we saw on this one than to be lazy and sit at home and get nothing done!

Boys these days need to get that urge to feel accomplishment. So that they will work towards accomplishing things.  Too many of them are just coasting along with no direction or goal in mind.

High Adventure 2012 - Escalante

Looking down the Hole in the Rock

This year for High Adventure we went down to the Escalante Utah area.  Last year we learned about the Hole in the Rock Pioneers (Click HERE for more info on the pioneers), and were able to hike up the San Juan Hill.  This year we decided to go down to the actual Hole in the Rock carved out by the Pioneers to get down to the Colorado River.  They had walked for miles in search of a place where they could get down the cliffs surrounding the Colorado River to cross it, and had only found a crack, barely wide enough for wagons that dropped over 2,000 feet to the river!  They spent weeks blasting and chiseling out a path down the crack before they started taking their wagons down.  Coming from an Engineer, it was an Engineering Marvel!

Just to get down to the hole in the rock you have to drive 60 miles down a dirt road (4x4 is suggested, you may be able to make it in 2 wheel drive, but you'd have to be careful).  We stopped off at Devils Garden to let the boys (and adults) climb around and explore - it was a blast! Then we stopped at Dance Hall Rock for lunch.  That's where the Pioneers held dances to relieve their stress and relax a little on their journey.

Dance Hall Rock

The actual Hole in the Rock was a challenge because of the heat (it was in the upper 90's the day we did it). We were climbing down the crack, going over and around boulders with Lake Powell in view at the bottom. Our boy with Spina Bifida did this hike as well, and since it wasn't safe to take him in the Scout Carrier that was created to carry him around, he had to hike it on his own feet this time.  It was a challenge for him, but it was awesome to see his fellow scouts helping him all along the way and making sure he could make it.

Once we got to the bottom we of course jumped in Lake Powell, but wished it was a high mountain lake instead.  Lake Powell is very warm water!  We were searching for the cold spots in the lake to cool off.  It was refreshing, but it would have been so much better if the water was 10-20 degrees cooler!

Then we had the hike back up.  Again, it was challenging, and it was hot, but it was a little nicer since we started off wet (though that really only lasted the first 1/3 of the climb).

We also did two non-technical canyons on the trip, Spooky and Peek-a-boo canyons.  They're right next to each other (about 26 miles back down that Hole in the Rock dirt road), so we hiked up Peek-a-boo and back down Spooky.  They were really pretty canyons, with lots of cool formations!  Spooky was really narrow too, so that was fun!

Another day we did Lower and Upper Calf Creek Falls.  Lower Calf Creek Falls requires a 3.5 mile each way hike through sand.  It was a challenge, but it was so worth it when we got to the falls!  The water is so cold you can't stay in it long, but it was so refreshing!

Lower Calf Creek Falls

Upper Calf Creek Falls is more like 1.5 miles each way but involves more elevation change.  Both were so refreshing to jump into and swim around!  On each of these we used our scout carrier and took turns carrying to make sure we all made it.

We camped the whole time up at Posy Lake, which is 17 miles north of Escalante, up at 8,000 feet in elevation.  We didn't want to be stuck trying to sleep in 90 degree weather, so we opted to drive the extra distance in order to get a good nights sleep. It was worth it!

Little Sahara Sand Dunes Campout

So for April we drove down to Little Sahara Sand Dunes for our monthly campout.  We planned to play capture the flag, explore the dunes and experience an 800 foot tall sand hill!

Unfortunately during this trip we saw how dependent our scouts are on us - and we've facilitated the whole dependency!  Our older scouts were so willing to help in whatever needed to be done, that the younger ones have gotten used to not needing to help.  Now that the older scouts are moving on, we're going with just the younger ones that aren't used to helping out in the kitchen and such.  We try and try to get them to help out in the kitchen but they're lazy!  I need to clarify that not all of them are, but a good majority are.  One of the boys we asked to wash dishes after dinner (just one pot and a ladle) didn't know what to do.  He said that it's his sisters job to do the dishes at home, so he's never done it!  I had to show him exactly what to do in order to get it done!  We had to hound the boys to work together to get their tents set up and taken down.

So we've decided to do things a little differently next time - the way it should be done.  We're going to let them plan out the meals, and the cooking and cleaning schedule - and post it so all know what their jobs are.  We're not going to hound them about setting up their tents - if they don't get them set up they will just have to sleep under the stars.  We'll be available for consultation, but will let them run the show.  I've gotten into the habit of planning out the activities and such, and end up doing the kitchen stuff so that we will have time for the activities.  Next time I'll let them plan it all out and if we don't have time for the activities that's just too bad.

Wish me luck.

Gravel Pit Camping

So, we didn't plan on staying in a gravel pit, we planned on going to Little Sahara Sand Dunes.  But when the day came, and the forecast was for 40-60 mph winds out at the dunes, we decided we didn't really want to get sand blasted the whole time.  So we went to scrambled last minute and decided on Stansbury Island in the Great Salt Lake.

We drove around for over an hour trying to find a place where the wind would be blocked by part of the island, but the best we could find was a spot in the gravel pits on the south end of the island.  It was still pretty windy, but at least it wasn't blowing sand around like it would have been at the dunes.  Unfortunately with the change so late in the game we didn't have the best plans for activities.  The boys favorite pastime at the gravel pit was throwing rocks at the gravel wall, trying to make bigger rocks fall down.  I wasn't prepared with much more.  We did play capture the flag out there, but that was half hearted since you had to be careful and not trip on all the rocks.

The boys did get another night camping to go towards their camping nights, and boy did they earn it!  The wind picked up quite a bit at night and blew the tents all night long!  None of us slept very well, or very long.  It seemed like, just as I was starting to fall asleep again another big gust would come along and wake me up again. It was a long night, but a good experience for all.

Update on Camping Nights

So, a year ago I posted that I would try to get a year of camping by the time I am 40 years old. Click HERE for the post.  In the post I figured I would have to camp 16 nights per year to make it to my goal.  Guess what?  I camped 19 nights last year!  That's 3 more than my goal!

So I'm on track for my goal, and will keep you posted!

Snow Cave Camp - Feb 2012

Each Snow Cave camp has different challenges and hurdles.  This year our challenges were:

• The road to our usual camping location is closed due to the road being washed away last summer
• Our alternate location has only 2-1/2 feet of snow!

Luckily we were able to schedule the camp out on a day that the scouts didn't have school - so we were able to get an earlier start since we knew we would be shoveling the snow into piles, packing it down and then digging in.

We ended up working together to pile the snow up while 2 people walked on the pile with snow shoes to pack it down.  It was warm enough we were digging in short sleeve shirts to pile the snow up.  Once we got one pile done we moved to the next one and let the first one freeze.  That way by the time we got back to digging the caves out, the snow was set and we didn't have any problems with cave-ins or collapsing the caves.

My snow cave

We were able to get one big enough for 3 boys and another for 2 boys, plus each of the leaders dug their own caves.  Two of the leaders dug a quasi trench/cave.  They dug down to earth and then dug a shallow cave large enough to cover 1/2 of their body.  Then they slept with their legs and body inside the cave and their faces out (with a tarp over).

The Trench/Cave

One of them stayed warm, while the other one was cold.  We'll have to experiment more with them.

Yurt Campout

This year there isn't more than 1" of snow up in the mountains, so we had to forego the traditional snow cave campout.  We decided to try a new experience this time, we rented 2 Yurts (for more info on Yurt's click here). Basically a Yurt is a round "cabin" with canvas walls and a wood floor.  The ones we stayed in had a bunk bed and futon bed.  They had propane heat, and electric light.  Not really roughing it, but the propane heat wasn't enough to really heat the room.  While it was in the low teens outside, the inside was only able to get up to the mid 50's F.  Which in my mind is perfect temperature for camping.

Inside a Yurt

We reserved 2 Yurts, one for the scouts and one for the leaders.  They are located near Rockport Reservoir, but they can be found all over the world.  

We drove to the Yurts, loaded all our stuff inside, and then played touch football out on the lake (9" thick ice with hundreds of people fishing on it).  During dinner we discussed the dangers of crossing the ice, and how to rescue someone who has broken through the ice, and how to survive if you're the one that has broken through. The next day we cleaned up, played football again for a bit and then came home.  

It was a lot different than our snow cave campouts which usually consist of getting to the location, digging till 10pm, eating dinner and going to bed.  In some ways it was nice to have a "fun" campout, but I did miss all the hard work and good sleep that comes from snow cave camping.