We were awoken very early, when it was barely light, by very loud birds at our campsite. Since we knew we had to be up very early for the mule rides, neither one of us could sleep once we woke up. We had to be at the Grand Canyon Lodge at 7:25am, and we figured even from the closer campground it would take about an hour to get there. That meant leaving the campground at 6:25am. Usually it only takes about a half an hour for us to break down camp if we have breakfast in the car, but we wanted to make warm corn beef hash for breakfast which would take a little bit more time. So Bree set her phone alarm for 5:45am, local (mountain standard) time. So when the birds woke us up and it was light, we figured it was time to get up. We broke down camp and found it to be painfully cold. The whole tent was wet with dew and much of it had frosted over. We decided it was better to eat dry cereal in a warm car than warm breakfast in the cold open air.
We were packed up and headed to the entrance of the park by 6:25am. The meadows were covered by low lying clouds and much of them were frosted. We watched the thermometer in the car drop as we drove, finally settling around 33 degrees. It was very very cold outside, thank goodness for seat warmers! We got to the lodge at 7:05am, figuring earlier was better, we hung around for awhile looking for other mule riders. We had been told to meet in front of the lodge gift shop, which was off to the side of the lodge, and wear long pants. There were only a few people wandering around, none in pants and none where we were supposed to meet. The woman that had taken our money for the trip had told us to meet there at 7am if we hadn't paid yet so we figured she had to be there. We checked at the desk and no one was there either. We started to get worried around 7:30am and Bree finally asked at the concierge desk if they knew anything about the mule rides. The concierge provided the same information we had been given, meet at 7:25am in front of the gift shop, a large white van that said "mule rides" would pick us up. Bree told her thanks but it was 7:30am and there was no one there. The concierge calmly explained (although you could tell she was tired of doing so) that the Grand Canyon was on Arizona time, which is Mountain Standard Time, but, Arizona doesn't observe Daylight Savings Time. Which means when we thought it was 7:30am, it was 6:30am. So that meant that not only had we waited around for a half an hour, we were still an hour early!
We were cold, having not brought a sweatshirt thinking it would warm up, so we went back to the car. Mike read his book and Bree played her DS Scrabble for an hour or so in the warm car. By the time we headed back, there was a large group of long pants wearing tourists talking about mule riding. And sure enough, there was a large white van that said "mule rides," by Canyon Trail Rides. A young boy and a man in full cowboy gear (stetson, cowboy boots, chaps, plaid shirt and vest) welcomed us and got us into the van. On the way to the trail head we heard a recorded safety message about how to ride the mule and what not to do. Mike was nervous the whole time, he had never been on a horse or a mule and wasn't sure about it.
We road to the North Kaibob trail head, the only trail that goes into the canyon from the north rim. The mules were hitched up in a pen and were larger than we had expected. Mules are sterile offspring of horses and donkeys. They have attributes of both that are advantageous for trail guiding. Apparently the larger ears of a donkey help to let heat dissipate, like rabbit ears. Mule eyes are also oriented like a donkey's which allow the mule to see all four of its feet at the same time. Their shoulders make incline walking easier for them than horses. They can live over thirty years to forty years and even though they may want to stop pulling large loads in their twenties, like many work animals, they have to keep working at least a little or they will die soon after retirement.
We were split into two groups and the main guide sized us up to pair us with the "right" mule. It is tricky because they wanted to keep groups together, so they had to be mindful of what mules followed/ led other mules well. And they had to put the right mule under each person. There were easily 50 mules and the guides knew the names of all of them and their personalities. "You'll get Flex, you on Fred. You've ridden before? You get Woody," etc. Mike and I were at the end, Bree was given Blue and Mike was given Dolly, both female. We were helped up and told how to steer the mules. The mules are specifically trained on the trail and can follow each other down without rider assistance, but they like to have you back up the training. You pull the right hand rein to steer right, and the same for the left. Pulling back on both means stop. You were supposed to lean back in your seat with your toes pointed up and your heels down on the way down the trail, then lean forward on the way up. If the mules were falling behind, you had to kick them with both heels. It was dangerous to fall too far behind the other mules because then they would want to catch up eventually and trot too fast.
As we started down the trail, we each paused for our souvenir photograph. It was tough at first, until we got used to being in the saddle. At the head of the North Kaibob Trail there is a large sign that warns hikers that if you come upon mules, wait to the right and listen for instructions from the mule guide. It was a large sign, one would think you couldn't miss it.
We started down the trail, it switchbacks all the way down into the canyon 2300 feet to the Supai Tunnel. On the way down, Bree had the video camera and Mike had the small (durable) digital. We were the last two mules in the train and Mike's mule Dolly had trouble keeping up. The guide actually had to come tell Mike to be more stern with Dolly to make her keep up. After that she was better. The view on the way down was amazing, we took video, you could clearly see the change in the rock layers along the trail. Our guide stopped us ocassionally to show us formations and tell us facts about mules.
If you aren't always around large animals, you forget about the smells and bodily functions. Like horses, mules poop anywhere and alot. It was strange to look down on the trail, knowing that other visitors would walk down the trail. And as we came around one corner, a mule in front of us started to pee. The term, "I have to pee like a horse," is based on fact as far as we can tell. It was odd to see a mule spread its legs and drop a few gallons. It was quite a surprise when we saw the next mule stop and do the same, then a few mules didn't, then another one did. At most corners, at least two would pee and create a mud puddle you would want to avoid. Later, our guide told us it was prey animal behavior. We thought it was like a dog, marking territory, but that is predatory animal behavior. Apparently prey animals will hold it until they cross a point where they smell another of their own and then they will pee there. That way they are able to hide their numbers from predators. The guide told us that this is something they cannot help and you just have to wait til they're done.
We continued on the trail and crossed a few hikers. The first couple came up on us, luckily, when we were stopped. They walked past, carrying supplies and startled the lead guide's mule. We had been told not to remove hats or jackets without someone holding the mule because they can easily startle. Since they are prey animals, they are naturally paranoid and will run when anything flashes in front of them. The lead guide's mule was being trained and was young, it was particularly startled by the camper's water jug, which was sloshing and making all kinds of noise.
We continued past Coconino Point, where most easy day hikers turn around, to Supai Tunnel. The trail continues to Supai Tunnel, which was blasted through when the trail was first blazed to reach the water down in the canyon. Its farther down, 1.8 mi down the trail, a 1450 feet elevation change, and would make a tough hike. There was a place to hitch the mules so we could get down and get some pictures and water. Our guide took us through the tunnel to show us the view of canyon and see the rest of the trail. There is a bridge that the guide said a lot of inexperienced hikers try to make it to and back in a day and often get stuck on the way back up. Some marathon and triathalons runners train on the trail and one holds the record for the fastest time from North Rim to South Rim of 3 hours and seven minutes.
We let the mules rest and then headed back up. We had to stop a few times to let the mules rest, uphill is harder than downhill for them just like us. When we stopped, we were able to take pictures. On the way up we were also introduced to another large animal behavior we weren't used to, flatulence. The entire way up was like our very own wind ensemble. Apparently Mike's mule had had that problem the entire way down but no one had heard because he was in the back. It made it even more uncomfortable for hikers following us.
As we got up to the top of the trail, we dismounted and thanked our guide. We were given official looking certificates that we were "muleteers." We also got our souvenir photographs on the bus of us and our mules. We road back to the lodge and got to our car around 11am. We headed straight to Zion National Park.
It took us only about two and a half hours to get Zion National Park, back in Utah so we had to switch our clocks again. We entered from the East exit and had to wait in a long line at the park entrance. As we waited, we tuned into the AM station for park information. It turns out they have implemented a shuttle for the most popular road in Zion, and you cannot drive your own car on it. We followed a large line of cars down a single lane each way winding in and around rock formations. We learned later we were on the Carmel Highway, and it is quite a road. It was built in the 20's and has a mile long tunnel through solid sandstone. There are amazing views along the way but not a lot of places to stop. Along the way, we saw what we thought was a mountain goat on the side of the road. Later we realized it was probably a big horn sheep, which Mike had wanted to see the entire trip. He would often jokingly call for them on hikes, saying "Bbbbaaaa" as we walked. The road switchbacks as it lowers your elevation and you finally come to a T in the road. To the north is the Zion Canyon Road, which only shuttle buses are allowed on, and to the south is the visitor center, a museum and the south entrance.
We went to the south to stop at the Visitor Center and barely found a parking place. Apparently, in the summer it is often so packed that you cannot park in the park itself and have to park in a nearby town. There is a separate shuttle bus that goes to the town and back all day. We found a spot and were instantly hit with the typical tourist of Zion park. It was a whole family of large boisterous people complaining of heat, walking, each other, parking, etc. We tried to get as far as possible from them and headed to the visitor center. The visitor center is environmentally oriented and was specifically designed to take advantage of the seasonal changes at Zion. It has this amazing baffle tower system with water in it that cools the inside in the summer and keeps it warmer in the winter.
We got our stamp in the passport book, our last one of the trip and it was only then that we realized some of our stamps were in the wrong section. Utah was in a different section from Nevada and Arizona. It bothered Mike that they were in the wrong section so we plan on scanning and pasting them in the right spot.
From the visitor center we got onto a shuttle and headed north into Zion Canyon. There are several stops for hikes and exhibits. It was over 100 degrees and being late in the day, we decided not to do any longer trails. Like the Grand Canyon, there were a few hikes less than a mile and a bunch over 5 miles. The shuttle had a prerecorded narration that pointed out sights and gave us a bit of history on the park. We got off at the Court of Patriarchs and took a short (100 yards) hike to the view point. The Patriarchs are three large mountains named Abraham Peak (6890ft), Isaac Peak (6825ft), and Jacob Peak (6831ft) – named for three towering figures of the Old Testament.
We got back on the shuttle and headed north to the Weeping Rock stop. There was a short hike, a mile round trip, up to the Weeping Rock. Its half a mile straight up, with stops along the way with flora and fauna signs. There were wild grape vines, and variations of oak and maple. When we got to Weeping Rock, we learned that it was sandstone above and shale underneath. Water went through the hundreds of feet of sandstone above because its porous and when it hits the shale, which is not porous, the water seeps out along the horizontal barrier. Experts say that the water took 1,200 years to move through the sandstone! The water gets all over everything, so there are handrails everywhere. On the way down, Bree had to walk behind a guy that stopped on the stairs. She tried to step to the side and ended up stepping right into a large divet on the stairs, spraining her ankle. The hike back down was a bit slower, Mike called her gimpy.
After we got back to the shuttle stop, we continued on the shuttle north to the very last stop in the Zion Canyon. The Zion Canyon narrows at the north end and if you follow the Virgin River up into the north end of the canyon its called the Narrows. We took the shuttle back south, each of us on a different side of the shuttle so that we could get pictures of everything. We stopped at the museum on the way back and watched a short video on the park and its history. Apparently, everything had an original Native American name until the Mormon settlers came and renamed everything. Other names that were not biblical, were definitely not accepting in nature. For example, the Altar of Sacrifice, is a large mountain that has distinct red stains on the side from water filled with iron. But the Mormons named it as such thinking the Native Americans sacrificed on the peak. All the renaming annoyed Bree.
We got back to our car around 6:00pm, and were quite done with Zion. It was very commercial and very busy. It was hot and with Bree's ankle we couldn't hike anything. We gave up and decided to go to our hotel. We plugged the address into our GPS and were surprised that it said we would arrive at 6:20pm, considering it said it was 6:18pm. Turns out, if you go out the south exit, you are immediately in the neighboring town of Springdale. Springdale is where we were told to park and catch the shuttle if we couldn't find parking. It was less than a mile to our hotel from the visitor center.
Mike got us checked in and we went up to our room to settle in. Bree blogged and uploaded some pictures as she iced her ankle. We showered and headed downstairs to a burger shack attached to the hotel. The owner had just opened and was originally from Vacaville, so he knew where we from. The food was great and the owner was great, always checking on us. It seemed like his business was going well because as we were finishing up, over a dozen teenagers came in and racked up a huge order.
We went back up to the room and relaxed as Bree iced her foot. We're undecided if we're going to try to head back in one day or make it two.
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